Using a Dental Show to Understand Your Profession

This is what we in the business call "The Dental Season". The big dental shows are around this time of year and continue through next Spring. I really enjoy attending and exhibiting at dental shows, but it took me a while to appreciate doing this. At first, dental shows seemed to be superficial for me. But looking back that was my academic, ivory tower attitude coming through. After spending several years creating dental products, my attitude changed to "include" these business people, as maybe actually knowing something. Funny how that worked. I went through a transformation.

Dental show attendees can be categorized, if you will allow me, to fall into three broad groups. Academic-University types, Clinical-Practice types, and Business-Company types. Each come with different interests and orientations. What I have learned is that each type also comes with an important collection of information that each other group generally does not possess. Each group has an important piece in understanding the practice of dentistry. Getting these three people, or pieces, together in a good discussion I think is one of the great challenges we face to improve dentistry. Let me pose what I think is an apparent aspect of this. If you belong to some "professional" group consider the composition of your group. Your attitudes and orientations will start to appear.

Today I view Dental Shows as something of a crossroads, where people can be seen to be learning from each other. At this crossroads you also see people in transition communicating with another part of the profession. This occurs primarily at a "trade" show. As a young person starting to attend dental shows I would encourage you to develop an open, inquisitive mind about what you can learn at these shows. A next step is to then consider yourself as being a representative of that opposing group. In other words, try to see the big picture.

Dental Shows are a collection of companies describing and selling products, academic people discussing their techniques or presenting research (often on behalf of companies), and clinical people trying to learn what each of them hasn't been able to figure out together. This is the challenge. (Does this sound like a three-legged stool?) As you pass through the Halls of these Shows consider your orientation and what you can learn from others that are reaching out to you. If you do so I suggest that you will also undergo a transformation. This experience can only be found at a Dental Trade Show.

Let me know what you think.

Need some further guidance? Consider visiting some of the Trade Publication booths, these guys are great and can provide their views on what's happening in the field.