April 7th every year is celebrated as the World Health Day. Held under the aegis of the World Health Organisation (WHO) the goal this year is to 'Beat Diabetes.' I am sure as periodontists we can do our bit to scale up diabetes prevention, strengthen care, and enhance surveillance both for ourselves and our patients. But as a clinician can we bridge the gap by being both sensitive and intelligent? Besides being a skilled dentist, can we have some empathy and some good communication skills? We are a great community but can we be a little more interactive? Can we learn to apply what we have learnt on the spot? Yes, in this age of technology we are prone to be influenced by trends in other countries but we need to change, a change which is more oriented towards human needs.
Can we become more collaborative and more importantly give priority to the work-life balance? Can we protect ourselves from psychological rather than physical danger? Excess stress may not always show itself and we may not 'feel stressed' but what about the tooth grinding or the eye twitching? Alternatively how about the emotional quotient rather than any physical symptom? Stress, diabetes and periodontal disease – well we are all aware of the interrelationship, but can we take preventive steps to beat and/or prevent them?
As a society we have to address these trends in order to fulfil both our and our patient's expectations, because once you are in practice for a while, it can be highly remunerative but no remuneration can beat the satisfaction of treating patients and seeing them smile when they leave your care.
