Such challenging and interesting times we are all experiencing. Very few of us, if any, remain unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of us have had to reimagine our lives, dismantling what were normal everyday routines, reassessing and then reassembling our lives in new ways. I’m seeing this every day; not only in how my routine office tasks have changed but also in watching activity outside my office on Madison and 48/49 street.
In early 2019 Chase Bank began dismantling its office tower on the adjacent block. I have no idea how many stories, or how high the tower was and never really paid any attention to what was happening- until after returning to work in June. In my new daily routine of walking to and from the office, I noticed only 6 floors remained of the once multi storied Chase building.
I was fascinated each day as another floor was dismantled, until the only remaining part of that enormous structure was the slab at ground level. And I watched with keen interest and wonderment as the basement and subbasement were exposed, and new steel beams added to the already existing structural footprint; the architects and engineers re-imagining a new building built on the old foundation. And it struck me that what was happening was no different than what has been happening in our own lives. Breaking down the support systems we all had come to expect and depend on, only to reimagine and reinforce how we go about our daily business, hoping to build back better (no political pun intended), in a different way, the parts of our lives that are meaningful to us. I’m curious which project will be completed first! I’m hopeful Covid-19 will be under control before the building is completed!
The ADA has reported that dentists have been very successful in keeping their patients, team members and themselves healthy. While reported incidents are not zero, they are significantly less than 1%. Here’s a news segment on GMA:
As some of you know, over the past 20 years, I have had the good fortune to study with and learn from, Dr. John Kois, one of the world’s truly outstanding dental clinicians and educators. At times I have had the pleasure of mentoring some of his classes and teaching with John at the Kois Center, a teaching institution John built in Seattle almost 25 years ago.
Each July John presents a symposium in Seattle where he spends three days sharing with those dentists affiliated with the Kois Center the latest scientific studies that relate to how we practice dentistry. John’s thrust has always been to teach methodologies based on science, not anecdotal observation. This year, of course, the symposium was virtual.
It was still outstanding with lots of new concepts and learning being shared with our group, and I’ve updated my blog post on abrasive toothpaste with the Kois Center’s chart about the abrasive levels of toothpaste and the acidic levels of some foods and beverages. The level of acidity in our saliva is frequently associated with enamel destruction; the lower the Ph, the higher the acid levels, the more harm we can do to our tooth enamel.
My team and I are grateful to have the opportunity to provide our services again and appreciate those of you who have trust and confidence in what we do and how we do it. And have been willing to travel longer distances to keep your dental appointments.
Again, a personal thank you to my team, RoseMarie, Tiffany and Elvia; they work tirelessly each day making sure our office environment stays clean and safe in order to keep us all healthy.
Please be careful, and stay safe and healthy.
Dr. Robert M. Sorin, DMD
We have resumed normal office hours and are open for scheduled appointments. Please write or call and read more about the many changes we have made to insure everyone’s safety.