Maddie Summers
Hometown: North Ogden
Major: Psychology
Leadership Engagement Track

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Leading with Smiles

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For my EDGE project I had the opportunity to work as an intern at a dental office. The office was in Brigham City, Utah. The location was nice because it was only a 25 minute commute from my home. The office was family run by two dentists that are brother-in-law. Along with the dentists there were two hygienists that I had the opportunity to assist.

 

As part of my internship I was trained as a dental assistant. Once a week I would assist the dentist. The other times I would assist whichever hygienist was working that day. Prepping instruments for procedures was a major part of my job. Other duties included: taking x-rays, polishing, flossing, fluoride treatments, scheduling, and other maintenance office needs.

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The inspiration for my project came from my interest in attending dental hygiene school to become a dental hygienist. In order to get accepted into programs you have to have so many observation or work hours related to that field. When deciding what I was doing for my EDGE project I still wasn’t certain if I should apply to dental hygiene school. This is when I thought either observing or getting an internship at a dental office would be a great project for me. Not only was this the perfect project to figure out if this was the right field for me, but also gain necessary hours that would help during my application process into the program.

 

After deciding what I wanted to do for my project the next step was actually finding an office that would either let me intern or at least observe there. I sent out a request to a friend of a friend who is highly connected with dental offices in the northern Utah area. The next day I heard back from one office. The challenging part was the dentist in charge of interviews was going to be gone for two weeks. In that time I didn’t hear back from any other offices which was stressful. I finally was called for an interview for that first office and luckily was given the job.

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Through this project I was able to be a support and help to an office that was in need. Not only did I need a place to do my internship, the office needed a short term staff to work in the summer while one of their assistants was on maternity leave. I was told many times that they were so grateful I was there. Because I was there, other people didn’t have to work so much and they weren’t stretched so thin on work availability. Instead, all the assistants were able to take the time they needed and had originally planned for vacations.

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This projected benefitted me in so many ways. I was able to discover that I truly enjoyed the field of dentistry. I learned necessary skills that will provide opportunities for future employment. I gained experience hours necessary in applying to dental hygiene programs. Lastly, one of the greatest benefits to me were the relationships I made with the people I worked and learned from.

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Extractions were my favorite procedure to be apart of!