Responsibilities Incumbent On The Dentist PDF

Responsibilities Incumbent On the Dentist DR.CLAUDINA E. LAGMAN The Dentist’s primary duty of serving the public is accomplished by giving his professional service to the best of his capability and by avoiding any conduct of unbecoming of a professional dentist and which tends to lower the public es...

Responsibilities Incumbent On the Dentist DR.CLAUDINA E. LAGMAN The Dentist’s primary duty of serving the public is accomplished by giving his professional service to the best of his capability and by avoiding any conduct of unbecoming of a professional dentist and which tends to lower the public esteem of the dental profession as a whole (Taken from Code of Ethics of Dentists, adopted by the then Board of Dental Examiners, today’s Board of Dentistry, June 1, 1954, and re-stated by the dental board on June 29, 1961) The master key to the Legitimate practice of dentistry is….. CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION… issued to the successful dental board examinee by the Board of Dentistry after satisfying all requirements. As a citizen, the dentist has the obligation to: Fulfill his civic duties and obligations; Abide by the law Equip himself with knowledge of the law governing the dental profession and sincerely cooperate with the authorities of the state concerned, by providing freely his skills, specialized knowledge and experienced to society in those fields where his special qualifications warrant him to speak with professional competence. Display leadership in his venue of practice including all efforts leading to the improvement of the dental health of the public. As a professional practitioner, or as an employee , a dentist should safeguard the image and dignity of his colleagues at all times, cognizant of the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” Responsibilities to the patients As provided by Section 3 of the Code of Ethics for Dentists, the main responsibility of a dentist to his patients is to protect their health, and for this reason, he should not delegate to his assistants the performance of any service or operation which requires is personal competence as a Doctor. Section 4 of the same Code, provides that, in the interest of rendering the best dental service to the patient, the dentist should supervise the dental mechanical work of his assistants or other ministerial duties performed by them in connection with the performance by him of dental service. Duty to the Public In the interest of public health, the dentist should make the product of his discoveries, inventions, or works, which maybe useful in safeguarding or promoting health of the community, available to all; patents or copyrights therefore may be obtained by him only when their main objects is the protection of the profession in particular and public in general. (Code of Ethics for Dentists, Section 7). Def of Terms: Copyright It is the exclusive right to reproduction, publication and sale of the rights to a literary, musical or artistic work; also, it is the use of a manufacturing or merchandising, label, granted by law for a definite or prescribed number of years to an author, composer, artist, distributor, and so on Patent As distinguished from a copyright, a patent is a document open to public scrutiny and granting a certificate in right or privilege, especially a document granting a monopoly right to reproduce, use or sell or get profit from an invention, process, etc. for a certain number of years. So with the work and ownership registered with government, the copyright gains full recognition on his lawful sole right to negotiate the copyrighted work, process or invention. A dentist, whenever possible, may participate in any programmed designed for the education of the public on dental health, provided that such programmed will not detract from the dignity of the dental profession. (Sec13, Code of Ethics for Dentists) Duty to Colleagues 1. A dentist should refrain from criticizing the skill, knowledge and experience of another dentist in the presence of the patient, or elsewhere, because lack of accurate knowledge of the conditions or circumstances underwhich the services were rendered by the other dentist may lead to unfair or unfound criticism, and undermine the patient’s confidence in the dental profession (Section 15, Code of Ethics for Dentists) 2. A dentist is bounded by professional ethics not to use unfair means to gain professional advancement or to injure the opportunities of other dentists to progress in their practice; he must be receptive to new ideas and suggestions from other dental practitioners; ready to recognize, encourage and accredit therewith, those to whom such credit is due. (Sec 16 , Code x x x x x ) 3. In case of emergency, and is consulted by the patient of another dentist and requested to attend to the condition of the patient, he must limit his service to the emergency condition only, and in the absence of the patient’s dentist, he is futher obligated to REFER the patient BACK to his own dentist, he should be informed of his patient’s condition. (Sec 22, Code X X X) Duty to His Profession 1. A dentist should strive to be well- informed of the latest trend and progress in dental science and to keep his knowledge and skill up-to –date because the right of a dentist to the professional rank rest in the knowledge, skill and experience with which he serves his patients and the public. (section 10, code of ethics for dentist). 2. Section 11 of the same code, the practicing dentist should acknowledge professional consultation. If and when safeguarding or promoting the welfare of the patient merits recourse to specialists in the profession, said dentist has the obligation to do so. 3. Finally , section 17 x x x x provides that a dentist should refrain from using improper or business-like method of soliciting patients; it is abominable ( offensive or adious) practice for a dentist of high ethical principles and decent taste, to make use of agents to solicit patients. Other responsibilities Good government - of a profession All professions are society’s recipients of the right to regulate itself, to determine and judge its own members, maximally achieved via the influence of various professional societies or organizations, It is a must dual obligation of the dentist to make himself part and parcel of a professional society. As such, he is bound to observe its rule of ethics. Availability of dental care to the lay public Policies laid out by organized dentistry state that dental services should be available to the lay public, that must be interpreted not as meaning ’paid for’ by the government but as meaning ‘available’. Dental societies in many areas have sponsored indirect Clinique’s and financial support for such projects may be obtained from supply houses service clubs, giant drug establishments, in terms of free medicines for oral use. Our own dental school do participate in these projects. Dentist’s participation in community affairs A dentist owes to himself, his professor and his community an active involvement in community happening, via personal leadership or activities accordant with one’s personality to fulfill responsibilities of citizenship. Community Dentistry Community dentistry is the study of dental care delivery to all categories of society. Such study incorporates education programs, methods of public and private care delivery, functions of all types of genre of auxiliary personnel, and methods of payment as well – including funding of programs. Many schools are involved in these activities orienting the student clinicians on the need of institutionalized individuals (nursing homes and retirement center “ residents”), the bed-ridden, the hors de combat (disabled), etc., as well as the need for care of the minorities (such the Tasadays , on the native front )ghetto habitants, those in the wilderness, or in remote unserved regions. Mention was made herewith on community dentistry solely to identify these apparent community needs that should merit consideration. Advantages in these community programs participation might apply especially to the novice practitioner, involvement of which may afford opportunities at the onset of one’s career, of value to both the community and the practitioner. The following are the benefits from the community dentistry 1.Opportunity to travel 2.Broad spectrum of experiences; 3.Familiarize various categories of people 4.Adventure 5.Acquisition of maximum independent practical experience 6. Possibility of extending the practice to another area. 7. Discovering of a specialized field of dentistry. 8. A break from the ordinary. 9. A good catch-up with one’s self, looking at life from a different perspective; and 10. Ego-toning ( the dental clinicians and subsequently, the novice practitioners, has been treated to the priceless benefits of advanced education and intellectual experiences during a major phase of his life may be enlightened by these trials and practice) Politics -Like any other citizen it is their prerogative and privilege to engage in politics, lobbying, etc and activities indispensable to good citizenship. -They have the right to share political views that can help develop trust and rapport as human beings, beside as a doctor and patient. -Free dental clinics should not be taken advantage by any politicians, whether they are willing to fully fund the program. This simply explains that we should not be influenced by any politician if the main objective of the profession is preventing and treating a disease. Political action and Lobbying Political action pertains to contributions to political campaigns Lobbying refers to efforts to guide and influenced legislative action following election of candidates: Summary / Recap We have dissected the responsibility of the dentist, so you are expected to perform the responsibilities efficiently. Performing the procedures with care and safety in mind for the patient. The Dental Profession