wouldn't be the last day of the VA unless....

It is sad when you are contemplating getting in a car accident just so you don't have to go to the VA but that is how I felt every other Wednesday.  I am so happy that I never have to go there again and if I ever return, I wouldn't be a student.  For future senior students, be scared....be very scared. 
For my last day at the VA I had 1 quad of a class IV and 4 quads of a class V.  My class IV patient was very interesting and wasn't rare at the VA.  I think that she was hitting on Kim and I.  She told us that she held back some inappropriate jokes from us.  It was very creepy.  She was schizophrenic with major dental issues.   She could only hold her mouth open for a few minutes which got progressively better towards the end of the appointment and probably hadn't brushed in a few years. She was a difficult patient who took a lot out of me by the time I finished 1 quad.  All I can say is bring on the 1B's and those that come to their appointments every 6 months.  Bring on the patients that brush 1-2x/day and floss 1x/month or after they eat corn on the cob and need to floss.  Bring on the patients that are a little unnormal but isn't one right after another.  I feel for those at the VA but it takes someone stronger than me to be able to work there.  I have a lot of respect for those that continually work there and I will miss a few of those that were sweet to me.  I will miss Connie and Shara.  They were fun to work with and I think that Shara is an amazing person.
Well, so long VA and I won't miss the dreadful drive, the crazy days, and the people that treated me like a dumb student that could never do anything right. 

1 day left

Only 1 Pano left and I am done with all of my requirements.  Last year at this time I still had 5 PE's and bitewings and 2 quads of a class II.  It was a pretty nice day. I was able to clean 8 quads of a class II today and it was pretty amazing to get them both done in one day.  I have come a long way.  Last year a class II took me two appointments.  Today it took me 2 hours. It feels a little crazy and not real.  I think it is due to my progression with the ultrasonic. 

On my own?????

After today, I am not sure that I am ready to be on my own. What if I miss calculus or who do I talk to if I have questions? I have millions of stupid questions and I am not going to feel comfortable asking the doctor. The doctor will know that I am not ready to be away from school. "Fake it till you make it" sounds really good but I am unsure if I will be able to fake it. I just hope that I work for an awesome dentist who will be more than happy to listen to my dumb questions.

The other issue I have about being in a dental office is can I get things done in 45 minutes. There are so many things that you have to do especially if they are a new patient. I really struggle with x-rays and this slows me down a lot. I try to be fast but it just undoubtedly slows me down even more. I can be fast at probing but writing them down is another story. I hope that I have an assistant that rocks at x-rays and is really good at writing down what I tell him/her.

I had a really good day. As of today, I only need 7 more conventional PA's and 1 conventional Pano and I am done. I have no other requirements to do. It feels amazing, especially, after last year when I had to pass off 5 PE's on the last day. I cleaned a very difficult class 5 patient with 7mm of recession on the anterior lingual teeth and severe crowding. Then this afternoon, I had two of my bestest friends come in and I cleaned their teeth. I felt so bad that it took so long but they were out after 2.25 hours. Not too bad. I need to speed it up just a little more. I am sure that it didn't help that I choose to do conventional x-rays. That slows me down ever since they put the view boxes on the x-ray machines. I much prefer a dark room. I think that I had better vision with the dark room.

Well 2 more Weber clinics left and 1 VA day left....It is amazing to be able to see an end. I thought it would never come.

I just might throw up

So I brought in my board patient. There are definitely 3 missed areas. That is why I just might throw up. Where might I have missed these beautiful calculus spots? This is the big kicker....Mesial of 25, Mesial of 27, Distal of 26. Yes, I do feel like a huge failure. Why? Because I know I had tissue trauma. I am sure that they saw the tissue trauma and failed me right on the spot but to know that I missed on the anterior teeth, really? Who does that? Usually people miss on the molars or premolars. Not me...I like to make things more interesting for myself and totally screw up on what is supposed to be the easiest part to clean on teeth. Yes, I used my ultrasonic and yes, I scaled there. I think the thing that made it bad for me is that my patient was bleeding so much that I really couldn't see or feel what I was doing. I remember slipping off of her teeth and struggling so much but I really didn't think that I missed that many spots. I am just hoping that WREB will know that it was difficult with the amount of bleeding and will be somewhat nice. (that was a joke). I definitely need a miracle and won't be suprised when I am told that I have to take it again.....but not until I do 40 hours of remediation. So, today wasn't one of my most favorite days.  It was difficult cleaning her after feeling like a complete failure.  I really struggled on this patient and really hate cleaning class II patients.  I would much rather clean a IV or III.  Dr. Hanson told me that today my performance was a B.  Not good when you are about to graduate.  Doctors don't want to hire a B performer.