Interview with Dr. Diana Tadros

Dr. Hartlieb asks Dr. Tadros what she'd tell dental students who are considering whether they should do a residency program at University of Florida. Diana shares that she was sure that she wanted to go to that residency program well before she had even selected her dental school. Her senior year of college she shadowed at the program, and she knew that was where she wanted to be.

Diana also reminds current dental students that it is an option for them to go to intern at residency programs in the summers during dental school; she suggests that as a way to try out different residency programs and to see what is a good fit. Dr. Tadros shares, "I would tell [dental students] that if you're on the fence, go shadow them in your summers or on your weeks off. See if you can get into the program for just a couple of days, and see if it's something you'd want to do." 

As Dennis and Diana talk, Diana shares about what she's learned about digital dentistry. She talks about some common misconceptions that come with digital dentistry. Some dentists expect it to be more plug and play, whereas it is actually an art that requires training and practice. 

Dr. Tadros shares that a benefit of the digital approach is that you can see the tooth underneath so that the patient can see how much has to change and why they might need to do things like ortho to make it all work. 

Diana shares that it is essential to learn the principles of occlusion first before getting into other skills like digital dentistry. She notes that many new dentists who are recent dental school grads can benefit from developing other skills before turning toward programs like Exocad.

She comments, "That's what I even tell the dentists who come to these courses. When you are starting to do your own wax up, you're taking a lot of things that you don't see behind the scenes that happen when a lab does your case and sets it up, or a designer, you know, they are working within the confinements of understanding hopefully, the occlusion, the table if they're opening the bite, and all of that. And if you're going to do it yourself, and if you don't know what you're doing, you're only going to mess up the mouth faster."

Diana emphasizes that understanding the fundamentals first is essential before diving into other services and skills.

Listen in (or watch) to hear Dennis and Diana talk about the different CE programs, the pros and cons of composite wax ups versus digital wax ups, the power of referrals, when to outsource tasks, and so much more.