A Student Reflects on MOM-n-PA 2019
Another issue that happened in the past was that many
students did not know where to go or who needed help, so
they would just sit in the volunteer area. Along with Dr. Kelly
Holst I was responsible for determining the number of
volunteers that each department would need each day.
Dr. Holst then created a rotation schedule for all of the Temple
students so that they knew exactly which department they
would be in and at what time. I created a similar rotation
schedule for the Penn Dental Students. The point of this
schedule was to ensure that all the dental students had equal
opportunities shadowing or assisting in all of the various
departments. Compared to previous MOM-n-PAs, I believe that
having this role really helped the dental students have a more
productive and meaningful experience this year. Students were
not walking around not knowing where to go and the
departments had all the volunteers that they needed.
My classmates joke that I am the MOM-n-PA spokesperson for
Temple Dental School. They know that I have been to many of
the events, and I serve as a resource when they have questions
or want to volunteer at the event. In dental school students do
not have too many opportunities to experience an event as big
as this. Students want the opportunity to learn, network and
most importantly, help patients in need.
One of the aspects that most attracts me to this event is having
the ability to help hundreds of people in need. It’s incredible to
see how thankful the patients are to have this level of care
provided at no cost. Patients come in with a chipped front
tooth that makes them embarrassed to smile, with pain from
an infection or with no teeth and need dentures, and they all
leave feeling a little bit better than they did when they walked
through the doors. I remember one patient in Allentown who
came in with multiple black lesions on all of his maxillary
anterior teeth. He was a young man in his 20s who was leaving
for college and was too self-conscious to smile due to the
appearance of his front teeth. I assisted a general dentist in
restoring his four anterior teeth with composite resin, and the
happiness on his face when he looked in the mirror was
incredible. That general dentist truly changed that boy’s life
simply by donating his time on a Saturday morning.
I believe MOM-n-PA has truly seen me throughout my journey
to become a dentist. From deciding to apply to dental school
by talking to current students, meeting the dean of students
at Temple who would help me with my application, meeting
mentors who would help support me through my time in
dental school, meeting program directors of residency programs
and for inspiring me to want to help others in need, MOM-n-PA
has been there the entire way. The next MOM-n-PA event that
I will attend will be as a licensed dentist. I am incredibly excited
to see this event from an entirely different perspective and look
forward to being able to donate my time to helping patients
look and feel better.
I believe MOM-n-PA has truly
seen me throughout my journey
to become a dentist.
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