Recently I had a chance to sit down with Philip Gold, CDT, the general manager of Oral Arts Dental Lab in Atlanta, a National Dentex member.  Phil serves very actively on the board of directors for the LD Pankey Foundation in Key Biscayne, Fla.  The Pankey Institute is a non-profit 501 (3) c foundation that has been helping dentists succeed for over three decades.  Until recently, Phil taught a program annually that exposed dental technicians to their Philosophy and technical training.  Now that program has grown into a much more intimate involvement with the dentists themselves.  Recently the curriculum experience that the dentists take has been opened up to dental technicians.  For the first time at Pankey, dentists and technicians can train side-by-side and grow stronger as a team.  Better for dentists, technicians and ultimately the patients.

MM: How did you come to have exposure or train and study at the Institute?

PG: My first trip to the Institute was as a sales rep for Williams Gold (now Ivoclar Vivadent) back in the early ‘70s. We were on our way to a company sales meeting and we kicked it off with a session with L.D. Pankey himself on philosophy. What an incredible experience that I have come to appreciate even more as I have progressed through my career.  First, I learned so much at that session and it sparked an interest and curiosity for me that continues today.  Secondly, I am so grateful to have had the chance to be in the presence of Dr. Pankey himself.  Drs. Irwin Becker, Steve Ratcliff, Lee Ann Brady, Gary Dewood as well as Christian Sager, Dake Schwarte and yourself Mark, have continued the fine work that inspired the Institute and Foundation itself.  Pankey was founded to honor L.D. not by him.  In 1980, I left Williams and joined my father at Oral Arts Dental Lab in Atlanta. The Institute always has played an important role and continues to be a foundation for our education and the education of our dental clients.

MM: How would you describe the level and types of education there?

PG: I have seen many changes and innovations coming out of Key Biscayne with regards to education over the years. All of which are guided towards how the entire experience of Pankey can become better. There have been some very proactive and resourceful adjustments as to how the needs of today can be met which are much different than last year much less that 10 years ago. What excites me though is even as changes are taking place the foundation and core values of the Institute are there just as solid as can be, great stuff too.  They always put the student first in designing and evaluation their modifications.  It is important that as a non-profit, they measure their ROI in terms of participants growth, not in dollars.

MM: What is your current involvement at Pankey?

PG: I have been very luck to have been a part of the technician courses over the last 10 years or so, having the chance to work with some of our best educators in the lab industry. I am now active on the board of directors and attended this year’s annual meeting, where we nominated and elected three more technician-focused individuals   to the board (Renny Challoner, Paul Westbrook, CDT, and  the NADL’s own Ricki Braswell). I am looking forward to being more of a student at the Institute, and together with my clients take advantage of the education offered and do some beautiful, fun dentistry. The potential of what the future at the Institute is for both dentist and technicians is electric. 

MM: Has it in any way been something that had a marketing value?

PG: What sets us apart as a laboratory to our dentist is the ability to be a resource to them. To sit down talk about a case, both understanding what we’re talking about. We have learned to plan, treat and deliver together solid comprehensive dentistry with confidence to our patients. This makes dentistry a blast. We have only touched the surface with opportunities of marketing the Institute to our clients. We are however always turning our client base on to the programs and happenings the Institute has to offer both in Key Biscayne and the road shows. So again, the Institute places us in the role of a resource.

MM: How is the Pankey training different from advanced technical training at say, Dawson, LVI, Matt Roberts, IOAD etc.?

PG: There are some wonderful places for education that teach the right stuff and have passed the test of time. One advantage that strikes me right away about Pankey is the after class time. The Institute has condos with individual rooms and common living areas. A tremendous part of the education happens after class with the students and teachers just sitting around sharing with one another. It’s a unique and a great experience encompassing a broader inclusion of learning objectives.  It is not just occlusion, esthetics, financial or communication/management skills, it is instead a balance of them all.  Not as much technical development for my skills as it is helping me understand my clients better.

MM: What else should the readers know about you, your laboratory, National Dentex or Pankey?
PG: As we see the dental industry making a shift, recognizing the very best way to satisfy and met the expectations of our more educated dental patients is having an educated dental team dentist/technician. This is where the Pankey can help the two and bring it together and make it work at National Dentex we place a high value that.

Do you have a question for Mark Murphy? E-mail jdt@nadl.org.