9
Volume2 Issue7
|
CDA
at
W
ork
Specialists are an integral part of adental teamanda
necessary part of the professionwhowork in conjunction
withGPs to provide optimal oral health for patients.
Asprofessionals,ormore importantlyashealthcareprofessionalsand
doctors,weput theneedsofourpatientsaheadofourown.
It couldbe saidwehaveafiduciary-like
responsibility: adutyof care, anethical
dutyandadutyof loyalty toour patients
inmuch the samewaydirectorsdo to the
organizations they represent.Weareheld
accountable. Dentists continue toenjoy
self-regulation in theprovinceofOntario
becauseour regulatorybodydoes the same
in fulfilling its responsibilityandmandate to
protect thepublic—our patients.
Oftenageneral practitioner (GP) becomes a
“jackof all trades”when it comes to treating
patients, but certainlyGPs arenot the
“master of all.” Thisbringsme to thepoint
of this article: the importanceof specialist
colleagues. Specialists arean integral part
of adental teamandanecessarypart of
theprofessionwhowork inconjunction
withGPs toprovideoptimal oral health for
patients. Unfortunately, thereare instances
whenGPs feel theneed todoeverything
within the scopeof their practice, orworse,
feel fullycapableof treatingall cases in
everydiscipline indentistry— theperceived
“master of all.”
Thereare timeswhenGPs’ clinical
experiencesor their continuingeducation
(a few short courses) provide themwith
a false senseof confidence. Standardsof
practiceexist.Wemust remember thatwe
areall held toa standardof care thatwould
beequivalent to the treatment results
available, or thebest outcome that could
beexpected, relative toour peers, in the
geographical area inwhichwepractise.
Toput it anotherway, I believe that, if
GPs aregoing toprovideany treatment,
especially for themorechallengingand/
or riskycases, treatment outcomes should
beclinicallyacceptableandmoreor less
equal to thoseof a local specialist, if one
exists. This standardbecomes evenmore
important should somethingnot goaswell
asplanned, or shouldacomplaint arise. One
must take intoaccount all of thepotential
risk factors thatmaycomplicate treatment
andadverselyaffect theoutcome. If risk
factors exist thatmaycompromise the
success rate that aGPcannot predictably
overcome, refer. It is in thebest interest of
thepatient, and theGPaswell. Asmy friend,
Dr. KaramAshoo, stated inaCEcoursehe
presented, “Agoodoutcome is theholygrail
of all dental procedures.”Our responsibility
asdentists is todoall thatwecan toensure
agoodoutcome for our patients,whohave
entrusteduswithcaring for their oral health.
Patientsmust leaveyour officebetter off
thanwhen theyarrived.
Specialists areavailable to supportGPs in
dailypractice; theyarenot just there to
bail outGPsor dealwithproblempatients.
Patient +General Practitioner + Specialist =
Happy Ending
Dr.GeraldSmith
Dr. Smith is immediate
past-president of
theOntarioDental
Association (ODA).
Hemaintains ageneral
dentistrypractice in
ThunderBay,Ontario.
