Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
Can Dentistry Have Two Contracts With The Public?, David A. Nash
Can Dentistry Have Two Contracts With The Public?, David A. Nash
Oral Health Science Faculty Publications
The social contract is an implicit agreement between parts of society and society as a whole. Since the Middle Ages, the learned professions, recently including dentistry, have had a covenantal relationship with the public based on trust, exchanging monopoly privileges for benefiting the public good. Unlike commercial trade in commodities, professional relationships are grounded in ensuring an adequate level of oral health to all. A second contract is emerging where dentists relate to society as business operators, exchanging commodity services for a price. Recent actions by the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Supreme Court make it unlikely that dentistry …
On The Symbolism Of The White Coat, David A. Nash
On The Symbolism Of The White Coat, David A. Nash
Oral Health Science Faculty Publications
The white coat ceremony has become an academic ritual in the health professions: a ceremony that signals a transformation of status from ordinary student to that of one studying to become a health professional. While donning the white coat is a sign of a changed role, the white coat is also a powerful symbol of transformation. White is a symbol of purity, and the white coat symbolizes the purity of purpose being affirmed in becoming a health professional. Dentistry is afforded the status of a learned profession as a result of the power dentists possess over patients seeking care; this …