Impressions
How will we know ? by Dr . Stephen T . Radack III , Editor
Many of us knew we wanted to be dentists since we were in high school , or even before .
We worked hard to get the grades to get into a college that had the best track record of placing their graduates in professional schools . Once we arrived at college , it was full steam ahead to get the highest GPA and fulfill all the requirements we would need to get admitted to dental school . I ’ m sure we all knew how many credits we needed , both in total and in the sciences , and the GPA we would need to even be considered for admittance . Then there were dental school applications , interviews and finally that letter of acceptance . The dream was now in reach , and in four years you would be a dentist ! It seems that in a blink of an eye those years were over and we were now out in the world pursuing our dream .
We all had different paths to take once we took off the cap and gown . Many of us were more than happy to be the jack of all trades as general dentists , while some took the specialty path and narrowed their scope of practice to focus on that . As the years passed , we became more confident and “ learned ” to run our practices like the businesses they are . We also shouldered more responsibilities that come with life . We worked hard to pay off the student loans . We may have gotten married and started a family , bought a house , started a college fund for those kids and hopefully saved some of our hard-earned money for the future .
When we are early in our careers and have so many financial obligations , it is hard for many of us to even think about the future , let alone trying to save for it . Hopefully we received good advice and started something . We have all heard of folks who finally got to “ retirement age ” and found they had not saved , or what they did accumulate was not adequate to retire . What will retirement age be ? How will we know ? I suppose most people have an idea in their mind once they start their career when they would hope to finish . That is not always the case due to life changes or even having no idea what you would do if you stopped working or even loving your profession so much you never plan to retire .
I have known folks in all of those categories over the years . When I bought my practice back in 1986 , the seller was 60 and had practiced for 35 years . He worked until the end of that year and was done . Heck , I thought when I started at 25 that a 30-year career sounded good and then I would retire at 55 . That plan seems to have not quite worked out as I had imagined , since I am still here seven years later !
Most of us in private practice always envisioned one day selling our practice and then working with the buying doctor for a short period of time before stepping away . In my corner of the state this no longer seems to be an option due to the shift in where dentists want to practice as well as how they want to practice . As new practice modalities become the norm it may make it easier to leave practice in the future since most are working in groups rather than solo practices .
The question remains , “ how will you know ?” Maybe you are no longer able to practice due to a physical disability . I still remember one of mentors calling me several years ago to let me know he was finally retiring . He made sure to tell me his hands were still good , but his vision was getting bad . He was 91 ! Would we all recognize a limitation and be willing to walk away ? Dentistry is an awesome profession , but dentistry is hard . Dentistry rewards us in many ways , but over the years can also rob us of our health .
So many questions swirl around in our minds as we contemplate that final one . Are we still a dentist if we no longer practice dentistry ? We have interacted with patients and staff for our entire careers and improved the oral health of our patients . Do we lose our purpose if we no longer do that ? Can we just gradually taper our patient load to minimum before we decide to retire , or can we walk out the door while we are still thriving ? Are there days when dentistry no longer brings us joy and there seem to be more bad days than good at the office ? What is the perfect age ?
I know it will not be the same for all of us . But … How will we know ?
— STR3
P . S . - I would like to take a minute and acknowledge the outstanding work by Michelle Berrones , PDA ’ s Digital Media Manager , on the update of our PDA website . I know many of us have had our challenges over the years using padental . org . Michelle and her website review team thoughtfully considered the comments and concerns of members during the redesign process . The result is a user friendly , easy to navigate website that is compatible with any device . Kudos to Michelle ! Don ’ t miss the detailed look at our website refresh process on pp . 10-14 .
MARCH / APRIL 2023 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL 5