About The Authors
Dr. Wu graduated with honors from Boston University Goldman School Of Dental Medicine, where she received her Doctorate in Dental Medicine (DMD) and received the prestigious award from the American College Of Prosthodontics for outstanding achievement in the study of prosthodontics. Dr. Wu has been a general dentist since 1998. Dr. Wu is unique in her ability to connect with patients and known for giving the highest level of personal attention to her patients. Her focus on patient education has helped patient's perception about modern dentistry. She is a motivator with the gift of being able to influence others in a positive way. Dr. Wu's vision of dentistry is very simple, to create a center of excellence for dental care with quality, integrity, ethics, and comfort. Due to her exceptional patient services and excellence in dentistry, she and her team was Patch Readers' Choice award winner for the Best Dentist in the city of Malden. She also has been recognized in the "Guide To America's Top Dentist" by Consumers' Research Council Of America for the last six years. Dr. Wu has dedicated and committed to serve as a mentor for future dentists in Boston University Goldman School Of Dental Medicine through active participation in the APEX program for the last fourteen years. She was also once a columnist for the Malden Observer newspaper. Dr. Wu is a member of the American Dental Association, American Academy Of Cosmetic Dentistry, Academy Of Laser Dentistry, Massachusetts Dental Society, and the East Middlesex Dental Society Of Massachusetts.
Patricia Wu, D.M.D.
Patricia Wu, D.M.D., P.C.
Malden, Massachusetts
In 2007, Dr. Peter Fuentes and his business partner and fellow dentist Salvatore Pavone, founded Dental Groups of New Jersey, which now includes multiple dental practices, several in poverty-challenged, underserved cities like Bayonne, Paterson, and East Orange. Fuentes vision for dentistry is one of outreach. Pavone and Fuentes have opened up their offices to the community, mental health facilities, nursing homes, special care facilities, as well as public and private schools. "We view our offices as a fixture in the communities. We want everyone to feel welcomed. We have buses from Senior centers bringing patients here weekly. It becomes a bit of a social hour for the residents. They bring photos, keepsakes, and often food to share with the staff." Fuentes' offices have also been vital in public health reform. They have initiated mandatory dental checkups for many of the daycares, nursery schools, as well as high schools. "We just need to make sure that these kids are being seen regularly by a dentist. Almost all dental emergencies are things that could have been prevented with routine care." Fuentes says he was drawn to dentistry through a passion for public health. "I've always been interested in helping people in a bigger sense, more than just a one-on-one relationship with people," he says. "Dentistry is advocacy. Our job is to basically look after these kids, and oral health is just our way in the door." Dr. Peter Fuentes graduated from Johns Hopkins University where he studied Neuroscience, and then went on to graduate from UMDNJ-New Jersey Dental. He continues to work on his Alumni Admissions board at Johns Hopkins. Currently, he holds the post as Liberty Dental's Medicaid Dental Director for the state of New Jersey. He was named "Top Dentist" By New Jersey Monthly Magazine 2012 and the recipient of Academy of Osseointegration Implant Dentist Award. He has been honored by multiple organizations for his work servicing the underprivileged population in the community. His wife, Dr Meghan Hernandez, sha
Peter Fuentes, D.M.D.
Bayonne Family Dental
Bayonne, New Jersey
Dr. Steven Gusfa graduated from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry in 2001. He has 14 years of experience practicing dentistry. His Professional Memberships include: American Dental Association 2001 to present, Michigan Dental, Association 2001 to present, Detroit District Dental Society (Southwestern Branch) 2001 to present. He has been active within these organizations as Secretary of Southwestern Branch 2004 to 2006, President of Southwestern Branch 2006 to 2008, Secretary of Detroit District Dental Society 2008 to 2009, Vice President of Detroit District Dental Society 2009 to 2010, President Elect of Detroit District Dental Society 2010 to 2011, President Detroit District Dental Society 2011 to 2012 and MDA House of Delegates 2005 to 2013. Dr. Gusfa was also inducted into the Pierre Fauchard Academy in 2007, the International College of Dentists in 2011, received the Detroit District Dental Society's New Dentist of the Year Award in 2005, and the Michigan Dental Association's Matt Uday New Dentist Leadership Award in 2011. In his free time Dr. Gusfa enjoys spending time with his family, especially his two children who are his raison d'être. He also enjoys the outdoors, attending sporting events, cooking great barbecue, and tweaking his almost perfect signature BBQ sauce.
Steven Gusfa, D.D.S.
Gusfa Dental Clinic
Dearborn, Michigan
Dr. Edita Outericka, Dental Director at Dynamic Dental, strives for perfection and works tirelessly to educate patients on good overall dental health and proper dental hygiene. She has found cosmetic dentistry, including Invisalign (clear braces), most rewarding and has taken special interest in that area of her practice. Her enthusiasm for providing the highest quality dental care is matched only by the compassion she has for her patients. Dr. Edita graduated from Simmons College with a Bachelor's Degree and then entered the graduate program at Tufts University where she earned her Doctorate in Medical Dentistry. She is also certified to administer Botox and fillers. Dr. Edita is a member of both the American Dental Association and the Massachusetts Dental Society. She is also affiliated with the Southeastern Dental Society, South Shore District Dental Society and the New England Dental Society. When Dr. Edita is not working or spending time at dental seminars, she is an avid athlete who competes in triathlons and half marathons. She also supports charitable athletic events by raising money and participating in them. Dr. Edita currently resides in Easton with her husband.
Edita Outericka, D.M.D.
Dynamic Dental, Inc.
Mansfield, Massachusetts
Dr. Kathy Jacobsen earned her DMD degree in 1994 from the University Medical and Dental School of New Jersey. Since then, her contagious enthusiasm has allowed her to build a thriving practice focusing on adult restorative and cosmetic dentistry, and general family dentistry. From the beginning of her career, Dr. Jacobsen has been dedicated to building long-term patient relationships and staying abreast of the latest advancements in the field of dental science. She continually expands her skills and knowledge through constant continuing education courses, including the Las Vegas Institute to study advanced dental anterior esthetics. Her team accompanies her for additional training in their areas of expertise. Dr. Jacobsen is a member of the American Dental Association, Arizona Dental Association, Academy of General Dentists, American Association of Women Dentists and the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentists. She is the mother of three, a boy and two girls, and is a strong believer in giving back to the community. Each year she and her staff hold a community dental day where they treat local kids free of charge. Involved in Smiles for Life, as a Crown Council dentist, Dr. Jacobsen donates proceeds from teeth whitening to seriously ill, disabled, and underprivileged children in the Phoenix area. She is also associated with the Teammates for Kids Foundation, which contributes financial resources to selected nonprofit organizations that effectively serve and benefit children with an emphasis on health, education and inner city services. In addition to all of this, Dr. Jacobsen donates to local animal shelters and to our troops who are serving our country. Dr. Jacobsen is highly trained in the art and science of creating happy, healthy smiles through professional restorative and cosmetic dentistry. Contemporary Dentistry, in Gilbert, is here to help you obtain and maintain strong, healthy teeth and a beautiful smile. We designed our entire practice around providing state-ofthe- art dental care in a comfortable, family friendly environment. We will make your dental experience sensational! Our entire staff is dedicated to continuous improvement and constantly attends many professional seminars and education courses to stay at the very top of our areas of expertise. We look forward to meeting you in person!
Kathy Jacobsen, D.M.D.
Contemporary Dentistry
Gilbert, Arizona
Dr. Patricia Takacs opened her first practice over 30 years ago with the purpose to reach out to everyone and improve their dental health in a comfortable, modern environment. Dr. Takacs is a strong advocate of patient education and enjoys getting to know each of her patients. She is dedicated to staying current with cutting-edge procedures and technology. She has completed advanced training in implant dentistry, neuromuscular analysis, orthodontics, cosmetic dentistry, full mouth reconstruction and sleep apnea medicine. She is trained and certified in oral conscious sedation. As an Elite Preferred Invisalign Provider, Dr. Takacs has the highest status as an Invisalign provider and is in the top 1% of all providers in North America. She is also a Lumineers-certified doctor. After attending West Virginia University, Dr. Takacs graduated with honors from the University of Kentucky, College of Dentistry in 1983. In addition to running her practice, she has taught at the University of Kentucky, College of Dentistry and coached dentists through a dental management company. A Member of Academy of GP Orthodontics, Academy of Laser Dentistry, Academy of Computerized Dentistry, Bluegrass Dental Society, Kentucky Dental Association, American Dental Association and Dental Organization of Conscious Sedation. Dr. Trish Takacs and her husband have been married 33 years and have a son and daughter. Her son is a 2012 graduate of UK College of Dentistry and is an associate at Beaumont Family Dentistry and her daughter will be graduating from the Dental College in 2015. Her outside interests include golf and reading and hanging out with the family dogs.
Patricia E. Takacs, D.M.D.
Beaumont Family Dentistry
Lexington, Kentucky
Dr. Terri Baarstad, the owner and practicing dentist at SmileAlive is known for her pleasant manner and down-to-earth personality. She has a knack for "putting herself in her patients' shoes", and being sensitive to their comfort level. Under Dr. Baarstad's care, you can be confident that her consultation will be with your best interest at heart. Along with her Husband and children, Dr. Baarstad has made Eugene her home for over 30 years. She enjoys spending time with family, friends, and her dogs. Her hobbies include fishing, scuba diving, photography and cooking. Dr. Baarstad appreciates the value of community service, and devotes herself to improving the dental health of those who live around her. She donates services to charitable organizations and sponsors many community events, including high school fundraisers. Dr. Baarstad expresses a special interest in helping young men and women explore a career in dentistry through volunteering at local high school career symposiums. After attending the University of Oregon, Dr. Baarstad graduated as a DMD from the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland. She is an active member of the American Dental Association, the Oregon Dental Association, and the Academy of General Dentistry, and a recipient of the Dr. William Howard Award for Excellence in Fixed Prosthetics. She is especially skilled in the areas of dental implants, cosmetic care, including crowns and bridges, porcelain veneers, traditional and implant dentures. Her experience is enriched by a focus on continuing education, including courses on comprehensive esthetics and implantology.
Terri Baarstad, D.M.D.
SmileAlive
Eugene, Oregon
Dr. Trevor Tsuchikawa practices dentistry in the community he was born and raised. He takes extreme pride in understanding people and their individual concerns. Dr. Trevor graduated from Seattle University where he majored in Biochemistry and played on the basketball team. He then received his Doctorate of Dental Surgery from the University of Washington, School of Dentistry. Dr. Trevor is a major sports fan and was a proud member of the basketball coaching staff at his alma mater Franklin High School. Dr. Trevor and his wife Marisa have two beautiful daughters Taylor and Tanna. They are the drive of his life and he takes as much pride in fatherhood as anyone. Some of his hobbies include basketball, soccer, personal development, traveling, and experiencing life with his friends and family. Through a combination of state of the art technology, sensible treatment plans and genuine devotion to the unique needs of each patient, Dr. Trevor has been honored as one of "America's Top Dentist" by Consumer Research. Applying unique blend of artistic and technical skills to produce durable and aesthetic results in thousands of patients. Dr. Trevor is dedicated to lifelong learning through continuing education courses. He is licensed by the Dental Board of Washington and is a member of the American Dental Association, Washington State Dental Association, King County Dental Society, and American Academy of General Dentistry. He is also a proud member of Sunrise Dental and attributes nearly all of his success as a dentist to his mentors Dr. Edward Im and Dr. Abraham Ghorbanian.
Trevor Tsuchikawa D.D.S.
Dr. Trevor Family Dentistry
Seattle, Washington
Dr. Roya Akbar is considered to be among the top dentists in the greater Atlanta, GA area. Her specialized training - combined with the latest technology and techniques - provides her patients with compassionate care and professional expertise. After graduating with a bachelor's degree of Science and Biology from Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia, she went on to attend the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, where she received her D.M.D. From there, Dr. Akbar furthered her studies at Oklahoma University in Oklahoma City, where she received a postgraduate degree in advanced education in general dentistry. She was licensed by the Georgia Board of Dentistry in 1990, and begin practicing in Atlanta by 1991. She is also licensed through D.O.C.S. to perform oral conscious sedation, allowing her to offer quality care to many patients who may otherwise go untreated due to anxiety or time restraints. Her professional memberships include: the American Dental Association, the Georgia Dental Association, the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, the Seattle Study Club of Atlanta and the Dental Organization of Conscious Sedation. An avid runner, Dr. Roya Akbar takes time almost every day to run, and also ran the New York Marathon in 2008. She also participates in multiple free dental days throughout the year. During the free dental days, 200 to 300 patients are seen in a day. Her philanthropic work with the Green Foundation has earned her a mention in Time Magazine. Helping others is something that Dr. Roya Akbar takes very seriously. The wish of a dying young girl was that she could have a beautiful smile for all to see. She knew it was close to the end, and her wish was granted by Dr. Akbar. Just months before the girl passed away, she gave that young girl a beautiful smile.
Roya N. Akbar, D.M.D.
R.A. Dental Studio
Marietta, Georgia
Dr. Elias J. Achey, Jr. graduated from the University of Alabama School of Dentistry at Birmingham in 2006 and moved to West Michigan to practice near extended family. Shortly after his journey north, he married a beautiful Mississippi southern belle, Ann Claire, and they now have two beautiful children, Margot and Elias, Jr. Unhappy with the traditional model of practice ownership and management, Dr. Achey quickly sought a way to empower team members and live for a larger vision. He discovered Next Level Practice at the inception of his career and, along with Dr. Jared Van Ittersum, experienced explosive growth not only in his practice, but in his personal life. Together, the two set out with the vision that every doctor should experience the bliss they had achieved. Practicing clinical dentistry while simultaneously managing a large group practice certainly keeps him busy, but he finds great balance with his family at their farmhouse they built in 2014. If he is not with a patient, at a meeting or on a Skype with team members, you can find him on a tractor, out in the woods with his kids, or enjoying the country in his free time.
Elias J. Achey, Jr., D.M.D.
Infinity Dental Partners
Spring Lake, Michigan
Contributing Author
Randy Van Ittersum
Host & Founder
Business Leader Spotlight Show
Spring Lake, Michigan
Dentist get a bad rap. Even though the dentist is often the first responder in the battle for a patient's healthy body, we sometimes fall prey to the fear that continues to circulate around this group of professionals sparked by long-ago stories about bad dental chair experiences. This book, A Cup of Coffee with My Dentist, hopes to change that—at least for a few dentists, anyway.
This book is meant to take the place of, or at least augment, that initial chat you might have enjoyed with your dentist, had your mouth not been full of his fingers at the time. (Remarkably, they seem to understand what you say with your mouth numb and sprouting instruments. We suppose it's a course requirement in Dental school.) Our goal is for you to get to know your "physician of the mouth" a little better. Think of this book as an introduction.
Here, you will be introduced to some of the dedicated individuals who devote their days to caring for your mouth and, in so doing, make the rest of your body function the way it was meant to. You'll learn about their backgrounds, what inspires them, the reasons that drive seems unquenchable.
Some of the practitioners whom we've selected for this publication have stories of childhoods spent in other nations and the challenges that came with assimilating into American culture. One young girl came alone to the United States from Taiwan, leaving her family and home behind her in pursuit of her highest potential. She still seeks that potential every day.
You'll hear stories of unrelenting parents whose emphasis on education and excellence molded young students into gifted professionals whose commitment to the health and well being of their patients may already be an inspiration within your own community. These dentists are steeped in the need to aspire to the top in everything they do. With them, mediocrity isn't an option.
One common theme emerges as one turns these pages. Each of these professionals talks about the "family feeling" they nurture within their offices. They all seem patiently yet doggedly determined to erase your "bad dentist" experiences and replace them with trust and confidence. Understanding, as they do, that trust is not easily won and can easily be forfeited, these dentists go to astonishing lengths to make and keep you comfortable during your visits to them. More importantly, they are fostering generations of youngsters who simply have never had bad experiences in the dental chair. These kids have the edge of early acclimation to the dentist's office followed by regular checkups that serve to nip problems like decay in the bud. Early diagnosis and treatment ultimately lead to less dental intervention and, of course, no pain. Of special interest to parents: with checkups early and often, there are far fewer bills for extensive repairs, root canals, or expensive treatment of gum disease.
The dentists whose stories reside within the covers of this book want you to know and understand them better as human beings and, as a bonus, they will teach you more about your teeth than you ever knew was possible.
You will learn about:
When should your child see his dentist for the first time?
What is "sedation dentistry," and are you a candidate?
When the baby's pacifier MUST go.
Why not just pull that broken molar? Do you really need it?
Are dental implants right for you?
How long should I expect my natural teeth to last? (Can you spell f-o-r-e-v-e-r?)
...and so much more.
Some of the biggest light-bulb moments come during the discussions around preventative dentistry. Here's just one sample bombshell.
Q: Is a pint of apple juice every day enough for my 2-year-old?
A: EGAD! Sugary drinks like apple juice, canned soda, chocolate milk, and those handy little juice boxes have no place in a child's daily diet. One such drink on a single, special day each week is more than enough! (Who knew?)
And just wait until you hear about that bedtime bottle of milk your toddler expects each night.
You will be interested in learning that early checkups and intervention can prevent the need for expensive orthodontic work in the teenage years. (And we mean really early.) Proper alignment of teeth and, yes, even jaws, takes place very early in the bone-growing process. Those parents who wait until all of the precious little baby teeth fully emerge may be sealing the orthodontic fate of their children. Not only can jaw problems be identified early, so can many other systemic issues.
The same plaque we encourage our little ones to remove twice daily with the trusty toothbrush can, if left untended, travel throughout the body to wreak havoc elsewhere. And, should decay and infection become a problem in the mouth, you may trust that those germs are invading other tissues. Early training in oral hygiene is one very good way to ensure overall body health. The good men and women who share their stories here don't equivocate about the value of preventative dental care. It seems they build entire careers around the concept.
A Cup of Coffee with My Dentist also provides unexpected insights through the work of two dentists in New Jersey. These dentists work within underserved urban areas with goals that include much more than healthy teeth. Through an ambitious educational program that begins with day-care and follows children through high school, these doctors are helping immigrant parents understand that "old world ways" are not always the best ways. They demonstrate that among the opportunities available on American soil are the benefits—physical and emotional— of owning a big, healthy smile. Such smiles can be keys that open doors to prosperity later in life. (Studies tell us that other people think a person with a healthy-looking smile is probably smarter than those who have a less sterling grin.)
Certainly the smile factor extends to grown-up patients as well. The dentists whose stories fill these pages share a common concern for people whose dental care history—or lack thereof— has left them with missing or damaged teeth. People in these circumstances go to sad lengths to hide their imperfections. From growing a moustache to fingertips that invariably cover the mouth when it opens to speak or to laugh, people develop elaborate disguises, most of which only end up calling attention to the problem. Not only can dental "blemishes" do insurmountable damage to fragile self-esteem, but they can also pinion capable people in miserable circumstances in both their personal and professional lives.
People with missing, stained, or crooked teeth have real handicaps in the world of employment and industry, and it's an unnecessary burden for them to bear. Smiles can be restored and health can be improved by dental intervention, the cost of which can be "handled" through insurance policies, payment arrangements, or even credit cards. These dentists recognize that the cost for their services can be a difficult weight to carry, but because there are critical reasons to have the work done, these professionals are prepared to point the way to some of the creative financing options available out there.
In short, A Cup of Coffee with My Dentist is a personal book. It is written from the hearts of men and women who take their calling very, very seriously for very personal reasons. Those reasons include you, your family, and even your community as a whole. Please accept this invitation to get to know the person in the white lab coat.
Randy Van Ittersum
Host & Founder - Business Leader Spotlight Show
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