Greg Kelly

The 2017 Florida Dental Convention (FDC), conducted by the Florida Dental Association, will be held from June 22-24, 2017 in Kissimmee, Florida. Get Connected: Team to Technology is this year's meeting theme. Bert Hughes, D.M.D., the FDC General Chairman, says attendees should come for the CE and stay for the fun. The gathering will include 7,500 dental pros, more than 100 CE courses and lectures, and 350 dental product and service exhibitors. The resort city of Orlando is nearby offering a quality assortment of dining and entertainment possibilities.

About 60% of dental practices in the nation suffer from embezzlement. Embezzling thieves come in two varieties, the opportunistic and the brazen. It's the brazen thief who does the most damage. The best way to stop embezzlement is for the dentist to pay attention. The owner of Susan Gunn Solutions helps dentists better understand and protect their practices. Gunn will speak at the California Dental Association CDA Presents The Art and Science of Dentistry meeting in San Francisco, Ca. from August 24-26 on procedures to stop embezzlement.

The California Dental Association CDA Presents The Art and Science of Dentistry takes place in Anaheim, California, May 4-6 at the Anaheim Convention Center. This expansive convention will include industry speakers, more than 175 continuing education courses and more than 550 exhibiting companies. The home to Disneyland, the host city of Anaheim in Southern California offers numerous other excellent cultural, entertainment, and dining possibilities for dentists. The CDA president says dentists can grow both professionally and personally.

Too many dental practices stumble over achieving proper HIPAA compliance. Most HIPAA problems come from staff ignorance and mistakes. The road to correct HIPAA compliance begins with information control, doing a practice risk assessment, and in having a written set of guidelines for patient data. Lawyer Simone McCormick, who will be speaking at the AAO 2017 Annual Session, held from April 21-25 in San Diego, California, seeks to build awareness for correct HIPAA compliance for healthcare professionals.

The American Association of Orthodontists will conduct its 2017 Annual Session from April 21-25 in San Diego, California. Orthodontists and their staff can choose from more than 300 scientific and professional lecture classes. More than 350 orthodontic products and services vendors will fill the Exhibit Hall. The city of San Diego offers splendid weather and numerous excellent dining and entertainment possibilities. Orthodontists who attend will get great value for their money.

Lois Banta, CEO and founder of Banta Consulting, provided dentists at the 2017 Hinman Dental Meeting with leadership advice in her continuing education session, High Impact Communication. Make patients feel like they are in control of their own destiny, she said. To best communicate with patients, don't ask them. Inform them. A practice must be positive, confident, and factual. Offering verbal and written communication methods is the optimal way to connect with patients.

The competition in the dental practice market has greatly increased. Dental school education debt is skyrocketing. Practice growth is the biggest challenge facing dentists today. Dentists should increase their fees annually, according to John K. McGill, C.P.A., who will be speaking at the upcoming Hinman Dental Meeting, which takes place in Atlanta from March 23-25.

Patients are getting their information about dental practices in new and different ways. Posting videos of satisfied patients is an excellent marketing tool. Patients being videoed should provide three key points on why dental practice is superior. There's no need to be timid about this technology its easier than you think.

The newest Gallup Poll on honesty and ethics places dentists in fourth position among healthcare professionals. Nearly 60 percent of Americans gave dentists a very high/high trust ranking. The American Dental Association's Principles of Ethics and Code of Conduct recently marked its 150th Anniversary. Nurses are ranked as the most honest/ethical professionals.

The Hinman Dental Meeting returns to Atlanta, Georgia, this year at the World Congress Center. The annual meeting, hosted by the Hinman Dental Society, will feature about 22,000 dental professionals from across the U.S. The theme of this year's meeting is The Changing Face of Dentistry. It will feature more than 245 continuing education courses. The very first Hinman Dental Meeting took place in 1912.

The Boston Globe reports that Robert I Schattner, D.D.S., the dentist who invented Chloraseptic, has died. He was 91. A report from CBS Austin says that though dentists are often sanctioned by the Texas State Dental board, they rarely have their licenses suspended. And when they do, they tend to keep practicing. Also, a new study indicates that genetic mutations may lead to tooth-enamel defects that encourage cavity development.

Forget about Vicodin, Percocet, and other potentially dangerous, addictive opioids. Over-the-counter painkillers may work better, according to this report from the nation's leading consumer protection group.

How an Alzheimer's medication may help fill cavities, plus, an N.J. dentist is convicted of stealing a dead colleague's identity.

One dentist says his former partner posted defamatory reviews about him to hurt his reputation.

A trip to Los Algodones, a Mexican town just south of the border, where it seems almost everybody is either a dentist or works for one.

A study by Delta Dental finds that 40 percent of Americans don't get to see their dentist as often as they'd like.

Dr. Esther M. Wilkins, whose comprehensive textbook for the study of dental hygiene standardized how the field is taught worldwide, died on December 12 at her home in New Hampshire.

Broken or missing teeth, smashed jaws, torn lips, slashed tongues, raw nerves it's all in a day's work for the unsung heroes of the hockey world, NHL team dentists. Nothing fazes them, The Globe and Mail reports.

Dentists are in a unique position to counsel patients about what a narcotic prescription means and to be "thoughtful and responsible" when writing those scripts, one news report says.

Research conducted by the University at Albany's Center for Health Workforce Studies finds that in states where dental hygienists are allowed by law to practice at higher levels of professional competence and skill, the population's oral health notably improves, one news report says.

One dentist put the hundreds of veterans at risk of hepatitis B and C, or HIV, after failing to follow proper sanitation procedures, the report says.

One news report highlights a survey that shows patients are more afraid of the price of a procedure than of the pain it might cause.

One news report highlights how dentists are key players in the fight against smoking, and another points to a study about the confirmed oral health hazards of e-cigarettes.

Health & Fitness Cheat Sheet has provided readers with 5 signs that they're being 'ripped off' by dentists.

Voters in Healdsburg, CA, will decide whether to ban fluoride from their water supply.

An NBC news report out of San Francisco calls into question the safety of sedation drug dosing among area dentists, highlighting lapses in record keeping.

Here's our weekly look at the top dentistry-related news from around the web.

Here's our weekly look at the top dentistry-related news from around the web.

Here's our weekly look at the top dentistry-related news from around the web.

Here's our weekly look at the top dentistry-related news from around the web.