The month of May was supposed to be a “kickback and relax” month for the Auvenshine’s. However, we received some very sad news at the beginning of the month that my wife’s step-mother had passed away. She left behind my father-in-law, who is 91 years old and suffering from dementia. They live in the San Joaquin Valley, California, in a small town halfway between Fresno and Bakersfield. My wife was called to come babysit her father until after the funeral. She was then charged with the responsibility of finding a memory care facility for her father. Due to the difficulty of California officials to respond in a timely manner, what should have taken a week to 10 days, wound up taking three weeks to accomplish. Out of frustration, my wife called and asked me to come and assist her. Needless to say, three of the four weeks of May were the most stressful days we have had in many years. Thankfully, we were able to find a wonderful care facility for her father and we are now assured that his needs are being met to their fullest extent.
I want to thank my partner, Dr. Pettit, and my wonderful staff for their kindness in carrying on the practice in my absence. Their attention to details was outstanding and I am assured that whenever I am away, your needs will be met.
May, however, ended on a wonderful note. Linda and I invited Dr. Romero and his wife to attend the Indianapolis 500. This event was held on Memorial Day and was the 100 year anniversary. There is a marvelous history to the Indianapolis 500. I encourage each of you go through the Indy 500 Museum at the racetrack whenever you happen to be in Indianapolis. It is definitely a wonderful museum and whether you’re a car enthusiast or not, you will enjoy seeing history unfold before your very eyes.
As we look forward to the month of June, there will be some changes which we are initiating starting in Mid-June and first of July. There will be a slight change in our schedule. We will be starting our day at 8:30am rather than beginning at 8:00am and ending our day at 3:30pm. We also will have more Friday’s open for seeing patients on recall. This is an idea that Dr. Pettit suggested, which I think is very good and one that deserves experimentation. As of mid-June, I will be coming in at 9:00am and working till 3:30pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. I only plan to work on Thursday, on a very limited basis, and I will be here one Friday a month to help with recalls and Team Building.
I am currently finished with my chapter on Embryology of the Temporomandibular Joint for Dr. Gremillion’s textbook. This is a project that has been a lot of fun for me because it has given me an opportunity to showcase my dissertation research which was completed forty-years ago. The thing that really excites me is that this research is just as viable today as it was 40 years ago. In fact, I feel that its impact is even more significant now than it was then. The study which I did on immobilization of the temporomandibular joint during fetal growth stands as a hallmark in evoked and spontaneous movement research. I do plan to publish my dissertation within the next year. The work that I have done on the embryology chapter has motivated me to dig back in the annals of my personal history and publish work that I did. I should have published this long ago.
Dr. Pettit and I have meetings scheduled in July. Dr. Pettit will begin the year-long Continuum at LSU School of Dentistry in New Orleans. This is a program created by Dr. Gremillion which consists of about 120 hours of continuing education in orofacial pain. I am proud of the fact that Dr. Pettit is willing to pursue this mini-residency to gain more knowledge in the treatment of complex cases. I will team-teach in three different sessions of the five session program of the Continuum for 2016-2017.
As you can see we continue to be actively involved in learning and pursuing knowledge that is applicable directly to your care. It is our goal here at MedCenterTMJ to provide you with the most up-to-date and state-of-the-art treatment that you can find anywhere in the world. You are our greatest asset and we will continue to work diligently to provide excellent care.
Sincerely,
Ronald C. Auvenshine, DDS, PhD
Diplomate, American Board of Orofacial Pain