One of the perks of being an RDHAP Connect member is being featured in a member spotlight on our website and social media pages. Today, we’re spotlighting Karine Ford, RDHAP. Below you’ll find an interview between our founder, Elly Francisco and Karine.

RDHAP Connect: Hi Karine Ford. I have missed you. What have you been up to since you have retired? 

I’ve been enjoying my new “career” as a full-time Grammy! My young grandsons are my loves, they can make me laugh on most days and can also frustrate me at the same time when their ears do not seem to be working well! I travel to Northern California often to visit them.

I do miss clinical care! Shortly after I closed my RDHAP practice, I coordinated hospital dentistry for a dentist friend for a few years. I still enjoy being a part of our community and I believe there’s a lot we can still do to move our profession forward.

RDHAP Connect: We have many readers who are RDHAPs and RDHs. I would love to share a little of your journey from RDH practice to RDHAP practice, and on to your current path in life.

I practiced as an RDH in offices for over 25 years, and, as soon as I became aware of the RDHAP program available at University of the Pacific in San Francisco, I applied.

I was in the second graduating cohort of AP’s from the UOP program in June of 2006. At the time, I had been working in an office where the dentist was not always present… the experience made me feel very confident to branch out and start my independent practice. I took a course offered by our local Small Business Development Center to assist me in the business aspects and then proceeded to develop presentations, brochures, and a list of potential clients (for me, those were Skilled Nursing Facilities). I also reached out to several local Senior Care Living Specialists in my area.

It took about 6 months to gain the traction I was looking for, and as my practice grew, I was traveling and serving elderly patients across four different counties. I transitioned to Developmentally Disabled care and Senior Home bound patients in the last years of my practice.

I still have a desire to provide clinical care for patients, however, physical limitations are preventing me from doing so – it’s much tougher to lift the mobile units now in my 70s! I’m looking at other ways to support excellence in clinical care, which I’m very excited about. 

RDHAP Connect: Can you share with those who don’t know you what you did and how you used your RDHAP license?

In addition to my own practice, I was employed by San Andreas Regional Center and developed an RDHAP program as well as a hospital dental program. Additionally, we developed a Conscious Sedation component for patients who cannot tolerate a dental office setting, but do not need general anesthesia, can benefit from lighter sedation and still receive restorative dental care. For these programs, I was fortunate enough to find a dentist with a passion and energy to assist me in that endeavor by taking the additional necessary courses. She and her colleague continue to see developmentally disabled patients in hospital outpatient surgery centers across four counties! 

Without the RDHAP license, I would have never met the wonderful folks at SARC, and I wouldn’t have been able to contribute the hospital dentistry program… I’m proud of this work and how many lives we’ve been able to help with this program. The Regional Center RDHAP’s support the hospital dentistry patients with maintenance care in between the hospital recare appointments.

RDHAP Connect: When seeing all the supplies available to RDHAPs these days, do you have any advice for new practitioners when starting practice? 

Dependable equipment and instruments would be first priorities – buy a unit that has a reputation of being a workhorse.

Second, invest in a software platform that will allow your practice to grow. Technology has changed dramatically from 2005 and I’m quite jealous of new AP’s and the tools they get to use to get their time back! I always felt confident that my patient records were optimized and readily available as needed. Patient charts, history, consents and records, billing insurance or providing statements within a practice management system is an efficient use of any practitioner’s time.

RDHAP Connect: What advances have you noticed now that are exciting to you? 

I love to see that RDHAP’s can now practice out of their own brick and mortar. Dental hygiene is a physically demanding career, and the RDHAP mobile practice adds another huge component of physicality. My practice was entirely mobile. I have talked with many AP’s recently and many of them are splitting their time, with an office location as well as offering mobile care. I believe that would be a healthy way to build a new practice.

What I’m most excited about, is that with my encouragement and input, my son recently left his role as the Head of AI at another healthcare technology company to develop a new Practice Management System, specifically for RDHAP’s. The platform he is building, OralAlly, is incredible. I believe it will be changing the way AP’s run their practices and saving them time, supporting a healthier work life balance… I wish I had had something like it while I was practicing! Of course, I’ve been supporting as much as I can, providing input and connections within the AP in the community – it’s been a fun project to support and watch grow. 

RDHAP Connect: What lessons that you learned do you think can be learned by the younger generation of RDHAP? 

I think it’s incredibly important to support CDHA, our organization, through both membership and active participation. As former President, I have first-hand experience seeing CDHA monitor new California legislation that impedes the RDHAP license, and been a voice in ensuring that does not happen. CDHA is the only entity that oversees our licensure and advocates tirelessly for AP’s and all hygienists. Make your voice heard! 

In building your own practice, there are so many challenges and so much time involved: keeping up with the business aspects and overhead of a practice, becoming adequately insured, as well as maintaining supplies, sterilization and sterilization records, equipment maintenance, and then the provision of the clinical care itself. It can be quite overwhelming at times to be an entrepreneur in clinical care.

Patience and diligence are required. What I found, and I truly believe, is that if you come from a place of love and caring for others, you will be successful.

Are you an RDHAP and would like to be a part of our member spotlight? To become a member? Click HERE!