One great advantage of wanting to do something with an obscure job title is that questions are often posed: ‘What IS a prosthodontist?’ I offer short replies so as not to bore enquirers. Still, these questions present practical and constant challenges in carefully considering accurate and satisfying answers for my purposes. I give them here, among other relevant information, in support of my application for a residency position.
A good prosthodontist desires to help others, but the desire to help is entirely inadequate. He must be an excellent and highly trained technician, ready to look at every treatment as unique in its technical challenges and in the patient's uniqueness, who is more than a set of X-rays, a list of symptoms, and a treatment plan. The successful prosthodontist is an excellent collaborator and leader, ready to share and receive opinions and insights. He is a great communicator who can inspire trust and confidence in his patients and staff and explain complex plans in simple language. He appreciates innovation and has the enthusiasm and curiosity to keep abreast of a field in which new techniques and materials are constantly evolving and tries to add to the sum of common knowledge of the specialty for the benefit of all. But most of all, he is determined to restore smiles, a pleasing appearance, dietary choices, and confidence in his patients, from which he derives enormous satisfaction.
I seek to enhance my skill and knowledge to practice, research and teach Prosthodontics. I want to create videos to provide general and specialist dental education to supplement dental training. I have participated in dental education programs in underserved communities. I thoroughly enjoy teaching; I have always carefully noted and sought to emulate the techniques and characteristics of my most influential teachers, especially the prosthodontists.
During my degree program, I was invited to assist in a research project on the degree of awareness of gingival diseases and their relation to unhealthy habits among the Egyptian population. Our results were published at the 15th International Dental Congress in Cairo. This exposed me to the processes involved and demonstrated the planning and analytical skills involved in practical research and the personal characteristics of determination, patience, and diligence. I am especially interested in researching dental material sciences and digital dentistry.
Following graduation from dental school in 2012, I undertook a year-long clinical internship at the Modern Science and Arts University in Cairo. I was allowed to decide about the departments to invest my clinical time in. I spent a month in endodontics, then a month in Orthodontics, followed by a month in the restorative clinic. I became fascinated by the clinic's work because of the dramatic results achieved and the complexity of the process. So, I spent the remaining nine months of the internship in the Prosthodontics Department. I gained extensive experience in dealing with increasingly complex cases. The more complex an issue was, the more excited I was to be involved. To reach an optimum conclusion, I relished the challenges and planning process and collected the necessary biomechanics, material sciences, physics, esthetics, and biology information.
My internship was followed by a year as a general dentist in a hospital in Saudi Arabia. I sought as much exposure to the specialty as possible during this time. From July 2014 to the present, I have undertaken a ‘foreign externship’ in orthodontics at XXXX University and a traineeship in a dental laboratory. I have also supplemented my specialty knowledge by reading professional journals and attending relevant conferences and seminars. These programs have been highly profitable in extending and deepening my specialist technical expertise.
I know that cross-disciplinary cooperation is a significant feature of the specialty. I have happily studied, worked with, and treated people of many ethnic and social backgrounds. I am amiable, relate well with patients, and consistently seek to put them first. I speak Arabic and English. I enjoy sharing knowledge about my own culture and acquiring knowledge about others.
I have acquired considerable experience in the specialty; I have research and teaching experience; I possess the characteristics required of an excellent researcher, practitioner, and teacher; however, my main recommendation is a genuine passion for the specialty and for becoming highly expert within it, for the benefit of many.
Residency Personal Statement Help Prosthodontics