my nightmare of polysulphide - impregum.

first of all, if u r not a dental student or dentistry-related in any way, this may b boring n i advise u to leave immediately. n for my fellow dentists, it may b educational, or at least to prepare u better in pros.

i m just so not ready for the dental school to start. this is my third day, n i m already feeling so exhausted.

Pros today. my clinical partner, ayish booked in 2 patients. Brian was the implant patient wanting dentures. so the tutor, Mr harper asked us to use impregum for the lower impression. it looked cool to have a new material after all this while of alginate and admix and compo. but the handling was a mess. at then end of the day it wasnt cool at all. it was just a mess.

so, ayish was doing the examination and all, when she started to feel unwell. she looked blue. so it was maybe a good idea for her to go home to have a rest; but on the other hand, i had to take over the two patients that i had no clear clue what i should do with. anyway, i had to do it.

first, the impregum impression went a little doggy. no anatomy contour at all i guess, if there was any, recorded except for the two implant holes. n the impregum was so so so sticky. it ran all over everywhere. n i removed the impression without noticing it unset, n when i did, the next moment the patient was spitting out like crazy, complaining that the material tasted horribly awful. well the Mr Harper said it was an expensive material but the mercaptan or something gave it an unpleasant odour. i kinda pitied Brian, but i had to get the impressions done.

then the dispensary ran out of impregum. so i was asked to do the upper impression with alginate when the nurse tried to find me some irritating impregum. since i was left all alone in despair, i had to steal peilian from abdullah to b my nurse. thank god peilian didnt book in a patient, if not i would have been killed by the alginate and polysulphide, being buried in tones of unusable impressions.

so after a few attempts, we got the upper impression ok. n the time was like 15minutes before the next patient came in. so i was fighting with time. the nurse finally gave me the impregum before a woman came n nicked it. well she promised to bring it back which she never did. i wasnt being stingy but the nurse said that was the little impregum she could find in the clinic. so be that woman a fifth year student or a tutor, me n peilian were quite frustrated with her.

then another nice nurse came to rescue with some impregum n even showed me how to deal with it. still, the impressions were nothing more than doggy. n i kinda decided there was something wrong in the research on dental material as this thing couldnt b for implant impression or any simple impressions. it was so sticky n Brian was so covered with impregum. Miss Pett decided we couldnt proceed with the stub handle (which i had no idea why would the lab designed it instead if the straight handles) interfering the lip. we even thought of ripping off the handle. Mr harper had another go, and it wasnt any better. it looked like everybody was playing with Brian's mouth till he said "please, everybody have a go!". another try and another try, we changed so many tips and syringes for the impregum and still couldnt get it right.

in the middle of the mess, i was still worried if the next patient had arrived. but i think god still loves me, for the patient canceled her appointment!!!! so now we could spend time concentrating on how to sort the mess out. Brian was still spitting out, apparently theres no adaptation to the awful smell yet.

i was exhausted, n poor Brian must be too. i was hoping we could really get a perfect impression so that our patient could go home with something at least. and the next moment, Mr harper said the special tray was fractured. oh god! n guess what, the next appointment for Brian is, exactly, impregum impression again =(

so i had to send him back with, i guess, fatigue and disappointments.

it was almost 12.20pm, and the nurse was chasing peilian to return stuff to dispensary n to clean up. haih, chill please la.

so, my third day was about impregum n impregum.

but it wasnt so bad cos peilian was there helping. thank u situapui!