DR. ADI & DR. SH AK We sat down and had a chat with Dr. Shakashira & Dr. Adi in their outstanding office designed by DC Dental. The following is the conversation with Dr. Shak & Dr. Adi: DC Dental: What influenced you to go into dentistry? Dr. Shak: I’ve always been very detail oriented. My mom always gave me the tiny, very detailed things to do. So,when it was time to go to college, I was like “I think I am good with my hands.” I knew that I wanted to do something in the medical field so I went and spent a couple of days with a doctor, a couple of days with a dentist, as well as a couple of days with a pharmacist. I enjoyed my days the most at the dentist so I was like “Okay, I am going to be a dentist.” Dr. Adi: I went to dental school because I like making a difference in people’s lives. When someone is walking in with pain and they are miserable, you can change the whole situation by helping them out and making them feel better. Saving their dentition is one big side of it. The other side of it is the aesthetics side. It is amazing what you can do for people to make their smile look better and improve their self esteem. I like the before and afters because they are impressive and leave a big impact on the patients and everybody is happy. DC Dental: How do you make your patients feel less anxious and more comfortable during their visit?
Dr. Adi: Well, Dr. Shak is an orthodontist so she makes everyone happy! Believe it or not, even though we are very well equipped for sedation, I frequently don’t have to go there. There are a couple ways that I use to calm them down and build a rapport with the patients. You explain to them everything before you do it. Most people are afraid of the unknown, so once you clarify the mystery it is less stressful on them or more straight forward when they know what is coming and what it is used for. They call that technique tell, show, and do. You tell the patient what you are doing, you show them, and then you do it. It was invented for pediatrics but I think it works very well with adults. That other way I minimize their anxiety is with a little bit of humor. You would be surprised sometimes that when the doctor is not so stiff and rigid, a little bit of humor here and there can go a long way with a patient. My signature is to explain the unknown, a touch of humor and down to earth approach. A lot of times you don’t have to use sedation even with the most anxious patients. Every now and then you get someone that had a very bad experience and then you have to resort to sedation or pre medication, but I don’t frequently go there.
Project Description:
New Start Up: Schematic design, Dental detail planning services Operatory Featured:
Flight A12 chair packages with built in monitor mounts Dental EZ Next Gen free standing Cabinetry and Dental EZ Customized Sterilization Center Belmed Nitrous Equipment My Ray RXDC x-rays
Digital Imaging Equipment:
Dr. Shak & Dr. Adi
Gainesville, VA 14 The DC•Impression | www.atlaswalkdental.com 703.646.1211
MyRay X9 3D Ready Pan & Ceph
DC Dental: To date, what has been your proudest moment in your dental career? Dr. Adi: One of them was when Dr. Shak graduated from Howard University. I was excited because our family can enjoy some cooked food again! Thanks to DC Dental we have Atlas Walk Dental, and by all means that is the proudest moment of our careers. Being employees for other doctors for quite some time, we worked so hard to get where we are. All we needed was that final push and then DC Dental came to the rescue. Eddie Ash helped that dream come true and I could have never been happier. I can’t even imagine myself working for other people anymore. Especially now that I know the pride and the devotion that comes with owning your own practice. By all means my proudest moment was March 5, 2014 when Mr. Ash cut that ribbon. Other proud moments were graduation from dental school, and Mrs. Jones dentures finally fitting well (just kidding!). Dr. Shak: Making it into the dental school and orthodontic specialty in the United States. Dr. Adi: For us, coming from overseas and then having to redo everything from scratch and making it happen,
Hometown: Bristow, VA
Family:
Two kids, 13 year old daughter and 6 year old son
Education:
D.M.D. Dr. Shak and Dr. Adi attended Boston University, Dr. Shak attended Howard University for specialty (orthodontics)
Sterilization Equipment: Tuttnauer EZ 10 Autoclave
Mechanical Q1 . 2015Equipment: Specials & Promotions | Dental Ez/RamVac Compressor and Evacuation System
Not responsible for typographical errors
DC Denta
l Client Pr ofile
that also gave us a lot of pride. Dr. Shak attended Howard University for her specialty after 6 years of being a general dentist. She wanted to be an orthodontist so I told her “Doc, sure why not, with one condition only; we moved so many times in our lives, we are not moving again!” That left her one school. Just to put things in perspective, people apply for like 20 programs and they might not get accepted. She applied to that one program and low and behold she got in! That was also a pretty proud moment and we didn’t have to move again after all! DC Dental: How do you use your skills to give back or volunteer? Dr. Adi: We volunteer at free clinics in Prince William County. We offer services at reduced prices for needy patients. A lot of times we walk the extra mile for the patients to make the treatment feasible and to overcome different barriers such as financial reasons. We would hate to see someone lose a tooth just because of finance or be miserable just because they can’t afford something. We walk the extra 10 miles trying to make it happen for our patients. Dr. Shak: Something on my to do list is to go to different elementary schools. You won’t believe how kids are affected by the look of their teeth. Some kids come in and I have to take photos of their smile and they won’t show their teeth! I have different ideas of going to schools and talking to counselors to see who the kids are that are very self conscious because of their smile and seeing if they think braces would help their grades and self esteem. DC Dental: Where do you see dentistry in 5 years? Dr. Adi: It is only looking better. More technology means more problem solving and more obstacle overcoming. I’m
a techie myself and I always like to stay up to date with the latest technologies. Mr. Ash also likes to give us good advice about trends and DC Dental keeps us informed. I think dentistry is going to come a long way in the coming 5 years with the advancement of digital dentistry. I believe now it is leaping when it used to be just walking. It is leaping with the cone beam technology, digital impressions and in office milling. DC Dental: What might someone be surprised to know about you? Dr. Adi: One thing is they meet Dr. Shak and then they meet me and I ask “How did you like Dr. Shak?” and they say that she is great and I say “Oh yea, that is why I married her!” They’re surprised we are married. People are surprised that we get along in a husband and wife practice. DC Dental: How did you hear about DC Dental? Dr. Adi: Word of mouth. We have a lot of dentist friends and some of them went with DC Dental. One was kind enough to give me Mr. Ash’s phone number and it was the best phone call that I ever made. DC Dental: How did DC Dental differentiate itself from the competition? Dr. Adi: Quality and value. It is very hard to find that combination with anyone else. We got the best stuff for hands down the best value on the market, and we also got one of the finest personnel. Like I said, I really owe it to Mr. Ash for walking the extra mile not only with equipment but also with design and advice. Even with our career decisions he gave us sound advice.
Looking into a design or equipment project? Eddie Ash can be reached via email at eddie.ash@dcdental.com or directly at 410.804.6609.
QUICK BITES What is your dream car? Dr. Adi: Honda Accord, I’m speaking for my wife so that she doesn’t ask for another one. I have a Cadillac and it is proudly made in the states. It drives like a million dollars and I love it. Dr. Shak: Not a Honda Accord, my dream car is a BMW convertible
What is your favorite food? Dr. Adi: Hibachi Dr. Shak: Italian
Favorite part about going to the dentist as a child? Dr. Adi: There was no favorite part back in the day! I am lucky enough that I never had a cavity so I did not have many encounters with the dentist. I don’t think Dr. Shak could say the same though. Dr. Shak: They would drill and fill without anesthetic, it was not fun!
What is your favorite dental supply item? Dr. Adi: Gradia by GC America Dr. Shak: 3M MIP Primer
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