Ronda Holman found her passion for dental assisting while in the Air Force.
She assisted in oral surgery, general dentistry, and ended her four-year service as a prophy tech, the military’s version of a dental hygienist.
She married and spent 13 years traveling the country while her husband served in the Air Force. Each time Ronda relocated she got the opportunity to work in a new dental office, where she picked up pearls that have helped her become an expert in educating dental assistants.
Her interests are immediate denture/partial fabrication, CEREC technology, patient education, and striving for optimal chairside skills.
Ronda believes that every dental assistant has the potential to be a rock star assistant if given the right tools and guidance.
Buying a Dental Practice Is the Easy Part—Earning the Team’s Trust Is the Real Work
By: Ronda Holman Purchasing an existing dental practice offers a significant advantage: a team that already knows…
Meaningful Ways New Dentists Can Show Gratitude to Their Team During the Holidays
…Without Spending Much Money By: Ronda Holman The holiday season is a perfect opportunity for new dentists…
Did Your Dental Assistant Give You Expired Anesthetic Again?
If So, Here’s What We Need to Do By: Ronda Holman There’s nothing that sinks a dentist’s…
Blessing or Curse? The 4 O’Clock Dilemma
By: Ronda Holman It’s 3:55 p.m. on a Thursday. The 4 o’clock patient just canceled. You can almost…
That’s Not My Job: Why Clear Delegation Matters in Dentistry
By: Ronda Holman You’ve probably heard the old story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody, and…
How Dentists Can Be Patient with Their Dental Assistant as They’re Still Learning
By: Ronda Holman Every dentist remembers that awkward learning curve when they first started practicing — the…
3 Ways to Invest in Your Dental Assistant
By: Ronda Holman What Dentists Can Learn from Chef Tina in The Bear In the TV series…
Why Dental Teams Should Learn Together
By: Ronda Holman In the fast-paced world of dentistry, continuing education (CE) is essential, not just for…
What’s Keeping Your Dental Assistant from Becoming an EFDA?
By: Ronda Holman If you’ve ever found yourself wishing you had two pairs of hands during a…
Help! My Dental Assistant Keeps Giving My Patients Dirty Glasses
By: Ronda Holman It might seem like a small thing, but when a dental assistant hands a…
The Transition to Dental Practice Ownership
By: Ronetta Sartor There are a lot of options to pursue in a career after dental school, but one of the major decisions you’ll have to consider is the possibility of owning your own practice. Deciding whether you want to own a business is a big decision in itself, and there are several ways to…
The Importance of a Transition Manager
By: John Wloderak Managing your practice is essential to good dentistry; entering the marketplace to establish your brand, managing growth, and finding an eventual exit strategy can all be a challenge. But you shouldn’t go through the process alone. There are plenty of qualified individuals who make it their job to help you through every…
Burnout: How to Complete Your Stress Cycle as a Dentist
By: Savanah Craig Burnout is a hot topic. It is especially prevalent for those who are high achievers, in helping professions or have a caretaking role. As a dentist, I find myself identifying with each of those categories. After experiencing burnout in dental school, I have been determined to find resources and strategies to prevent…
Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas for The Dental Professional
By: Lucas Shapiro Tired of giving the same old gift or chocolate and flowers to the people that matter most in your life for Valentine’s Day? Everyone does enjoy chocolate and that’s totally fine as long as it’s in moderation and you brush and floss afterward. IgniteDDS has created a Valentine’s Dental Gift Guide to…
Dentistry as Public Health
By: Mohammed Hammoud I’m Mohammed Hammoud, a third-year student at the LECOM School of Dentistry with a passion for dentistry as an issue of public health and social well-being. Before Dental School Before dental school, I worked with a public health organization and shadowed a dentist running a clinic in South Africa. It was a…
Geographic Success and the Transition to the Real World of Dentistry
By: Cory Ball You just got your final faculty check for a restorative appointment in the clinic. Your patient is thrilled to finally leave the dental school after a three-hour appointment to fix a cavity. Yes, that’s right. One filling. 4DO. You’re an early D3 dental student and this is among the first dozen or…
Communicating in Difficult Situations: Part 1
By: Savanah Craig If you work in the dental profession long enough, you’ll encounter patients who might get labeled as difficult for some of their requests in a dental chair. These annoyances range from refusing to swallow their own saliva, questioning the need for radiographs, or refusing fluoride treatment. Many dentists, hygienist, and dental assistants…
General Dentist vs. Dental Specialist
By: Dr. Cory Ball 12 years of grade school, 4 years of undergraduate studies, maybe a master’s program, and 4 years of dental school. Now you are debating on doing more school? Do you want to be a general dentist or go on to do a specialty in orthodontics, oral surgery, pediatrics, endodontics, periodontics, etc?…
New Dentist: Your First Paycheck Arrives, Now What?
By: Dr. Cory Ball Dental school is a busy time for most aspiring clinicians. Between studying for courses, practicing in preclinic, then managing the patient pool in the final years, most students have a tough time finding additional hours in a day to have a part-time job to make money. And those students who do have…
Don’t Look Back, Look Forward to Paying Off Dental School Student Loans
By: Dr. Cory Ball The average student loan debt for a graduating dental student in 2020 was over $300,000. During school, students can easily fall into a mindset of forgetting about the loans and focusing on other things. The problem with that is when the time comes to start making payments, it can be overwhelming…