Day 17 - A "beautiful" day in Juneau

I woke up early this morning because I had to clean the house since the real estate agent was bringing people through it this morning. I had to make sure my toiletries were put away, my dishes were out of the sink, and my bed was made with a specific quilt comforter. The real estate agent agreed to take the dog since he gave me such short notice. The bus runs a bit later from Dredge Lake Road than it does from DeHart's. I now get to work around 9 instead of 8:45. I also have to make sure I am on bus route 4 in the morning and bus route 3 in the afternoon. Since Juneau is essentially a loop, if I switch up my routes in the morning or evening it adds an extra 15-20 minutes each way. If nothing else, I want to work hard in life simply because I do not want to be reliant on public transportation. It often adds 30-45 minutes to my morning and the constant starting and stopping of the bus is pretty exhausting.

It was damp and overcast this morning, quite the contrast from the beautiful weather in Juneau for the first two weeks of my summer project. I came into work this morning complaining that the sun had gone away and the clouds had taken over - only to be met by laughs from the other dentists in my office. They claim that, come June, any day where the rain isn't coming in sideways or the sun is visible for even one minute should be considered a "beautiful" day. I guess it's time to change my perspective.

Unfortunately, I did not get to administer my survey to the OB patients today. Chris, the dental health aide who works specifically with OB patients, was sick so I could not get into the clinic. Even without the OB surveys, I still kept myself plenty busy with the phone surveys. I continue to be amazed at the number of people who have willingly participated in my survey. I think that most people do not expect to be treated kindly after missing an appointment so for them to get a reassuring phone call reflects nicely on SEARHC.

One thing that is striking to me is the wide demographic of those who are missing their patients. It is not just 65 year old men or 19 year old women. The spectrum is far reaching and no age or sex goes untouched. The mentality that dentistry is not important is not a recent mindset or a mindset only for the older adults - this issue has been perpetuated over many, many generations and the effects of the viscous cycle are clearly evident as I always see patients sitting in the waiting room in obvious pain.

This afternoon I met Liz, a dental assistant from Haines, who will be hosting me the week of June 20th. She has lived in the area a long time and knows all the best restaurants and excursion points. In addition to meeting Liz, I finalized my travel schedule to Sitka. I will be in Sitka June 14th-16th and June 28th-30th. I am going to be living at Mount Edgecumbe Hospital in the short-term family housing facilities built for families of patients who need to spend a few nights in the hospital.

My final travel plans are as follows:

Hoonah - June 7th, 8th, 9th
Haines - June 20th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd
Sitka - June 14th, June 15th, June 16th and June 28th, 29th, and 30th

I was also introduced to a new subspecialty of dentistry today - Maxillofacial Prothosdontics. These dentists treat patients with serious defects of the nose, ear, eye, or other parts of the face. I thought my dental implants were pretty cool, but not after Dr. Wilkinson showed me some pictures of patients with rebuilt eyes, ears, or cleft palettes. With modern technology and an increase in dental research, there appears to be no limit to what dentists and surgeons can do these days.

I went for a walk with Sky this afternoon to Dredge Lake. It wasn't overly impressive, but it was close and the weather was cold so I was in no mood to be out exploring anything too far away. Tomorrow is another early morning because someone is coming to view the house at 9 AM. Sky will be coming to work with me since I will have access to the Ray's car.

I submitted my first two week report to Bryn today. I can't believe I have already been here that long. I guess it's time to get serious and get to work, although it's tough when you are working with great people and surrounded by beautiful scenery. As the June rain rolls in, I should start to bear down and get focused on what should be an excellent project and excellent summer...