Dear Friends,

Today, I’m compelled to remind valued friends in the United States of the need to vote. We’re blessed with the freedom to do so. It’s easy to become complacent with all the media coverage of where the polls currently stand.

One vote truly makes a difference. It is our right, responsibility and reward as an American citizen.

Dan

I am so fortunate to associate with quality, caring individuals in my line of business. The opportunities I have to rub shoulders with such people -- be they co-workers, colleagues, or customers -- is something I count as a unique blessing.

I recently read this article about one of our "Ultradent Elite" dentists, who was featured in the newsletter for the Connecticut State Dental Association. I wanted to share this article with you, which is reprinted here with permission from CSDA.

“Smiles for Stebbins”
Dr. Linda Kronick Volunteers for the Dentist Without Borders Program in Stebbins, Alaska

“Alaska is an undiscovered frontier of dental need,” said Dr. Linda R. Kronick, a general dentist in Norwich, CT.

It all started with a 3 year old girl named Linda who asked Dr. Kronick, “Could you come fix my village?” Linda flew all the way from Stebbins, Alaska with her mother’s consent to receive dental treatment. Linda wanted the other people in her village to feel as good as she did after receiving much needed dental care.

“How could I say no?” said Dr. Kronick. With the help of Dr. Mark Kelso, Director of the Norton Sound Corporation she flew to Stebbins, Alaska by bush plane carrying portable dental equipment. “Flying across the frozen Bering Sea was quite an experience,” said Kronick. In Stebbins, Kronick worked with Rochelle, a native Yup'ik who made dentistry available with dental clinics and dental therapists.

Stebbins is an isolated Yup'ik village about 135 miles from Siberia and is only accessible by bush plane. The population is about 657, in which roughly half are children. When Dr. Kronick arrived in Stebbins, she was faced with extremely poor conditions, and the village had no running water. “If you don’t have a sink, you don’t think about brushing your teeth,” says Kronick.

A combination of no running water, inhospitable weather, remoteness, and lack of finances create major barriers for access to care in Stebbins. There is also a general lack of health education. Most folks live on a poor, high sugar-carbohydrate diet. “Gross decay is rampant,” says Kronick.

For one week Dr. Kronick spent 12 hours days doing fillings, extractions, restorations, and root canal treatments. For more complicated procedures, patients were referred to the hospital in Nome, Alaska. She also worked with native dental assistants Eva and Dolly who helped with the constant flow of patients. “We were the only dental care these folks would see on scheduled interval,” said Kronick.

Dr. Kronick’s ultimate goal was to create an environment based on prevention. She sent 600 toothbrushes and toothpaste over last fall, and asked both the principal and day care directors to have the kids brush after lunch. Perhaps the biggest challenge is the fact that in Stebbins, their food comes in by combiplane. Food choices are limited, and usually consist of popular selling items, which are not always healthy selections.

While things are improving in Stebbins, there is much more that can be done. Dr. Kronick plans to return yearly to continue to create more smiles for Stebbins. “I wanted to do dental care in an underserved area. I just wanted to give back my country. I feel I have received far more than I ever gave. They adopted me. Patients even made me a native dress, and invited me over for dinner. I want every one to know what an amazing experience I had,” she says.

Dr. Kronick wants to thank Ultradent, Patterson Dental Supply, and Ivoclar for donating supplies. For anyone wishing to learn more, or to help, please contact Dr. Linda Kronick at LKronick@msn.com.

Dr. Linda Kronick has been practicing dentistry for 19 years in Norwich, CT. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut School Of Dental Medicine.

I am pleased to share with you a few pictures of a wonderful productive ten day trip through Columbia, Costa Rica and Mexico. Seven complete day lectures plus two hands on courses were provided to about four thousand two hundred dentists and dental students! Our distributor partners in these countries plus Pablo Santiago and Luiz Abreu can be so proud.

Once again, our fabulous translator who lives in Guadalajara accompanied us on the trip. Ramon is seen in the picture at left. Ramon does such an incredible job of translating simultaneously that I like to introduce him to the audience. Ramon is more than a translator, he brings his wit and style to the equation in ways the audience really connects with. His blindness does not hamper him in the least; in fact, his other senses are probably at higher attention than for most of us who see. Poor translation can kill a program. Ramon’s translation is tops, thus enabling the lectures to come across first class.

Our message was teaching dentists how to provide more affordable dentistry. We built on the added importance of this with the downturn seen in the global economies right now. Most all dentists could really connect to this message/need. Many are starting to feel the need to offer less expensive, less invasive treatment options to their patients. This is something we’ve built towards for some years now and hence are positioned in a good way to provide education and materials to dentists for this type of caring dentistry.

Pablo, our regional manager for the area, accompanied me on the trip and was there for every need. He exemplifies our great team spirit, Core Values and Vision. This was a hard working, driven few days -- often driving through the night, reaching the next city after midnight and getting up and driving an all-day program through once again. All on the team, including/especially our distributors, were motivated, caring and giving it their best every waking moment. Fun stuff!!

Examples of programs:
Bogata: Around 400 dentists
Costa Rica: 460, 10% of all the dentists of Costa Rica!
Guadalajara: 2000!

All programs were positive. The hands-on programs involved professors and Deans! There were a lot of great questions and interaction. And...nothing is better than sharing with professionals who really want to learn.

Thank you Pablo. And thank you to all our great distributors in these countries who promoted the programs in quality ways.

Dan