KITCHENER
Nancy Hall doesn't like to wait around for things to happen.
That might be why friends and colleagues urged her in the fall of 2007 to wait another year before starting her own dental hygiene clinic.
Hall, a hygienist since 2003, received the right to start her own business in September 2007 when the provincial government amended the Ontario Dental Hygiene Act to allow all dental hygienists to operate independently.
The wait turned out to be a wise move for Hall, who jokes that she has a short attention span and is always keen to take on the next challenge in her life.
"I spent the summer doing all the behind-the-scenes work like ordering equipment, talking to the bank and getting loans," she says. "I just loved it."
Hall opened a dental hygiene clinic on King Street East near Rockway Gardens in September. The brightly lit office has many of the elements of a dentist's office, including a reclining chair and oral hygiene instruments.
Hall realizes there will be a learning curve both for her and her customers, since the concept of a dental hygiene clinic is still new. She offers regular cleaning checkups, consulting and teeth-whitening services.
She is counting on attracting clients who may only see a dentist once a year but want an affordable option for an additional cleanings. She also says there are a number of people without dental insurance benefits who will find a checkup with an independent hygienist as much as 35 per cent more affordable than visiting a dentist's office.
Hall is also banking on doing brisk business in making and fitting sports mouth guards, which may not be a high priority for some dentists. Last weekend, she held a sports guard clinic at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium during a minor hockey tournament.
At least two other hygienists that have started independent clinics in the region. Michelle Tonellato opened a clinic called Frosted Smile in downtown Waterloo last year. And in October this year, Valerie McPherson opened a mobile clinic, Access Dental Care. McPherson aims to serve residents in retirement homes who may not have the mobility to visit dental offices.
The road that led to dental hygienists being able to operate independently was a long one, spanning decades, as dentists opposed the move.
Hall says she's lucky that the dentists she has worked for have been supportive of her efforts. She still splits her time between working in a dental office -- where Tonellato is a co-worker -- and working at her own business, where the hours are flexible.
"Personally, my belief is we can co-exist peacefully with the dental profession," Hall says.
Even if the resistance of some dentists provides a challenge, Hall doesn't seem fazed. She has made more than one difficult career transition. After years of working as a dressmaker, she opened a maternity wear store in 1988, filling a gap she had spotted in the local market for women's clothing.
In 2001, she sold that business -- it's called Room for Two and is still operating -- and went back to school to study dental hygiene. After two years of college and another five as a hygienist working with dentists, she has returned to being her own boss.
One thing she relishes is that she no longer spends her work days chained behind a sales counter, which she was sometimes forced to endure in retail.
"I knew I wanted a job where I didn't have to stay in one place all day."
NANCY HALL DENTAL HYGIENE
1454 King St. E., Kitchener, N2G 2N7
Employees: 1
Phone: 519-744-5200 Web: www.nancyhall-dentalhygiene.ca
mhammond@therecord.com
