The annual Upper Potomac Dental Hygienists' Society Spring Continuing program is scheduled for April 17, 1996. The topic is Instrument Design, Care and Maintenance. We will be in the new Allied health Building, and we will be sharpening instruments as part of the program. Watch for future announcements. If you are not receiving our mailings, please notify me. We will see that you get on the mailing list.
There are some new developments in our program's care and maintenance of instruments. We now have our freshmen using IMS cassettes from Hu-Friedy. This made necessary the purchase of a computer operated ESMA instrument washer/ultrasonic unit. After completion of the student's patient care, the cassette is closed, taken to Central Supply, held in a large water bath, and then placed into the instrument washer. After 30 minutes the cassette is cleaned and dry, ready for wrapping and sterilization. The wrap stays in place through sterilization, storage, and serves as an additional bracket tray cover during the treatment phase.
Our Central Supply room also has a state-of-the-art distiller to produce distilled water for the autoclave. This is so handy to have in the same room with the other disinfection and sterilization materials and equipment.
What's new in the student instrument kit? Well, what is not new is the fact that we are still purchasing Hu-Friedy hand instruments! Their quality cannot be matched. They still provide replacement free of charge to our students. In the spring when the students are preparing for the Regional Board Exam, Hu-Friedy will replace any instruments that the student wishes to return for only $5.00 per instrument. This means the students can have a brand new sharp set of curettes and/or scalers for the exams.
About three years ago, we added After Five Gracey curettes. For those who are unfamiliar with this instrument, the shank is three millimeters longer to allow better access into deeper pockets. The blade is slightly thinner than the standard Graceys. This year we also added a Mini Five Gracey 1/2. Its blade is as thin as the After Five blades but is one-half the length of the After Five. The design of these Minis is to allow better access into deep pockets where access is limited, such as in the mandibular anterior and furcation areas. We think root planing those lower anteriors will soon be a breeze! The newest revolution is in our instruments is the Gracey 15/16 which replaces the 11/12 for use on the buccal and mesial of molars. The shank is bent like the 13/14, with the blade offset to adapt to the mesials. The Technique faculty, I, Mrs. Blank, and Mrs. Rotruck, found it is much easier to teach, and the students didn't have as much trouble making end selections. For the new kit next year, we are considering replacing the 7/8 with the 9/10 in order to improve access. If any of you have experience with instrument innovation, we'd love to hear from you.
We have gotten more creative in seating, by allowing and teaching our students to sit beyond twelve o'clock. Try this if you are right handed: Sit at two o'clock and use direct vision to see the mandibular right linguals. Can you believe Mrs. Anderson recommending this? How 'bout some creative fulcruming? On the upper right buccal, place your left index finger on the occlusal of the premolars, then fulcrum your instrument fulcrum on your left index. You will realize much improved tooth-blade relationship and remove the old stubborn calculus much more easily. Happy instrumentation--for more of this type of information, come to the CE course in the spring!