Since I began dental school, I have intended to pursue Pediatric Dentistry, and this ambition was increasingly confirmed as my training and career progressed. I sought as much exposure to the specialty as possible, carefully observing the techniques applied and characteristics displayed by professionals in this area. I was hospitalized in my early teens for a significant period and witnessed the positive effects of caring, compassionate medical staff on seriously ill child patients. Pediatric Dentistry calls for unique characteristics and high levels of specialist skill and knowledge: endless patience, profound empathy, a practiced ability to inspire trust and confidence, and, most importantly, a genuine and deep affection for children. I would not be making this application if I were not convinced I possess these characteristics.
I began working with children as a volunteer, helping to organize and manage Special Olympics events, while still in high school student and have continued to work with children over the years, collaborating with a variety of projects with a focus on young people and oral health care. In my last year of Dental school, I applied for a Pediatric Dental Residency position in hopes of fulfilling my particular dream right away, working with the demographic that keeps me smiling. I was not selected. I did MATCH when I applied to AEGD residencies and was thrilled to be chosen for service in a Public Health Clinic where I fell head over heels in love with Public Health Dentistry. This position gave me the invaluable opportunity to hone my skills and gain confidence in all aspects of Dentistry in preparation for outstanding excellence in Pediatrics. I am now firmly focused not just on children but also on children from families of scarce resources.
The clinical experience of my AEGD Residency, complete with lectures and a variety of additional training courses, helped me become proficient in Endodontics, Periodontics, Pediatrics, Prosthodontics, practice management, and evidence-based dentistry, generally speaking. I also have a long history – even before entering dental school - of shadowing dentists and assisting them. Before dental school, my favorite experience was helping at the XXXX County Organization for Rural Needs (ACORN) in the Children’s Dental Clinic. It was a long drive, but I enjoyed it both ways: the anticipation while on my way and savoring the day's memory during my drive home. Nothing had yet brought me such joy as my interactions with these children, helping to calm them down and explaining the procedures.
I have been involved in child-related volunteer activities since 2007. Since 2014, I have provided children with dental and oral health education, including pro-bono treatment for underserved children. I was raised to believe that charitable endeavor is an obligation rather than a choice, and I could not be happier to help children who might otherwise have gone untreated or suffered from further delays in treatment. My focus on children has helped me better appreciate the critical importance of early education in adopting effective dental and oral hygiene regimes. I look forward to a lifetime of ‘spreading the word’ as widely and as early as possible to children and those who care for them.
My AEGD training was undertaken under the mentorship of highly trained, caring, and skilled professionals and involved a full year serving in a clinic that attended to an ethnically diverse and underserved population. The program also involved research projects and emphasized making decisions based on a thorough analysis of all available evidence. This experience allowed me to develop the advanced diagnostic and treatment-planning skills vital in dentistry, which I constantly seek to cultivate further. I look forward to having broad exposure to research due to a dynamic, state-of-the-art residency experience - part of your team in Pediatric Dentistry.
Since 2012, I have worked as a Pediatric Dental Specialist alongside XXXX DDS, serving as her right hand and learning all I can from one of the finest Pediatric Dentists around. After five years at her side, I am well versed in almost all of the details of running a successful Pediatric Dentistry Clinic. In addition to my work alongside Dr. XXXX, while still in Dental School, I met another pediatric dentist, Dr. XXXX, who has allowed me to shadow and assist her for the past several years. From Dr. XXXX, I have gained a lot of exposure to various techniques for treating children, including sedation. One of my two public health rotations during Dental School also happened with a doctor who primarily sees children. Treating children, I always end the day with a smile. After completing your program and gaining additional experience on the cutting-edge, I hope to open my clinic as a Pediatric Dentist and make a difference with every child I see.
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