DentaltownUK July 2017 - 86

day in the life of ...
Name: Nikkita Madhu
Age: 21
University: Dental intern at Ajman
University of Science and Technology
Hometown: Bangalore, India
Area of residence:
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
How would you sum yourself up in just
three words? I like pushing my limits!
I usually get up each morning at 6 a.m.,
often by force, and live just 30 minutes away,
give or take. I live with my mum, dad and
teenage sister. On weekdays I usually eat
whatever I can put together in less than
5 minutes, but if I'm feeling adventurous it's
PB&J on the road. I travel to university by
car; I usually drive my sister to school and
my mum to work before heading to university,
so the morning commute is almost never
uneventful.
Because I'm enrolled in an internship
program, I engage in complete practical
work. I spend half my week at a screening
clinic providing oral examinations and
emergency dental care for walk-in patients,
and the other half planning and carrying
out dental treatment procedures for scheduled
patients.
A large part of this profession involves
interacting and communicating with people,
understanding what they need and providing
them with the right dental solutions. Being
able to do that successfully is satisfying and
something I've enjoyed doing in the few
years I've practiced dentistry. But if I were
to pick what really drew me in, it's the science
and structure behind a health care profession.
It's being able to understand how different
biological processes work together and trying
to figure out the how and why of a disease
or pathology, whatever it may be.
My favourite areas of study are prosthodontics, because every case is unique and
requires a different perspective, and endodontics, because who doesn't like a good
(or in some cases terrifying) challenge? It's
been an incredible experience this year,
applying what I've learned over the past five
years in clinical situations, and in the process
learning even more. The most challenging
aspects of this experience? As much as I like
interacting with patients, there are always
those who refuse to listen to reason.

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JULY 2017 // dentaltownuk.com

I like to keep my options open, but if I
were given the choice between pursuing a
career in research or in business, I'd pick the
former. There's room for improvement in
the dental curriculum about managing a
practice. Even if that isn't every student's
career goal, knowledge itself is power. I have
begun giving serious thought to my longerterm ambitions and I want to pursue a master's
degree in a specialty I'm most passionate
about, although the jury's still out on which
specialty that would be, and to contribute
to the dental research community.

I've been more active on the volunteering
scene recently, especially now that Ajman
University has started organizing oral health
campaigns. Last year, I got to join a group
of volunteers and start a campaign that
provides free dental examinations every
month to people of low socioeconomic
backgrounds. Being able to contribute to
my community is important to me, whether
it's spreading oral health awareness or reaching
out to high-risk communities with limited
access to dental resources, so I'm excited to
see where this goes! ■
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DentaltownUK July 2017
