Category: Opinion & Editorial

“I tend to live in the past because most of my life is there.” Herb Caen      Yeah, I know, this is February, not New Year’s, but I’m writing this as I wait for the ball to fall in Times Square. Not that I’ll be awake that late, but I can dream, can’t I? Let’s talk about plans and ... [continue reading]

     A patient came in the other day with an emergency. She had fractured a molar crown. I quickly looked it up in her records and confirmed my fears.  Yes, it was one of mine.  I had placed the crown just a bit less than 2 years ago.      Why did it break? Insufficient prep?  Occlusion too ... [continue reading]

Last month, on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I read an interesting study in the December 2011 edition of the Journal of the American Dental Association that shows the number of practicing African American Dentists in Cuyahoga County has decreased significantly since 1985.  The study, authored by Francis Curd, DDS, DMD, the assistant dean of ... [continue reading]

“When did the 3 C’s of Comfort, Caring, and Compassion give way to the 3 E’s of Economics, Ego, and Ethical indifference?” -Ken Jones (1944 and still here.) I don’t think I was all that obvious. I didn’t say, “Why didn’t you do as I recommended?” I didn’t say, “If you’d have ... [continue reading]

Martha J. Buchholz 1921-1970Robert C. Buchholz 1921-1980 “Sorry to bother both of you about some current societal issues...not that you’re even aware of my thoughts. All I know is, it makes me feel better...to share.”“So, here we go!”“Remember that time, for no particular reason I stuck that marble up my right ... [continue reading]

I just spent a fantastic evening at a concert with the band Chicago. Formed in 1967, four of the eight founding band members still represent the core of the group today. Though Robert Lamm, Walt Parazaider, Lee Laughnane and Jimmy Pankow are now in their mid sixties, they still can play and put on a fantastic show. Anyone who has played in a high ... [continue reading]

David J. Owsiany, JD – ODA Executive Director The following piece originally appeared in the Columbus Dispatch on November 19, 2011. This week, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case that will likely determine the constitutionality of the federal health care reform law's individual mandate. Interestingly, the legacy of a Dayton-area ... [continue reading]

Matthew J. Messina, DDS – Executive Editor Cornell University sociologist Matthew Brashears has recently surveyed more than 2,000 adults from a national database. His research spanned 1985 to 2010, and concluded that, "while we may friend more people on Facebook, we have fewer real friends." His defines real friends as "the kind who would ... [continue reading]

Ben Lamielle, DDS – Guest Columnist "Le client n'a jamais tort." In 1908 famed French hotelier Cesar Ritz coined this phrase, "The customer is never wrong." A few years later Marshall Field's department store in Chicago modified this slogan and helped popularize it to what many of us know today, "The customer is always right." While I doubt ... [continue reading]

Ken Jones, DDS – Guest Columnist "I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult." E. B. White (1899 - 1985) As I write this, Halloween has passed, daylight savings time is no more, I've conceded that my golf game never was, and my mind is a ... [continue reading]