Working

Marge Buehner, RDA, RDH, MHSA

Marge Buehner, RDA, RDH, MHSA, has been in the field of dentistry for over 30 years in various capacities including assisting chair side, office manager, dental hygienist and eventually educator. But she didn’t get her start in dental hygiene.

“One of my older brother’s girlfriends was a dental assistant, and I thought it sounded glamorous, so that kind of gave me the desire to pursue that,” she explained. “But I’ve always been interested in health care. When I was in high school, I took all the prerequisites to become a nurse, but then I just decided that nursing wasn’t for me. Dental hygiene seemed to be perfect. As a dental assistant, I saw what dental hygienists did, and I thought what a great thing it was to be a dental hygienist.”

Buehner, of the Detroit area, graduated from Wayne County Community College, receiving her associate’s degree and hygiene certificate in 1992. She then completed her Bachelor of Science at the University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) in 2001—which eventually led to her faculty position there—and obtained her Master’s in Health Services Administration from UDM in 2006.

“As part of getting [my bachelor’s] degree, I was student teaching on the clinic floor,” she said. “Once I got my degree, they asked me to stay on part-time, and eventually one day led to two days, two led to three days, and now I’m here four days a week.”

As a clinical instructor, Buehner is responsible for coordinating the activities of the dental hygiene students in the University Health Center Dental Clinic at Detroit Receiving Hospital. She is also involved in the University’s Nursing Home Outreach Program whereby students provide oral health care for residents at select area nursing homes.  Her didactic teaching responsibilities include Special Patient Care, Management of Dental Hygiene and CPR classes for incoming dental and dental hygiene students.

“I love teaching,” she said. “And I am a very good trainer. I trained the assistants in the office and the new personnel. It just seemed to be a knack, so when I did some student teaching, it was very comfortable for me. I had no intention of becoming a faculty member. In fact, I wanted to do product rep. But when I started teaching, I just never wanted to give it up.”

In addition to teaching, Buehner still works in private practice one day a week at Canton-Plymouth Family Dentistry.

Buehner said that the best aspect of both of her positions as an educator and a dental hygienist is the contact she has with the students and patients. “I am able to help students evolve and grow in their selected profession, and at the same time, I can help the patients,” she explained. “I can connect both that private practice aspect and that teaching aspect in a dental school setting or a dental hygiene program setting because I get the best of both worlds. I can help the students grow, and I can help the patients grow.”

Buehner has been involved with the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Association (MDHA) since 2000 in many roles, most recently as immediate past president. She said that in the future, she would like to see the collaborative practice team in Detroit increase. “We have somewhere in the area of 100 hygienists working under that program, and I would like to see that double,” she said. “It’s a group effort with the association to get hygienists educated so that they can do this.”

One of the most memorable aspects of her career as an educator, Buehner said, has been the honors she has received from her students.

“I’ve received the Outstanding Part-time Faculty of the Year Award on several occasions from the students,” she said. “I think that’s very heartwarming and very humbling. If the students think I’m doing a good job, then that’s a big deal in my life. Technically, they’re my bosses. I’m here because of the students, and when they honor you, it’s very rewarding. Even with all of the ins and outs and daily trials and tribulations—it’s the end-all be-all when students think I’m a good faculty member. Both [dental hygiene and teaching] are difficult jobs, but they are both very rewarding and very humbling.”

She also said that being elected 2008-2009 president of MDHA was one of her biggest accomplishments professionally.

“I encourage members of the ADHA to go out and find new members,” she commented. “We have to educate the nonmembers about how important it is to be a part of their organization. We do a lot of things legislatively in Michigan, and the things that we achieve for hygienists in the state of Michigan everybody can benefit from, not just members. We can do far more things with more people on board, whether they don’t want to become involved or they’re actually involved in a leadership role. Members count when you’re talking to legislators, and the more numbers you have, the more they listen.”

Marge Buehner, RDA, RDH, MHSA may be reached at mbuehnerudm@comcast.net

This edition of Working was prepared by Frances Moffett.