Kim Kiser, RDH
Kim Kiser, RDH, whose career spans over 30 years, looks forward to sharing tips and topics that other fellow hygienist may find helpful, funny, and educational in their pursuit of ultimate care of their patients. A 1992 graduate of Trident College, Kim has a passion for educating patients with the best and most up to date products and techniques available, so patients fully understand how to properly be the best advocate in the care of their own oral health. Kim is a mother of 2, with one granddaughter, and resides in the beautiful North Georgia mountains with her husband, Mark. Outside of her love for dentistry, Kim also enjoys baking, gardening, painting, and enjoying all the beauty North Georgia has to offer.
Simple Tips for Improving the Dental Patient Experience
Let’s face it, a dental visit for some patients can be rather stress-inducing. For fearful and anxious patients, a dental appointment is not their idea of a great way to spend an afternoon. Even the seasoned dental patient who doesn’t have any anxiety or fear issues may not be totally thrilled about spending time in the dental operatory.
So, how...
8 Types of Patients that Make Hygienists Feel Like Rockstars
Dental hygienists have their share of ups and downs ─ something that is probably true of most professions. Most days are typically good and glide along smoothly. Occasionally, a hygienist will have one of those days when everything that can go wrong does.
Dental patients inevitably can have an impact on the way the workday unfolds. For example, are they...
Reflections in My Dental Mirror: Tips for Younger Hygienists
My dental career began in Goose Creek, South Carolina, in 1987 at the ripe old age of 20. I was a certified dental assistant and immediately became hooked. I’m not sure what made me love it so; it could have been the smell of eugenol in the air, the fashionable scrubs I was able to wear, or the bright,...
Dental Sealants: Making a Choice in Etching
We are all very aware of how effective dental sealants are against caries. The thin, little barriers placed in the pits and fissures of molar and premolar teeth have been around in one form or another since 1966. They have acted as a formidable defense in the fight against plaque and bacteria that would normally cause carious lesions.
You may have...
Systemic Diseases: Oral Signs to Watch for in Dental Patients
Some people claim that the eyes are the window to the soul. As a dental professional, have you ever thought that the tongue and mouth are the window to your patient's health? We can gain quite a bit of insight and information about our dental patients just by a thorough exam of the tongue, mucosa, and surrounding structures of...
Hygiene Hacks: 25 Tips to Simplify a Day of Dental Hygiene
With the start of a new year, many of us reflect on how we can improve ourselves. For some, it’s the need to get more sleep, read more, eat healthy, or get in shape. That’s one reason the gyms are full in January, and exercise equipment goes on sale. We all want to be and do better!
All of us...
Keeping the Schedule Filled: Battling the Saga of Appointment No Shows
I think since the dawn of civilization, there has been a problem in dental offices that has yet to be solved. Come on! You know what I’m talking about! Keeping the dental hygiene schedules full and productive!
You can seemingly have the perfect day scheduled when you begin the day fresh-faced at 8 a.m. But, by 9 o’clock, you have...
1099 or W-2: Which Tax forms Should Temp Dental Hygienists Receive?
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it’s that wonderful time of the year again. Beginning in January, the whole 1099 or W2 debate is in full swing for dental hygienists who do temporary or fill-in work. Temp work is certainly a great way to make some extra income, network with other professionals in your area, and possibly learn new techniques from...
10 Tips for Dental Hygienists to Get through a Long Work Day
Let’s face it, clinical hygiene is hard on your body, your brain, and sometimes your psyche. A patient who has some limitations and is unable to lie back or turn in the direction we need them to for proper ergonomics causes dental hygienists to bend, contort, and twist bodies in ways we should not just to accomplish our job.
Dental...
Are You Burnt Out Or Just Bummed Out? What Hygienists Should Know
Regardless of how long you have been working as a dental hygienist, at some point you may have felt that you were just done and over it all! If the thought of scaling one more piece of calculus, flipping one more room, or reviewing a treatment plan makes you literally want to run out the door screaming all the...
7 Things Your Dental Hygienist Wish You Knew
Dental hygienists are very grateful to their patients, and they realize patients have chosen a dental office for assistance during the journey of keeping their teeth for a lifetime. It is a hard task for some patients to even show up for appointments due to perhaps anxiety or a dental phobia, a demanding work schedule, or daily life responsibilities.
So,...
9 Simple Temping Tips for Dental Hygienists
We are all aware that the workforce that helps keep the economy moving forward has undergone major changes since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. You have likely seen some changes within your area, including businesses shortening hours, employing only skeleton crews, and lacking products in stock.
Changes within the dental profession are no exception. For whatever reasons, clinicians are...
Lip Tattoos: Help Dental Patients Think before They Ink
Humans have marked their bodies with tattoos for thousands of years, and these permanent designs are always personal, serving as status symbols, signs of religious beliefs, amulets, declarations of love, adornments, and even as forms of punishment. People tattoo every part of their bodies, including their inner labial mucosa, gingiva, and hard palate as a form of self-expression.
Celebrities such...
Teething Necklaces: Are They Worth the Risk?
I am a seasoned dental hygienist. I am also a mother and a grandmother, and I like the title of “Memaw” much better. I know exactly how parents feel when a child is experiencing pain or discomfort. Parents want solutions and answers on how to alleviate or prevent the pain, especially when infants and small children are unable to...
An Ethical Question: Should Hygienists be Facebook Friends with Patients?
It is no surprise to anyone in the modern world that in 2020 we live in a very high tech, social network type of world. We can be connected to gaming sites, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Snapchat, and so many more with just the tap of a finger or a single voice command.
While I strongly believe that there are...
Let’s Get to The Point: Factors in Sharpening Hygiene Instruments
I hope I am not the only dental hygienist who has ever found herself trying to scale tenacious (or even not so tenacious) calculus with instruments that feel like dull kitchen spoons that arrived in 1620 on the Mayflower. It can be so defeating and frustrating to try and do your dental hygiene job with inadequate instruments.
I compare it...
The Authentic RDH: With New Challenges, Hygienists Should Stay True to Themselves
Ah, January ‒ the beginning of a brand-new year. The new year brings a sense of hope, purpose, and possibilities for people, a fresh start. The previous year is behind us, and whatever mistakes dental hygienists have made or tasks they didn't accomplish or even attempt is history now. In January, resolutions have been made, new diets and workout...
10 Things Dental Patients Want When Choosing a Dental Provider
Have you ever wondered what really matters to patients when they are choosing a dental provider? In this highly competitive dental market, knowing what your patients really care about and being able to deliver that can be a simple key to achieving patient satisfaction.
Dental patients have all types of different reasons for choosing you or your dental office. It...
20 Ways Dental Patients Drive Dental Hygienists Crazy
Dental hygienists adore their patients and look forward to treating them every day. Here are 20 actions by dental patients, though, that are sure to test the benevolent patience of any dental hygienist.
1) Being habitually late
We value your time as a patient and make that appointment specifically for you! I understand that sometimes things can't be helped, such as...
5 Reasons Why I Love Being a Dental Hygienist
So many career options are available to people. Do you ever find yourself wondering how someone ended up doing what they do for a living? Some people know from a young age what career they want and gear their playtime, education, and training toward that for most of their lives and end up ecstatic with their choice! Not all...