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President's Message August 2009
Published: Aug 2, 2009
Rude Awakenings
It’s hotter than hell outside. There isn’t a lot going on in the Dental Society because it’s July and we have no meetings. I needed a topic to write about and ethics crossed my mind. After serving on the peer review committee for about ten years and practicing for thirty years I thought that would be pretty easy. My ideas on it are pretty simple. Treat everyone like they are part of the family, always do the best job you can, and never do anything that will make you lose sleep at night. That seems easy enough.
When I agreed to accept this position someone told me that I should never worry, someone will always be there to help you. It works that way! A long treatise on dental ethics would be boring. I went to Dr. Jake Collins’ open house yesterday and found the help I needed for this month’s letter. Several colleagues congratulated me on being President and thanked me for my efforts. I was feeling all pumped up and then someone crossed the line. He told me I was a POLITICIAN! How could this be? I just agreed to do this because the society needed someone on the “ladder”. I just wanted to help. I mean, I’ve been called a lot of things; leader, idiot, friend, fool, *******, but never a politician. I don’t think George Washington or Thomas Jefferson or Samuel Adams considered themselves as politicians. They were just stepping in to do a job that needed to be done. Samuel Adams was the first lobbyist. He “greased the skids” with his home brew.
I never thought of this job as being political. No campaigns to run, no slush funds, no trips to Argentina, etc. I guess the bad part of the comment is the negative connotations that come with politics.
I did think about it in depth and realized that a great deal of the things we do as a Society and especially as a Board have a lot of political consequences. If that qualifies me as a politician I guess I will just have to put up with the word. All of the community service projects that are done further the public image of dentistry. The money raised and distributed to charities helps those who otherwise would not have access to care. The efforts in the legislature protect our profession from outside influences who would change it to suit their agendas. Our profession is strong because we are organized. We are activists. We are community leaders. We are innovators. We step in when there is a need and do our best to see that it is met. We are responsible. That is all included in belonging to our profession. It is what our community and our patients expect of us.
We are fortunate to have a core of active members who continue to serve on the Board and conduct the business of the Society. The reasons they are there are stated above. It is a love of the profession that drives them. The door is always open for those who wish to serve. Our local society is vibrant and growing. This is only possible with the influx of new talent and ideas in our leadership roles. If someone asks you to help, don’t turn it down because you don’t want to be involved in dental politics. It is about so much more than that. Do it because they see you as an activist, an innovator, a mover. It is a chance to be part of something that is changing the lives of people in our community for the better. It is much more noble than politics.
Stanley A. LaCroix
President, CADS |
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