NSU CDM Lasting Impressions Spring 2019

NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY | 5 Fourth-year dental students Gayane Avakyan and Juan Morales both have the same advice for anyone assigned to Team 2. “If you want an easy path, this isn’t it,” Avakyan said about working on Team 2. “So many people who have gone before told me how tough it is to be on this team. And it is tough. But it’s because you finish an all-star,” Morales said. There are eight teams led by faculty members in the College of Dental Medicine’s patient care center on the Fort Lauderdale/ Davie Campus. Team 2 leaders are Antonio Godoy, D.D.S., and Rick Vogel, D.D.S. The leaders are perfect bookends. “What is it that’s special about us? About Team 2?” Godoy tossed the question into the air without even being asked. Vogel responded, “Our skill sets complement one another.” Godoy specialized in prosthodontics at the University of Maryland. After that, he trained as a maxillofacial prostho- dontist, a subspecialty of the field that involves rehabilitation of patients with defects or disabilities either present at birth or developed because of disease or trauma. “I’ve worked with cancer patients and others with traumas,” he said. Vogel, a general practitioner, said he represents the restorative department. “It’s a good mix. I like the restorative, and I overlap into fixed prosthetics,” he added. GO TEAM! It’s a busy day in the clinic. Students approach Godoy in rapid succession to show him their work and get instruction. One student arrived with a mold in hand. “Cover to the contour; we’re going to have to put more here,” Godoy said, FOLLOW THE PATH OF TEAM 2 DENTAL STUDENTS BY MICHELLE F. SOLOMON in the Life Third-year student Melissa Batres treats a patient.