Introducing Joy – Our new dental student and the week before a practical exam (not joy)

Hello friends and colleagues at Seymour Dental! My name is Joy (Jun), a second year dental student at Sydney Uni. I recently joined Seymour Dental as a Saturday dental assistant. You may also find me at random times at Seymour Dental during the weekdays as a relief dental assistant.

A little bit about myself… I grew up in Shanghai, China – a mega city of 20 million regular residents! After high school, I went to study in the States. There I completed my Bachelor of Arts degree. My school is in a small town of Illinois, three hours drive from Chicago. Seas of cornfields surround us, and we have beautiful snow in winter. I find the residents from the Midwest region of the U.S. the friendliest people on the earth! There I met my three host families, whom I cherish deeply and still communicate with regularly till this day. They showed me around the city, and invited me into their house for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and any family gatherings.

Now I am studying dentistry at Sydney Uni. It is a very stressful but absolutely rewarding course! From day one, every lecturer and professor made sure you know that his/her subject is the most important. However, you quickly learned that practical skills would be the most important of all. After all, at the end of the day, dentists perform dental surgeries on a daily basis. As soon as I learned about the importance of developing good fine motor skills at dental school, I seized the opportunities to practice whenever I could.

The week before my tooth conservation (drilling cavities in preparation for a filling) barrier exam, my drill set at home broke down. This barrier exam determined if we could progress into the second semester of the second year, because in a couple of months, I will be treating real patients at Westmead Dental Hospital (a scary but mostly exciting thought)! I did not have time to build up a new drill set before the exam, fortunately, I was allowed to practice drilling at Seymour Dental!

In a restoration appointment, we prepare a cavity before we fill it with dental materials. It is crucial to prepare a good cavity, as this could help increase the longevity of the filling. The form of the cavity has to be smooth and conservative, so that we are not removing too much of the existing tooth structure. However, it has to be deep enough so that the bacteria and debris (culprits of tooth decay) are fully removed.

During the week before my tooth conservation practical assessment, I went to Seymour Dental to practice whenever I had time and when Surgery 1 was not in use. I really appreciate the generosity and support from everyone at Seymour Dental!!! I was able to pass my exam, and right now, I am snorkeling in the oceans of Gold Coast. This little holiday will help me unwind and gear up for the new semester!

~ Joy Liu

Next week: Highlights of the past 200 blog posts – Our Blog Series