Coming off the Rocky Mountain High of RDH Under One Roof #MITUOR

RDH Under One Roof (UOR) is a three-day action-packed event that provides cutting-edge continuing education, networking, and an opportunity to see and experience the newest dental hygiene products and equipment. This year's event was held in Denver, Colorado, and ushered in 2,500 dental hygienists.  While conferences all over the country are scrambling to get attendees, UOR is growing year after year. This year, there were 1,000 first-time attendees.

UOR’s opening megasession was on the power of curiosity. I was honored to have the opportunity to kick off the best conference in dental hygiene and set the tone for a successful experience. By being curious about ourselves, our profession, and our patients, we can not only have a successful career as dental hygienists, but also make a significant impact in our field. At the presentation's end, I presented a challenge to the attendees.

All too often, we attend continuing education courses and are entertained, hopefully enlightened, and possibly motivated by the presenter, but then the information goes nowhere. The notes remain in the notebook, and the handouts get thrown away or put in a file, never to be looked at again. We head back to the op with good intentions but end up doing things the way we always have.

So, I challenged the attendees to write down (and post on social media) the Most Important Thing (MIT) they learned from every class they attended. Not only would it help the attendees reflect on the learning points from each course, but by sharing them on social media, we could all learn a little from each other. After all, UOR has so many excellent courses running simultaneously, there was a lot of FOMO, wishing one could be in more than one place at a time.

The MITs flooded into Instagram, Facebook, my email inbox, and a lot of DMs. The hygienists at UOR were definitely learning and are ready to apply the knowledge in their op and in their life!

Clinical

From new injection techniques to bringing patients into their care, attendees had light bulb moments. Here are a few of their #MITUORs:

• AMSA injections: Use the fewest injections and the least amount of anesthetic
• Use disclosing solution to bring patients into their care
• Try Papillary Bleeding Index so I’m not the one making patients bleed
• We don’t know who is making our lab appliances
• No more glassy, smooth root surfaces
• When you work together with your patient, magical things happen
• 2,932 hours—that’s how many hours it takes to become a dental hygienist
• Find time to have conversations with your team to know where everyone is at and if you align
• The importance of identifying mouth breathing
• Vaping is not better than cigarettes

Learning beyond the op

Only some of the learning was clinical. We hygienists are people, too! Attendees are shifting their thoughts about themselves, picturing a life aligned with their unique purpose. The morning yoga classes were a hit with participants. They fired up the most MITs:

• Alignment matters: Starting the day with yoga sets a perfect tone
• Listen to my body and breathe
• Just because you aren’t at your final goal doesn’t mean you’re failing
• Stay curious, be open
• Let your light shine; when you do, you give others permission to shine theirs too
• Doing vs. experiencing
• Embrace your purpose
• Your purpose aligns with your core values
• Healing the body and soul to continue to navigate this profession
• People will believe in you the exact amount you believe in yourself
• Make sure your inner voice is kind

Funny stuff

Part of what makes UOR great is the camaraderie. Even if you come alone to this event, you leave with friends. No one understands a dental hygienist more than another dental hygienist. Here’s some funny MITs that happened:

• What the floss!
• Mother flosser!
• I bumped into some of my hygiene classmates 20 years after graduation!
• My office won’t know what hit them when I lay all this learning on them

And the BEST two MITs (in my opinion):

• Live events change live
• Learning with my people is energizing

If you missed out on this year’s conference, sign up for next year now! Next year’s event will be held at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center in Dallas, Texas, July 18-20. So, block out the schedule. Call your hygiene friends. And prepare to have an experience like no other!