Sharon Boyd, MA, RDH
Sharon Boyd, MA, RDH, has over 20 years of experience in the dental industry and is the founder of DentaSpeak, LLC. In addition to being a registered hygienist, she also holds a master’s degree in Strategic Communication and a degree in Human Relations and Business. Sharon serves as a full-time patient education professional with special interests in dental communications methodology. She often works as a liaison between practitioners and patients, bridging the gap between care needs and patient concerns. Sharon is an Ironman, band mom, and enjoys teaching Sunday School at her family’s church.
Tips and Tricks for Managing Dental Patients With Sensitive Gag Reflexes
We’ve all had patients with hypersensitive gag reflexes who can’t sit through a single bitewing, lurch the moment your hand touches their lower incisors, or are so anxious that they can’t make it through a prophylaxis. As many as 10% to 15% of people have a hypersensitive gag reflex.1
Given that the trigeminal and glossopharyngeal nerves pass through the medulla...
Virtual Reality: Will Technology Help Dental Offices Manage Patients’ Anxiety?
As someone who works in dental communications, I'm constantly exploring new ways of interacting with patients to improve trust with providers and compliance with treatment recommendations. All too often, patients are so afraid of dentists and dental care as a whole that they avoid scheduling appointments, be it for preventive appointments or more complex restorative procedures. Incorporating new, nonsedating...
Trauma-informed Dental Care: How Dental Hygienists Can Help Foster and Adoptive Families
As a parent to three biological children, I had a lot to learn when we adopted our youngest child. My husband and I completed the training required by our social worker and networked with countless foster and adoptive parents to learn more about what to expect as we planned to expand our family.
Even with extensive training, many adoptive and...
Taboo Topics: How Periodontal Health Impacts Sexual Health
Hygienists understand how important it is for patients to make the connection between their oral and systemic health. Those "other" health conditions can sometimes be a touchy subject ‒ reproductive health, for example. These conditions include everything from the ability to get pregnant to whether they have erectile dysfunction (ED).
More than likely, a dental hygienist is not going to...
Examining Growth of Mid-level Dental Practitioners Inside and Outside the U.S.
Over the past several years, a push for mid-level dental practitioners has been underway to better provide care for at-risk and underserved populations. Mid-level dental practitioners are essentially the equivalent of a nurse practitioner or physician assistant in medicine. States such as Alaska, Washington, and Minnesota are just a few examples of areas where these mid-level practitioners can train...
Halitosis: Methods for Dental Hygienists to Broach a Sensitive Topic
Chronic halitosis is embarrassing for everyone. A dental patient with bad breath may feel too embarrassed to step foot inside a dentist’s office, and the dental team may feel uncomfortable bringing the issue to the patient’s attention. Oral health professionals, though, have the responsibility to feel confident in effectively and gently helping patients find a solution for the halitosis.
Sometimes...
Dental Hygienists Can Detect Signs of Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Dentition
Dental professionals have a front seat view of the oral manifestations of underlying medical conditions, and obstructive sleep apnea is one of them. When conducting a dental screening, some common oral symptoms of a sleeping disorder include the signs below.
Flat, worn teeth ‒ Bruxism is a natural side effect of oxygen deprivation during episodes of sleep apnea. Since the...
Case Acceptance: Guiding Dental Patients through Treatment Planning via Imaging
One of the most effective ways to gain case acceptance in the dental practice is through “co-planning” each dental patient’s treatment. Co-planning is essentially a broader concept of theoretical hand-holding and guiding your patient along as you work together to assess, identify, and plan the best course of care for specific oral health concerns.
In pediatrics, we often use the...