UNC School of Dentistry ……… GOES WILD !!

About 6 months ago I finally qualified to be a patient at the University of North Carolina School of Dentistry. This means that I get my own student (2nd year) who will oversee my treatment. As you can tell by the picture the setting is very professional and serene. Each student has a cubicle and the Staff Dentist is ever present to teach and grade the students. It is a tedious process but the cost is about 1/3 of what it would cost for me to go to my regular dentist and, with no insurance, it is well worth the effort.

On March 11th I drove up to Chapel Hill for my 2 0’clock appointment and arrived about ½ hour early. The waiting room was full and the TV was tuned to the UNC-Miami basketball game. UNC was 19 points behind Miami and the mood of the watchers was glum, to say the least.

It was at this point that “my dentist”, student Rob, came and got me. We settled down in his cubicle and he proceeded to get me ready for the procedure. Classical music was playing and, although you could hear the murmur of the other students and their patients, it was all very low key and professional.

Then, minutes later, the calm was shattered. A fever-pitched roar broke loose in the room and, for a minute, I thought we were under siege from some unknown terror. “WHAT was that?” I said to Rob and, with a grin that nearly split his face, he said, “I think we won !”

Sure enough, in the ACC battle No 6 UNC had stormed back to beat Miami by one point at the buzzer, and …


…though the atmosphere in the room quickly reverted to it’s original calm the grins remained and I was reminded that these future dentists were, after all, still UNC students and it was fun to be part of their joy and triumph.