Category: Opinion & Editorial

I recently noticed a report on a tech blog where the author wrote about a time in the very near future when most restaurants will have a tablet computer on the table. This will allow you to peruse the menu and options, letting you order and pay without ever speaking to a waiter. Amazon.com began with books, but has revolutionized the electronic ... [continue reading]

I recently took my wife, Pamela, for a night out at Flemings. For those of you who are not familiar with Flemings, it is an upscale steakhouse located in Fairlawn on the west side of Akron. We were not celebrating anything in particular, just enjoying a date night. Flemings is 31 miles from my front door, a short 44 minute drive according to ... [continue reading]

One of the pleasures of the Ohio Dental Association presidency is visiting local societies and letting members know what they get for their dues dollar. This year, I asked local societies to encourage members to invite a non-member to the society’s meeting when ODA Executive Director Dave Owsiany and I talk about what the ODA does to ... [continue reading]

With two of my children graduating from college this year, I’m getting to be a connoisseur of commencement addresses. There is a fine art to this special form of speech. It is delivered to a crowd that expects little from the words and is interested only in how quickly it ends. Once completed, the audience can get on to the reason that they ... [continue reading]

Perhaps some of you have experienced an epiphany in your dental career. Even more important, ask yourself, did you recognize the occurrence and did it alter the way you conducted yourself professionally? If my special moment had occurred prior to dental school graduation or during my two years of active duty service in the Navy, I can guarantee ... [continue reading]

The other day in our pediatric dental office, I looked at our hygiene supply drawer and realized we have seven different flavors of prophy paste available to our patients. The menu reads as such: raspberry, cherry, cinnamon, cookie dough, orange, unflavored and the venerable mint. For a moment, I shook my head at the seemingly overindulgent ... [continue reading]

When we usually think of “dental safety net” programs, we are drawn to clinics, public health programs, hospitals and dental educational programs like our two dental schools and the advanced general practice residencies across our state. This list also includes local programs run by societies, faith-based groups and local health ... [continue reading]

I was in the office of my primary care physician for a routine visit recently. He entered the treatment room with his iPad, muttering under his breath and alternately cursing as he fought with entering the information he needed to record. As we talked, he finally put down the computer tablet and vented his anger at the new electronic medical ... [continue reading]

When I was young, I remember my mother scolding me when I was caught wearing make-up to school in fifth grade. She would often say “Don’t be in such a rush to grow up … everything in good time.” Today I understand that this common message really has a broad application to leading a healthy, happy life. At the age of 43, ... [continue reading]

Earlier this year, the Super-Valu grocery store in Vinton County’s town of MacArthur closed, leaving residents without a full-service food store, and relegating them to a half-hour drive for what they had just down the street for a long time. Some might say it was just the latest domino in another Appalachian town with high unemployment, ... [continue reading]