Dr. Frank Vascimini, Sound Bites, 02/05/13

I thought I would share something that happened to me over the past few weeks in this week’s column. It brings home the point I mentioned in a column years ago.

A good friend of mine, the owner of AMH Aluminum in Homosassa, always says, “Bottom line ... you’ll get what you pay for.”

Right after the holidays, I got hit by the flu. I was out of commission for about two weeks — and for the record, I will forever take the flu shot from now on.

After I recovered, I did as I ask patients to do and threw away my toothbrushes. I use a Sonicare brush at night and a standard brush in the morning. Even though my Sonicare has a UV sterilization light, I felt it was best to discard it.

As many of us do, I made myself a note to bring home a brush from the office. Unfortunately, I kept forgetting. Even when I did remember to get it, I put it in my office and accidentally left it on the counter.

Lucky for me, I have a box of brushes at home that I give to my sons’ friends when they end up sleeping over. The only problem with this is I bought a box of the less-expensive, generic brushes for this purpose, since I knew they were going to be used for one time use.

Well, this is where the real story begins.

When I used one of those brushes for the first time, I couldn’t believe how hard the bristles were, how square the edges were, and how cheap the plastic they were made of was. Despite this, I can’t believe it was at least a few days until I remembered to bring one of the real brushes home.

When I finally brought one of the brushes home that we dispense to patients, I realized once again what friend Kevin meant when he said, “Bottom line ... you’ll get what you pay for.”

A second scenario that rings this bell happened this week when my lab replaced a set of impression trays they misplaced over the holidays. I did a favor for a patient over the holidays and repaired a denture she broke. As a result, I sent the trays along with the impressions to the lab.

Since it was a little different than usual (we normally just send the model and not the trays) the lab accidentally sent the trays to someone else and I never got them back.

In doing the right thing, they sent me a set of trays from a gen­eric company and not the same company my trays were man­ufactured from. When I looked at the replacement trays, I immediately noticed the differences.

After a phone call, they agreed to get me the same exact trays I sent to them. Once again, the principle of “Bottom line ... you’ll get what you pay for.”

Over they years, I have tried to instill this idea in my kids because in so many instances this quote rings true.

I have also tried to explain that, in some rare instances, it may not necessarily be the case. I’ve explained to them that these cases are the toughest to figure out, so always be aware.

Dr. Frank Vascimini is a dentist practicing in Homosassa. Send your questions to 4805 S. Suncoast Blvd., Homosassa, FL 34446 or email them to him at info@MasterpieceDentalStudio.com.