Category: Opinion & Editorial

July 11 was an exciting day at our house, as I am sure it was for many Northeast Ohioans. At 12:41 p.m. I received a text from my husband that King James was finally coming home! As a mom of four previously heartbroken Cavs fans, I immediately joined the fervor that was to be a part of all media headlines and is still lingering today even 15 days ... [continue reading]

My wife and I were fortunate enough to welcome a little girl into our lives about six months ago.  As many of you who have children already know, our lives have started to change considerably.  My golf handicap is creeping upward, our leisurely dinners have shortened and I am doing a lot more laundry.  Everyone seems to be ... [continue reading]

RAC stands for Recovery Audit Contractor and is a little-known provision in the Affordable Care Act that requires states to perform audits of its Medicaid providers. The intent is to weed out fraud and inappropriate billing for services, even with no malicious or fraudulent intent, and return that money to the state and federal government. ... [continue reading]

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]