title: Oral surgery: staying healthy.
abstract: As one of the caring professions, dentistry has always concerned itself with the welfare of its patients, tending to their aches and pains, their needs and demands, and treating and preventing those diseases that occur in and around the mouth; we offer our skills and expertise to improve the quality of life of others. Unfortunately, nowadays the provision of such a service to our patients carries with it risks that were unknown 25 years ago. Once, when antibiotics were effective against syphilis and tuberculosis, dentistry carried little risk to the health of the practitioner and his staff. With the emergence of diseases that pose severe threats to both dentist and staff, our concept of a caring profession must now be broadened to include not only caring for the patient, but also caring for the health and welfare of the dentist who provides the treatment and for the staff who support him in this provision.
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Caplin
mesh_terms: D002055:Burnout, Professional / Q000517:prevention & control; D003140:Communicable Disease Control; D003727:Dental Auxiliaries; D003815:Dentists; D004203:Disinfection; D006801:Humans; D008487:Medical History Taking; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011482:Protective Devices