Amanda Romero, RDH

I have been a dental hygienist for over a decade.  At the start of this year, I left my long-term job in private practice to become a mobile, school-based dental hygienist.  I am now the happiest I have been in this profession. 

Mobile hygiene is hard.  The days are long.  I spend several hours a week driving across the state.  I carry around heavy equipment.  There are a lot of logistics involved that rarely run according to plan.  Despite the many challenges, I inevitably find myself thinking “this is worth it” at the end of each day, as I am taking a deep breath and shoving a late lunch in my mouth on my drive home. 

In the past, I worked primarily with adults.  Now I spend my days with kids of all ages.  I see more plaque and tooth decay than I have seen in my whole career, but I also see the kindest, most inquisitive little humans that I have ever known.  My daily interactions with these kids turn an otherwise mundane activity into truly meaningful moments. 

My favorite moments with patients are those where I am able to forget about the outside world and everything that makes us different, and focus on the shared interaction that we are having in the moment.  I pride myself in creating a safe, compassionate space for every child while they are in my care. I know that many of my patients deal with hardship at home and in their day to day lives, so I strive to make sure they are comfortable while in my presence.

I have lost count of how many times kids talk to me about the fact that going to the dentist is expensive and that their parents cannot afford to take them or do not have transportation to get them there.  This is not something that any child should have to think about or worry about.  I want to provide care to as many of these kids as I can and try to ease this worry from their minds. If they walk away from me feeling even the slightest bit healthier, and more confident in themselves and their smiles, I feel like I have done my job. 

What keeps me inspired to continue to do this work are the kids – the kids who thank me – the kids who recognize me in the school hallway and smile and wave as we walk past each other – the kids who embarrassingly tell me they haven’t been to a dentist in years and are smiling as they walk away from me – the kids who are vulnerable and share that they haven’t had a toothbrush for months – even the kids who tell me “I hate this” or even “I hate you” – those are the kids who test my patience the most and remind me that this job is not easy.  Nothing worthwhile is easy. 

I am excited to continue this journey of mobile dental hygiene.  I am learning every day, and every day I am becoming a better dental hygienist and a better human being.