Hygiene Tribune U.S. Edition

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Edition Publisher & Chairman Torsten Oemus t.oemus@dental-tribune.com Chief Operating Officer Eric Seid e.seid@dental-tribune.com Group Editor & Designer Robin Goodman r.goodman@dental-tribune.com Editor in Chief Hygiene Tribune Angie Stone, RDH, BS a.stone@dental-tribune.com Managing Editor/Designer Implant, Endo & Lab Tribunes Sierra Rendon s.rendon@dental-tribune.com Managing Editor/Designer Ortho Tribune & Show Dailies Kristine Colker k.colker@dental-tribune.com Online Editor Fred Michmershuizen f.michmershuizen@dental-tribune. com Account Manager Mark Eisen m.eisen@dental-tribune.com Marketing Manager Anna Wlodarczyk a.wlodarczyk@dental-tribune.com Sales & Marketing Assistant Lorrie Young l.young@dental-tribune.com C.E. Manager Julia E. Wehkamp j.wehkamp@dental-tribune.com C.E. International Sales Manager Christiane Ferret c.ferret@dtstudyclub.com Dental Tribune America, LLC 116 West 23rd Street, Suite 500 New York, NY 10011 Tel.: (212) 244-7181 Fax: (212) 244-7185 Published by Dental Tribune America © 2011 Dental Tribune America, LLC All rights reserved. Hygiene Tribune strives to maintain utmost accuracy in its news and clinical reports. If you find a factual error or content that requires clarification, please contact Group Editor Robin Goodman at r.goodman@dental-tribune.com. Hygiene Tribune cannot assume responsibility for the validity of product claims or for typographical errors. The publisher also does not assume responsibility for product names or statements made by advertisers. Opinions expressed by authors are their own and may not reflect those of Dental Tribune America. A great opportunity for all Clinical hygienists utilize a variety of products every day in the operatory. Clinicians need products to accom- plish their jobs. It is taken for granted that products will be available and will perform the way they are intended to. Recently I was afforded the oppor- tunity to tour the corporate headquar- ters and manufacturing plant of Sun- star Americas, located in Chicago. In addition to the tour, six dental hygiene students from Japan interviewed me. These students were brought to the United States to learn about product manufacturing and dental hygiene in the United States. The time I spent at Sunstar Ameri- cas was eye opening and educational. Seeing how its products are made gave me a new appreciation for tooth- brushes and interdental cleaners! It was amazing to see how much tech- nology and how many people are nec- essary to make these products. While I am treating patients, there are people hard at work, making sure the products I need are available, and they are making sure the product will do what my patients and I need it to do. I will never look at a toothbrush the same. After our tour, the Japanese stu- dents delivered a short presentation to me explaining where they lived and they shared a bit about their communities. We spent two hours talking with each other after their presentations. They asked me ques- tions about my dental hygiene career. They were very interested to learn there are some similarities as well as some differences between hygiene in our respective countries. This experience made a great impact on me. I encourage our read- ers to look closely at the products you use in your clinical practice. Find out where they are manufactured. You may be surprised to learn the loca- tion is close to you. Contact the companies and ask if they offer tours to professional product users. This is a great way to spend an afternoon off and a great team-building activity. Consider tak- ing your team to see how other teams operate and learn how your favorite products come to be. If there are no companies close to your location, consider visiting when you attend a dental or dental hygiene meeting in an area where they are located. Sometimes meetings will have an organized offsite excursion to a manufacturer. In my experience, these companies are thrilled to have their customers take an interest in them and welcome them with open arms and great hospitality. If students from Japan are coming to the United States to tour our manu- facturers, I think the exercise must be valuable. I welcome any feedback about company tours you have taken in the past or hope to do in the future. Best Regards, Angie Stone, RDH, BS Editor’s Corner HYGIENE TRIBUNE | March 20112D f HT page 1D AD be to connect school nurses with dentists who are doctors of oral health. “The ADA looks forward to col- laborating with school nurses to help children and their parents understand that oral health is an important part of overall health,” says Raymond F. Gist, DDS, presi- dent of the ADA. “Working together in communi- ties across the nation, school nurses and dentists can help raise aware- ness about the need for good oral hygiene, good nutrition and regular dental visits in order to prevent dental disease.” The NASN is a non-profit special- ty nursing organization, organized in 1968 and incorporated in 1977, representing school nurses exclu- sively. The NASN has more than 15,000 members and 51 affiliates, including the District of Columbia and overseas. The mission of the NASN is to improve the health and educational success of children and youth by developing and providing leadership to advance the school nursing practice. The DentaQuest Foundation is committed to optimal oral health for all Americans through its sup- port of prevention and access to affordable care, and through its partnerships with funders, policy- makers and community leaders. HT (Source: American Dental Association)