As I write this I am just returning from Minnesota.  I got the privilege to visit a couple colleges and demonstrate our Dental R.A.T.  I got to visit University of Minnesota’s HUGE dental clinic www.umn.edu/ and we’ll be helping them get set up for computers and Dental R.A.T.s in their clinic! What a privilege!  It is a gorgeous campus and the staff is so sweet!  I also got to go to Normandale Community College http://www.normandale.edu/ and demonstrate to the faculty and students.  It’s so fun to see these different colleges and see the excitement as they get what the Dental R.A.T. does!  And I also got to go to the Mall of America http://www.mallofamerica.com/ ; which brings me to my patient family.  I have a couple teenage girls that would’ve loved to have come with me but had to stay home.  

My kids and my husband have been very supportive throughout this whole journey!  I really need to thank them because as we’ve been going through this whole process I have not been able to spend the time with them that I had in the past.  And, it seems that I’m the one getting all the publicity and write-ups and traveling and they stay home and man the fort (without a pool).  My family and friends have been so incredible thoughout this whole process!  They have been so supportive!  They have all been so patient as the Dental R.A.T. seems to be the topic of conversation everywhere we go.  And; in the process I hope they’ve learned a lot too! 

I have gotten to see a lot of colleges in my journey; but of course the first one we set up Dental R.A.T.s in was my alma mater Idaho State University http://www.isu.edu/ !  I would love to see all of the hygiene and dental schools in the US be set up with computers and software and Dental R.A.T.s.  I just think it helps the students if they are experienced with all the technology they are going to be faced with when they get out!  So we are helping hygiene and dental schools to get set up with computers and software and Dental R.A.T.s!  I’m happy to say, there are several on their way!! 

Welcome to the Dental R.A.T.’s blog!  As our website is progressing I am also and thought I’d start a blog.  As a hygienist that is an inventor and has started a business I get a lot of questions and thought I’d try and write some thoughts down.  I’ll try and be frequent about it.

As I’ve mentioned on the video I’ve been a hygienist for a long time now (almost 20 years!).  I have loved the hygiene profession; especially the relationships you can build with your patients.  I really feel that you can learn something from every person you meet.  So I haven’t moved on because I didn’t like what I was doing, in fact I am still trying to stay in practice one day a week. 

So why did I do this whole project?  I actually have been blessed to work in a very high tech office for the last 10 years.  I got to learn the computer systems and really learned to love that part of dentistry also.  At first I will admit it was a change but I looked on it as a challenge to be a step better that I was yesterday.   The computers were great, but it didn’t seem to reduce the staff that was needed to do charting.  We would always have to call an assistant or front office person into our operatory to help us perio chart.  It became a real hassle if they were busy, and yet I legally still needed to chart.  I had tried voice recognition and the Florida Probe and couldn’t find the consistency that I wanted!  It just seemed natural for us as hygienists to use our feet and that is what I kept thinking about.  One day a patient happened to be in my chair and I was venting to him that I needed a process to be able to probe alone and he knew an engineer http://www.airtrack-electronics.com/ to help me and the patent attorney  http://www.pedersenco.com/ to talk to and I was on my way. 

Our family had saved up some money for a pool at our new house and after the attorney gave me a green light I came home and asked the kids if I could have the pool money.  Then; the journey began!