Caring for Patients, Student Navigates Turning Point

Greg Ramirez

Greg Ramirez remembers the day it dawned on him that patients looked to him for expert advice -- and he was ready to give it.

“My first big case was a patient who had severe periodontal disease. He needed a full mouth extraction and when I saw him on a subsequent visit, he was a little teary-eyed. He asked me if he did the right thing,’’ said Ramirez, a fourth-year student. “I was a new dentist and I thought, ‘You’re asking ME?’ I told him his teeth were deteriorating quickly and there wasn’t much else he could do and he seemed reassured. I realized you need to be confident when you’re dealing with patients because they rely on you and this could affect them for the rest of their lives.’’

In November, months after treatment ended, the man called Ramirez to wish him a Happy Thanksgiving and told him how pleased he was with his new dentures. “He said he smiles more,’’ said Ramirez.

Ramirez is one of many dedicated students at RSDM who are making a difference in the lives of patients. In the fall, he received a scholarship that helped make his last year of dental school a little easier. In 2019, the Chancellor’s Challenge is offering $500,000 in matching donations toward any RSDM scholarship received until December. All scholarship donations will be matched 1-1 or 2-1 and will fund more scholarships for students like Greg.

“I was really worried about taking on all the debt so many of us have to take on. With dental school, there’s no guarantee that you’re going to finish. But I’ve made it this far and I’m almost done,’’ said Ramirez. “The scholarship money keeps morale up and it’s good to be recognized for academics. Getting an A might be important to you, but other people don’t always care.’’

Besides working in RSDM’s Newark clinics, Ramirez, who grew up in Sparta, NJ has valued the chance to treat patients during a dental mission to the Dominican Republic and Haiti -- where his some of his pediatric patients with chipped teeth were overjoyed to have them fixed -- and his time working with HIV patients at RSDM’s CODE clinic in South Jersey. “It was an awesome experience,’’ he says.

Next year, Ramirez will be serving his General Practice Residency at St. Luke’s University Hospital in Allentown, PA.