As I transitioned from clinical practice to working in the dental industry and then on to dental education, I found there were several adages generally accepted among dental manufacturers and distributors. This article will address the relationship of the technologies, products and materials that dental students are exposed to in school, and how they view those same products after graduation.
When it comes to dental school sales, whether it is selling to the school or directly to individual students, it is very common to hear manufacturers say, “If they use it in school, they will buy it when they graduate.” I suppose there is a little truth to that, but maybe not as much today as in years past.
Students today are much more aware and savvy than when I was a student back in the dark ages—thank you Internet. Today’s students are much more focused on what they will be doing post-graduation, as opposed to the old days of simply hoping and praying graduation day would actually come. The choices of materials and techniques to use while in school are primarily driven by the requirements the students need to achieve in order to graduate.
They will unquestionably have opinions of these technologies, but the bottom line is students will use what they have available to them to get to the finish line, even as they are likely aware of other options. They might only come into contact with a product because it can help them stay focused on finishing their educational requirements, but there is no question that students develop opinions about the products they use along the way.
With that in mind, it is commonplace for some well-heeled manufacturers to donate their products to the schools. This can range from inexpensive products such as alginates or composites all the way up to six-figure cone beam x-ray machines. Manufacturers can be very aggressive in getting their brand in front of both students and faculty, but this actually can be a double edged sword because the benefits of that exposure come with some degree of risk. If they have a great product that makes the students’ lives easier, they probably have gained some customers for life. If the product has drawbacks that the students deem as problematic, it is likely the entire class will share that opinion.
In addition, many students come from families with dental backgrounds. These students certainly know about alternative methods and materials used outside the school. If they know of something they feel works better, they are likely to share that information with fellow students.
I don’t want to diminish the importance of which technologies, products and materials dental students are exposed too. As a dental educator I have found students become very familiar with what they see. While they have a wealth of information on other options available to them via the Internet, I sense they know only a little about new technologies they are not exposed to. This is not surprising, as the life of a dental student has very little room for superfluous information.
Dental students today are generally very bright and focused on getting through school. They are like Mack trucks speeding down a highway, and if a manufacturer can place a few neon road signs along the way, for better or worse, they might get some attention.