I read with interest Dr. Jeffcoat’s August JADA editorial, "If We Don’t Do It, Who Will? Dentistry Can’t Shirk Medical Complexities." After having attended the ADA- and Colgate-sponsored symposium on diabetes and dentistry, I realize that, as a dental professional, I really did not know enough about treating patients with diabetes, and may have overlooked or even avoided treating such patients for fear or for lack of knowledge.
I think that the most important thing I gleaned from Dr. Jeffcoat’s editorial is that we, as the dental profession, must take the first step. Medical professionals know little about the oral cavity, and we as dentists can certainly have an impact on our patients’ overall health by learning more about their medical conditions. I personally have decided that I would like to become expert in terms of treatment of patients with diabetes.
As a continuing education junkie, I have always felt that the more knowledge I have, the better I can treat my patients. Most continuing education courses seem to focus on the technical and restorative aspect of care. I strongly believe that the medical profession would respect us more if we as dentists educated ourselves and our physician colleagues better on the nature of the relationship between dentistry and overall health. Medicine is not going to take the first step in our direction. It is up to us to charge ahead as a profession, and I agree with Dr. Jeffcoat’s editorial wholeheartedly.
