The River Tree | Danny Chan
  • WELCOME
  • WRITING
    • DENTAL COPYWRITING
    • DENTAL BLOG PACKAGES
    • FEATURE ARTICLES
  • ONE STOP MARKETING
  • BLOG
  • CONTACT
    • BOOKING

Q&A with Dr Geoffrey Hall (part 1)

1/13/2021

 
PictureDr Geoffrey Hall
Dialogue with one of Australia’s leading educators of orthodontics – and die-hard advocate of imparting the lucrative trade to GPs.

By Danny Chan       

One thing becomes clear when you speak to Dr Geoffrey Hall: he doesn’t mince his words. Especially when discussing issues close to his heart – like clinical orthodontics and orthodontic training – Dr Hall is not averse to making bold, and even controversial, claims.

The Specialist Orthodontist is extremely candid about what he believes in, and what he doesn’t. For example, he openly counters the protective posture of those within specialist camps that preclude general dentists from learning or practising orthodontics.

He charges that the majority of dentists would simply accept an aligner company’s algorithmic recommendations without any scrutiny.

The orthodontic educator tacitly questions the veracity of undergraduate and specialist programs, confident the short and long-form training courses offered by OrthoED, the training institute he founded, would enlighten even seasoned clinicians.

For over 30 years, the self-professed myth-busting orthodontist has treated more than 10,000 cases. Known for high profile roles such as specialist clinician, practice partner (MP Orthodontics), international lecturer (GAC/ORMCO) and founder/principal of teaching institute (OrthoED), he also holds little known credentials like orthodontic innovator and pioneering tech adopter. On the latter note, he was certified as the first Invisalign accredited orthodontist outside of North America.

In this two-part article, we chat with the straight-talking orthodontist, discussing everything from his training courses to passions and motivations. Of course, he also delivers unvarnished views of the industry – where it stands and where it is headed.

What led you to study orthodontics and made you so passionate about it?

After finishing dental training in 1983 at Melbourne University, there was a point in time when I became frustrated that whatever I did in general dentistry, somebody could do it better.

Influenced by my brother, a rheumatologist who at the time was training at the Mayo Clinic, I went to the United States to undergo specialist orthodontic training at the University of Pennsylvania in 1988, becoming the first Aussie to do so.  

It was at the University where I had the opportunity to train with some of the greatest orthodontists in the world. At least once a month, I would be attending different courses, going around America being trained by – and making friends with – elite orthodontists such as Drs Vince Kokich, David Sarver, Ron Roncone Norm Cetlin and Dwight Damon, who developed the Damon bracket.

At the university, I was trained by the likes of Dr Brainerd “Barney” Swain, who invented the Siamese twin bracket, and my infamous chairman Dr Slick Vanarsdall.

One of the great things about going to America is that it gave me “the fire in the belly”. Even after completing the specialist orthodontic program, I used to visit the States every year and ended up bringing Invisalign, the Herbst appliance and micro implants to Australia.

What made you decide to teach orthodontics?

The more I learned from these prominent orthodontists, the more I enjoyed being at the cutting edge of this branch of dentistry. As a result, I became an international lecturer and speaker for GAC (now owned by Dentsply) and eventually became the key opinion leader and international speaker for ORMCO.

During this period, I developed a genuine interest in teaching other dentists. I really believe that one of the biggest problems of orthodontics is that my colleagues have kept it as a closed shop. They don’t teach GPs properly and everybody thinks that it’s too hard, when in fact, it’s not very hard at all, if you understand the correct principles.

If someone were to sit down and explain orthodontics to you properly, you would quickly realise that it’s not rocket science. There are far more difficult areas in dentistry than orthodontics. But it has never been properly taught to GPs.

How did Smilefast and OrthoED come about?

When I first had the idea to develop an orthodontic training course for GPs, some general dentists and a couple of orthodontists were already teaching it in Australia. Unfortunately, most of them had a vested interest in what they were teaching.

Some of these courses were run by dental labs and the training content was built around the use of appliances that they produced and sold. A lot of those appliances really aren’t needed at all.

Prior to setting up Smilefast as a short-term introductory course to orthodontics for GPs, I’ve already had several years of experience teaching orthodontists.

Smilefast is a two-day course that gives general practitioners the ability to straighten teeth in 75% of adult orthodontic cases. The feedback was great and the dentists we trained were asking for more.

This led us to develop a 9-module, 2-year Mini Master’s Program. It was designed to equip graduate GPs with the skills to treat 95% of all orthodontic patients – without having to refer them to specialists.

The idea with Smilefast and the OrthoED Mini Master’s was to provide a total program of orthodontic education, based on sound principals and good mentorship, which was lacking in the marketplace.

You often talk about the need to rethink orthodontics and orthodontic training. Was there a turning point in your own understanding?

My turning point came when I met Dr Rohit Sachdeva about 10 years ago. I consider him the brightest and most intelligent orthodontist alive today. It was Dr Sachdeva who taught me a fundamental principal that completely changed my thinking: with proper planning and proper risk management, 99% of patients can undergo orthodontic therapy with no surprises.

What I’ve learned from him, I would say not more than one per cent of orthodontists understand. I’ve since passed on a lot of these learnings to all of my dental clients. Based on what I call risk management, these principles take your orthodontic knowledge to a whole new level that protects you from unwanted problems.

What most orthodontists do, and that’s what we have been taught in universities, is that you put all your braces on and the teeth miraculously line up – but that’s only true in 70 per cent of cases.

They can actually get worse in 30 per cent of the cases, and that has to do with what we call the bracket/wire geometry. We teach our course attendees about the difference between a consistent and inconsistent force system. In the inconsistent system, simply putting the brackets on the conventional way will result in teeth moving the wrong way.

Our job is to identify which cases fall into which category and once we do, we have to identify the mechanics to change from the inconsistent force system to a consistent one.
​
Once this knowledge is learnt, orthodontic tooth movement and treatment can be very easy and predictable.


Comments are closed.

    The
    ​Dental Blog Writer

    Danny Chan | Dental Blog Writer

    Danny Chan

    Danny is founder of The River Tree, a Multimedia Company based in Melbourne that provides Quality Content & Digital Marketing Services to Dental Professionals across Australia and New Zealand.

    RSS Feed

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Archives

    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    January 2014
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    April 2013
    November 2012
    September 2012
    July 2012
    April 2012
    February 2012
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    April 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    February 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009
    August 2009
    July 2009
    June 2009
    February 2009
    December 2008
    November 2008

    Categories

    All
    Dental Business
    Dental Fitouts
    Dental Laboratory
    Dental Plant Room
    Dental Software
    Dental Technology
    Dental Workflow & Efficiencies
    Funnies
    Interesting
    Video Production

    RSS Feed