Odd one out

Can you tell which one it is? I'll reveal the answer at the end!

Today has been manic! It's gone quick but I've not stopped all day.
Although I've worked hard, it's been bittersweet as I was seriously hacked off by an article I read last night which really dumbed down my job.

It was on the Daily Mail online (make of that what you will!!), which some of you may remember managed to turn my blip birthday celebration into my obituary slight exaggeration but not too wide of the mark.

The government is planning a 'traffic light' scheme, whereby patients are given ownership of their oral health problems (about time too!). Green patients will be fine; amber will be monitored and have any urgent treatment completed but those in the red category will have to make improvements to their own oral health before they are offered treatment.

It sounds harsh, but the amount of patients we see who neglect themselves and expect us to fix things is phenomenal. Patients attend with fillings placed within the last year which have developed secondary decay or even new cavities which have developed within a short space of time....and it's never down to their bad habits, it's 'genetics'.

What really annoyed me about the article was how it referred to us dental therapists as 'junior staff' and 'the dentists assistant'.
It went on to say how we only have 3 years training compared to a dentists 5 years.
What it doesn't take into account is that the extra 2 years a dentist studies covers the more specialist stuff that we therapists don't do, like root canal, crown & bridge work, dentures and surgical procedures.

In truth we do assist the dentist, but not like a dental nurse. Our role is to do the 'simple' stuff like fillings, scale & polish etc which then frees up the dentists time to do the more complex stuff.
I don't want to rant anymore than I just did; I know I work hard and I work well within all the teams I'm a part of, so the Mail can go swivel!!

The article not worth anyone's time or effort if I'm honest is here.

And the answer to the odd one out??


The dental tape.

The other 3 items (pin, paper clip and nail scissors) have been confessed by my patients this week as methods to clean between their teeth.

I despair!