Modern Hygienist - November 2008 - (Page 26)

career | MENTORING Faith in place MENTORING Motivation Whether you’re a person of faith or not, understanding your job as a call helps make hard days easier. Risk Is there something outside the op you’ve wanted to try? How Heidi Walberg brings her skills and her faith together for the greater good. by Thais Carter Heidi Walberg’s parents would take her on what she can only describe as “epic” vacations to the Rocky Mountains, the Grand Tetons and other natural wonders. As a teenager, she was less than thrilled to be there. “We’d be in Glacier National Park and I’d sit there, kind of bored. I started looking in the mirror, watching my teeth chew gum, blow bubbles, or watch myself floss,” she remembers with a laugh. “Now, my family jokes that those moments are where my love of dental hygiene came from.” Ms. Walberg offers her own reasons for choosing the profession, including flexibility and a genuine love for people. After graduating in 1998, she practiced full-time in Michigan for five years before she felt her faith calling her to widen her professional picture. “I worked with Ugandans and the NGO and together, we went into local schools doing HIV/ AIDS education, Bible study training, counseling, mentoring and just developing relationships,” she explains. “It was an amazing experience.” While in Africa, Ms. Walberg did not practice clinical hygiene, although she insists that many people there need it. “When they can’t afford to buy food, dental hygiene is a luxury. When I go back, I’d love to work in a local clinic, doing hygiene with a chair and a Cavitron,” she says. AND BACK Ms. Walberg came back to the States, but rather than returning to Michigan, she came to Chicago to attend Moody Bible Institute (MBI) for additional instruction in philosophy, counseling and Biblical studies. With a different class schedule every semester and having few built-in professional connections, she decided to pursue dental hygiene temping. “Of course, the bad thing about subbing is that you don’t usually get to see the same patients over and over again,” she admits, “but I like being the person who goes into the office and just blends in, to the point where patients think I’ve been part of it all along—it’s about being a blessing to the patient and the office. That way, the hygienist knows she can take a day off and that her patients and her practice are in good hands. “I get to meet a lot of dentists and try a lot of different products and techniques, so I’m always learning, always being challenged, and always seeing new ways of doing old procedures.” FROM MICHIGAN TO UGANDA After feeling a “tug on my heart,” Ms. Walberg began to consider how blessed she was and felt an incredible urge to give back. She could have volunteered in a local clinic or, if she didn’t want to do something hygiene related, offered to tutor local children. Instead, she moved to Uganda and from 2004 to 2006 worked with a mission agency called Africa Inland Mission. Heidi loves.. After working with multiple products in multiple practices, Heidi is a big fan of Vanish™ 5% NaF White Varnish (3MESPE.com). She recently got into running, but has long been a fan of the foodie scene in Chicago, especially the Grand Lux Cafe. To keep her skills and instruments sharp, she relies on scalers made with XP Technology from American Eagle Instruments (am-eagle. 26 modernhygienist.com | November 2008 PHOTO: MICHAEL VOLTATTORNI, JON FEINGERSH/GETTY IMAGES, SAM DIEPHUIS/GETTY IMAGES http://www.3MESPE.com http://www.modernhygienist.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Modern Hygienist - November 2008

Modern Hygienist - November 2008 Contents Editor's Letter Letters Modern Solutions Brace Yourself Pathways: Behind the Mask Faith In Place Ultimate Recall: You Can't Work Alone Going Public: Why Public Health? A Fresh Approach to Thanksgiving Ad Index Classifieds Moonlighting

Modern Hygienist - November 2008

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