Pathways to Success

Garden Spot High School

Payton Shirk – Dental Internship

My name is Payton Shirk and I have been interning at Storb Dental located in the heart of Terre Hill since January 2019. Storb Dental, otherwise known as Terre Dental, offers both dental and orthodontic work for patients. It is is a fairly small office with a constant flow of patients and a pleasant atmosphere. Dr. Lewis Storb, Dr. Amy Chaballa-Wilde, Michelle Storb, and everyone else in the office have consistently been a great group of people to shadow, communicate with, and learn from.

This internship and tremendous opportunity has been such a growing experience for me. It has introduced me to what I am most likely to face in a dental hygiene career more than any typical high school class has in the past. As the intern at Storb, my job is to simply observe the daily duties and routines of a typical hygienist or anyone else performing dental procedures. Most of the time, I observe typical cleaning appointments. However, throughout my internship, I have seen several root canals, fillings, creations of crowns, and ortho appointments.

Although I am not able to physically work on a patient, I am able to learn the behaviors of hygienists/dentists as well as the procedures of multiple types of appointments. My future goal was always to pursue a job in dental hygiene. However, after seeing a broad amount of appointments at my internship, I may take my education a step further to become a dentist. Without the Co-Op program, my eyes would not have been opened to everything these jobs have to offer as well as the knowledge I continue to gain from this internship. By observing and asking questions, I’ve learned first-hand exactly what each tool is used for, how to communicate with patients and the steps that most of the appointments entail.

This internship has not only strengthened my knowledge in the dental field, but it has also confirmed my decision to follow my goal by graduating and eventually starting a career in the dental field. I am so thankful I took advantage of this great opportunity because I feel as if I am a step ahead of everyone pursuing a career in dental hygiene. I have internalized all the information given to me and will definitely put it all to use in my future endeavors.

dentalhealthmedical

jhackman • April 10, 2019


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