My name is Lieutenant Commander Heather Gnau.
I am currently stationed at Bethesda, Maryland.
I'm a second year endodontic resident specializing
in root canal treatment.
I'm from Louisville, Kentucky. I did my undergraduate
studies at the University of Kentucky, and I did my
dental education at the University of Louisville.
Currently I'm in a two-year endodontic residency
program at Bethesda, Maryland. I chose dentistry
as a profession because I wanted something that
was health related - I want to have something where
I have patients um that I can affect their health
and help them out. Um I started working in a
dental office as an assistant as one of my part
time jobs after college, and I realized that,
that has everything I'm looking for. I was like,
you know what, this - this seems like something
that - that I would enjoy.
In the Navy um we do have the post-graduate
dental school in Bethesda, Maryland that offers
um dental specialty training in most of the
specialties. If the specialty training is not offered
at Bethesda, the Navy will send you to an out-service
program which means they'll send you to a civilian
school so you can get that ah specialty training.
In the Navy, the Health Services Collegiate Program
enabled me to not only earn vacation or leave days
while I was still in dental school, but they also
gave me a small stipend to help - help offset some
of the expenses related to dental school. It also
gave me time toward retirement which means when I
retire at my 20 years, the time that I spent in
dental actually makes my retirement pay 22 years.
It was also really nice that once I graduated,
I already had 45 days of - of leave or vacation
um on the books ready to be used if I would need it.
When you graduate dental school, you have up to a
year to receive your, your board certification,
or pass your board. Um during that year with the
Navy you can still um continue to practice
dentistry while you're signing up for your
boards and passing them.
You could easily have to spend 60 to $200,000
for a four-year dental degree. There are different
Navy programs out there that will pay either full -
in other words, they will pay everything, a full
four-year scholarship program, or there's other one,
two, three-year programs, scholarship programs that
are available through the Navy.
If you decide that um after you've graduated
dental school and you've paid it all by yourself
that you want to join the Navy, you can join the Navy,
then sign up for something called the Loan Repayment
Program, where in turn, the Navy will then
pay back part of your student loans for you.
My first year out of dental school I signed up for
an AEGD program - that stands for Advanced Education
and General Dentistry. So my first year was spent
um working with different specialties, in each of
the specialties getting further education - just
kind of expanding my exposure with different
specialties so you have rotations - in the root
canals or endodontists you have a rotation with
the oral surgeon taking out teeth, you work with
prosthodontist one on one on how to do some of
the more complex cases. Um so that gives you not only
the confidence, but also the knowledge that you need.
After I finished my advanced education in general
dentistry, I volunteered to go on a MEU, which stands
for Marine Expeditionary Unit deployment.
We went throughout the Mediterranean - stopping at
different countries helping um train their country's
military services. Um as part of this deployment
with the Navy I also had the chance to do mini-DEN caps.
A DEN cap is a Dental Civilian Assistance Program.
When we were in Kosovo, we would go out to different
villages and set up um a miniature dental clinic.
I was able to help people that were in a country
that was in conflict. I would see people that had
been in pain for - for a little bit of time and um
they were very welcoming for us to come in
and be able to help them out.
The Navy is a - is a strong supporter in enabling
us as medical health providers to give back to
people. Being able to - to look at these people
and the conditions they live in and realizing by
me being there and helping them out I have definitely
made their quality of life better and personally for
me it was an amazing experience. When I returned um
from my MEU deployment, I was transferred to a satellite
clinic, which means I was um given the opportunity to
have my own dental clinic where I was the only dental
provider. I had a hygienist that worked with me and
some dental technicians. This enabled me to um experience
what it would be like, you know, if I would ever leave
the Navy and run a dental practice.
In the Navy they strongly encourage you to have
exposure to all the disciplines. Um having rotations,
three to four month rotations, with all the specialties
especially when you're straight from school,
is something that they stress and they encourage.
When you're deployed, you may be by yourself and you'll
have many cases come in and they want you to
be able to handle them.
Navy dentistry offers many um advantages or benefits
over civilian dental program. One of the main ones
is I have a group practice. I'm practicing dentistry
with um at least ten to twenty or thirty dentists in
the same clinic. We get to share ah experiences,
give input to each other. Um it's very nice to have
a colleague that if you have a question or concern,
you can walk down the hall to just about any specialist
um that you need to get a consult. The Navy is very
interested in continuing education. Um they will send
you at least once a year to a location that you can
take a weeklong course. The biggest benefit that I see
with the Navy program over the civilian program is the
Navy program has three board certified endodontists
that are dedicated just to us to complete our residency
successfully. There's nine residents. There's three
board certified endodontists. That's a ratio that you're
never going to find in a civilian program.
Navy dentistry tries to provide you with the latest
developments in technologies that's out there.
As an endodontist in the Navy, whatever clinic I
go to I'm going to have the microscope available,
I'm going to have digital radiography and all of
the um up-to-date equipment that I may desire.
We have the microscopes in every room. We have the
monitors in every room. We have access to ordering
different supplies, different systems that we want
to try out, because they want us to get the best
training possible so we can then go out into the
fleet and serve our Navy personnel.
With the Navy, the only thing I'm worrying about
is learning my skill, and that is my job.
With the Navy, when you go on leave, I'm still
getting my full salary. I still get all of my benefits,
all of my pay. With the Navy, it's a huge family -
they're always looking out for you. If you're having a bad day,
or there's something going on and you need the extra support,
there's always someone there that's willing and wanting
to help you out.
In the Navy, if you are interested in dentistry, you know,
you don't have to have a degree. Um our enlisted technicians
work side by side with us on a daily basis in order to provide -
provide care. Without our Navy enlisted, you know,
I can't do my job to the best of my ability because I depend
on my chair side technician to help me every step of the way
um and without them I'm not the best that I could be.
The Navy has been the right choice for me. Um professionally
it has molded me into the dentist that I've always wanted to be.
It has given me a chance to um complete my specialty training
as an endodontist. And it also has given me many opportunities
to travel to foreign countries and to give back and do some
humanitarian missions. It has made me grown as a person.
It has given me leadership opportunities. It has encouraged
teamwork. It has basically made me the professional person
today that I am, and I like that person.