Long and Winding Road Leads to Dental Practice in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania

Eric Weiss, D.M.D., took the long way home after graduating from dental school at Temple University in Philadelphia. At the suggestion of one of his classmates, he flew to the other side of the world to practice at a large health care facility in Guam, serving U.S. military families and government workers on the island. After two years, Weiss resumed his voyage of discovery, traveling to several countries on the Pacific Rim-Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines among others-collecting information on dental practices in each place for a research paper he planned to write when he returned to the United States.

"Every country I went to," Weiss recalls, "I would stop by a few dental clinics and try to see what was up, what materials they were using, and how their materials were supplied." He eventually reported his findings to Temple University School of Dentistry.

During his travels, Weiss kept in touch with another classmate from dental school Frank Eutsey, who was working at Keystone Health Clinic in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, as part of NHSC's Loan Repayment program. Weiss had heard about the NHSC program at Temple but hadn't pursued the application process. "I put it on hold there for a little while but kept it in the back of my mind," he notes, "and then when the opportunity arose at Keystone, I decided to give it a chance." It helped that Chambersburg was not too far from Weiss' hometown of Pittsburgh. After living in the Orient for several years, "I did want to be able to get back home any time I wished," he admits.

NHSC' Loan Repayment program allows Weiss the freedom to practice dentistry in a setting that isn't pressured to maximize patient revenues.

"I like working at Keystone very much," he explains. "The equipment is all very new and we are JCAHO accredited. But the thing that's nice with working in a setting like this is that, basically, it's not dollar-driven. My therapy is based upon what the patient needs."

He continues, "If they really need a crown, and say they are a patient on medical assistance, you know they get it pre-authorized, and I can go ahead and do it. None of my treatment decisions are based upon patient finances in the least. That's a freedom you have here, that you really don't have on the outside."

Weiss finds that especially true in his efforts to educate patients about comprehensive dental health practices and modern treatment techniques. His approach is "problem-based," he notes. "When they have a problem, they come in and I take a picture of it. I sit down and review that film with them, so there's education every time."

Patient education is a necessity, Weiss finds, in fighting what he terms a "constant battle against dental ignorance." Many patients, young and old, from the rural area surrounding Keystone's clinic have woefully outdated conceptions about modern dental techniques. "People are still thinking like it's 40 years ago," he observes. "You say 'root canal', and the reaction is 'Oh my, that's so scary!' I ask them, 'Well, have you ever had one?'…'Well, no.'."

Weiss, however, is sensitive to and seeks to understand local customs and practices while trying to bring modern dentistry to his patients. "When I go to meetings of the Cumberland Valley Dental Society, I talk things over with some guys that have been here long-term. And then I can find out, is this a new thing? Is this something that's been going on for years?"

He doesn't see his role as forcing patients into accepting change. "I just try to give them the information so that they can make a properly informed decision," Weiss comments. "They think they've got all the information, but they don't. So that's where I'm trying to fill in the gaps a little bit."

Another attraction to practicing at Keystone Health Center "is that I can go from a 3-year-old to an 83-year-old in the next appointment," Weiss adds. "I never get bored in doing family practice dentistry because my treatment modalities are constantly switching from one appointment to the next." In addition to family dentistry, he also does oral surgery and some basic "tooth movement" therapy in conjunction with a local orthodontist. "I can team treat that way," he says, without worrying about "who's going to get the fee here."

Weiss believes that patients, even those with insurance, are attracted to Keystone by the environment of health care practiced without bottom-line pressures. "They're not rushed," he notes. "If they want to sit and talk to the doctor, they can sit and talk to the doctor. That's not going to happen in private practice."

Like a number of his colleagues at Keystone Health Center, Weiss appreciates Chambersburg's small town setting and its proximity to big city variety. "I can go to dinner in Harrisburg (Pennsylvania) if I so desire or go down to Hagerstown (Maryland) and hit the shopping outlets." He plans to stay at Keystone at least through October 2004 when his two-year contract is up for renewal. The experience has been "very, very positive," he says.

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