“Things, They are a Changing!”

Have you ever thought about how the specialty of endodontics has changed over the course of your career? Whether you are approaching retirement, a mid-career practitioner, a recent graduate, or an educator, you have undoubtedly witnessed an endodontic evolution. Even if you are a current resident, the rapid influx of innovative technology, techniques, and materials, along with new practice models, may leave you wondering how and where you will practice, or how you will keep up with the ever-changing face of our specialty. The prospects can be daunting and overwhelming.

I graduated dental school in 1986 and practiced general dentistry before returning to endodontic residency in 1990. My interest and love of endodontics were certainly factors in my decision to become an endodontist. But the rapidly changing and technically challenging profession of dentistry also drove my decision to become specialist. In an era where I was trained to do partial veneer gold restorations, gold foil, and self-cured/non-bonded composites, the rapid introduction of dental implants and cosmetic dentistry (among others) made me realize that to survive I would need to “re-train” and learn a whole new way of delivering dental care. Instead of doing this, with the support of my family, I decided to become an endodontist, and become proficient in a discipline which was seemingly “stable” and “unchanging.”

I did my residency from 1990-1992, during an era where we still did lateral condensation and alloy retrofills, and seldom looked for, let alone found, an MB2 canal. During that time, we had visits from Drs. Ben Johnson, Mahmoud Torabinejad, and Gary Carr, who introduced us to rotary instrumentation, bioceramics (MTA), and the use of the surgical operating microscope. These technologies and materials were difficult to reconcile, and we as residents were skeptical and had a certain misdirected degree of contempt for these new concepts. But 30 years later, history shows that the stable and unchanging discipline of endodontics was irreversibly changed and transformed by materials and techniques which have now become staples of our specialty, significant components of the modern endodontics, and part of the standard of endodontic practice. What could have been the consequences of denying the importance and significance of these important developments?

What are the next changes which will define our specialty? Transformation in our world, in our profession, in our communities, and in our specialty is inevitable and necessary, but can be difficult to accept and at times stressful. As I embark upon my presidential year and think back to all that has transpired during my career as an endodontist, I am concerned about how our specialty will adapt to change and wonder how we react and make positive advances for our residents, our members, and our specialty. To guide our specialty into the future is as task of great responsibility.

Being a leader with the AAE for almost 20 years, I am proud of the fact that our association has adapted to the changing landscape of endodontics by being resilient, circumspective, supportive, and accepting of new ideas. Our recognition that with change comes an opportunity for growth and advancement has allowed us to be responsive and an effective advocate for our members in the changing world. Through our strategic plan we have made significant strides in our role in maintaining oral and systemic health. At the urging of our members, we have elevated our advocacy effort to new heights by publicly promoting our skills, expertise, and standards as specialists in saving the natural dentition. The AAE and the Foundation for Endodontics have thoughtfully created strategies to support endodontic education, and to fund research which will assure the longevity and relevancy of our profession. We have created outlets which will enable our members to evaluate emerging technologies and practice models. Most importantly, we have recognized the diversity of our membership and have sought ways to utilize and embrace this diversity.

I have great hope for our specialty going forward, and our leadership will vigorously continue their efforts to support and strengthen endodontics. But the next step is yours. Ask yourself these important questions. Are your ready to accept the responsibility to help sustain our specialty at its highest levels? Can you uphold the standards of practice which technically and biologically define our discipline, and will you do this ethically and with the patient’s best interests in mind? Will you become a leader, a mentor, and advocate, or an educator to help perpetuate and elevate the specialty of endodontics? Will you be a philanthropist to help those less fortunate than ourselves receive the dental care that they need? Will you be able to recognize the changes which can potentially make our therapy better and more successful? Your ability to accept the responsibility to do any one of these will go a long way in improving endodontics as we move into the future.

I have seen much change during my career as an endodontist, some for the good and some for the not so good, but I remain extremely hopeful for the future. And even though change is often difficult to accept, our collegial and collaborative recognition of it as members of our organization will allow us to make progress and improvement, which in turn will allow us to achieve the success and accessiblity which makes us viable and relevant. My hope as President is that we will all recognize the significance of change and work toward our common goal of upholding the standards which define excellence and advance our specialty to its highest levels yet.