As it pertains to finding the best dental care, social responsibility is often not one of the requirements. However, choosing to support dental practices who are socially responsible will benefit you both directly and indirectly. If you are presently looking for a new dentist to complete your dental exams, dental work, and more, the following is a list of 3 reasons to consider entrusting your dental care with a socially responsible dental practice.
Reduce Carbon Footprint
Dental offices, like all other medical fields, are known for producing medical waste, wasting lots of paper, using toxic materials with patients, as well as wasting water, energy, and more. However, by visiting a dental practice that is socially responsible, they will be more likely to have an online patient system that reduces the use of unnecessary paper, to use alternatives to the commonly used toxic materials, to find ways to reduce water and energy waste, and taking other measures to reduce their carbon footprint overall. This not only benefits you as the patient but it also leaves a better impact on the world at large. Additionally, they are also more likely to try new products and procedures that are less toxic and more sustainable.
Causes and Charities
Additionally, socially responsible dental practices are also more likely to create charities and donate to other causes. For instance, some dental practices give free cleanings and exams to the underprivileged. Others offer dental care to young children and/or give smile makeovers to a person (or people) from the community annually. Additionally, they are often known for creating programs that encourage children to maintain good dental care in general and may even donate funds and supplies to local and national charities. Either way, a dental practice that is socially responsible is giving back to the community in a way that will help make it a better place for everyone to live.
Making Social Responsibility a Trend
Lastly, one of the reasons that we do not have more socially responsible dental practices is because we do not demand it. In other words, if we as the patients/ consumers would make it known that we are interested in supporting socially responsible dentist practices, then more dental practices would follow suit. Of course, being socially responsible is no substitute for providing high-quality care. However, if we were more conscious to support those who give back to the community, more dental practices would be more likely to make the necessary changes to be considered socially responsible practices.
Overall, we should not have to choose between dental practices that offer great quality care and those who are socially responsible. By supporting those who are concerned with the community as well as their patients, we will hopefully make it a trend to not only care about the world around us but to do everything in our power to help fix it.
