Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Fall 2017 - 44

New and Younger Members

tion than some other Class II correctors (e.g., the
Herbst®). I knew if the Xbow was good enough
for him, it would be good enough for everyone. If
you have not tried the Xbow, you should. It has a
.040 lower lingual holding arch with labial and
lingual wires, plus occlusal rests on the mandibular first premolars, so there's a great deal of
anchorage on the mandibular arch. Once you
attach the Forsus® spring to the Xbow, which
attaches to a maxillary transpalatal arch or
reverse palatal expander, those maxillary molars
distalize like crazy!

My husband and I at the Tulip
Festival, where we got engaged
and later returned for our
maternity photos

What advice do you have for graduating residents?
Make connections in residency, learn as much as
you can, push for opportunities to try new things,
be humble, don't skimp on business/financial
training, have a post-residency plan before you
graduate, and use your "residency card" to
shadow as many orthodontic practices as you
can before you are in private practice.
Are there CE courses you have taken since
graduation that you would recommend for new
residents?
I would say go to every PCSO conference and
attend as many other AAO and local conferences
as possible. Not only are the lectures great, but
the networking and fellowship is so valuable. I
have taken several Invisalign CE courses; these
provide the motivation to challenge my treatment mechanics with aligners. I also love the free
AAO Business of Orthodontics webinars. If you
are thinking about a start-up office, check out
the Breakaway Practice seminar; it provides excellent suggestions on office design and systems.
Also, this year my husband and I hired a life
coach, which has been a fun journey. I highly recommend it - we meet with him online once a
week and he helps us in our relationship, career
goals, fitness goals, leadership goals, and overall
personal development.

Dr. Vanessa Peterson with her
husband, Dr. Andrew Peterson, and
son Luke Everett Peterson, born
July 3, 2017

the ongoing advocacy, camaraderie, and support
of PCSO community, and I enjoy attending
the conferences.
Tell us about your office.
Permanente Dental Associates/Kaiser Dental has
18 dental offices. I work in the office closest to
downtown Portland. Our office has eight general
dentists, one pediatric dentist, and one orthodontist. I love the collaboration we all have with our
patients and the camaraderie of having fellow
practitioners in the office. In our orthodontic
open bay, we have four chairs plus a consult
table, which I share with the pediatric dentist. We
are getting a remodel of our orthodontic clinic
this summer and I'm looking forward to that! I
see an average of 40 patients per day, with about
35% adults and 65% adolescents. The pediatric
dentist and I share a front office coordinator
who checks our patients in, schedules, presents
finances, helps coordinate insurance, and
answers the phone.
Tell us about life outside of the office.
Life for me is about to change very soon. As I
write this, Baby Peterson is three days past his
due date. [Editor's note: Baby Luke Everett arrived
July 3, 2017!] My husband Andrew and I are very
much looking forward to the next chapter of our
life in raising our son. We also have two Boston
Terriers, whom we adore. My husband is also in
the dental field; he has recently completed his
periodontal residency. For fun, I love competing in
triathlons and running events. I have done several Ironman Triathlons (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile
bike, 26.2-mile run); have run marathons, including the Boston Marathon; and have ridden my
bike down the coast of California. Living in the
beautiful Pacific Northwest also provides an
opportunity to find new hikes and trail runs virtually every weekend. I also love reading and
learning - at home, you can often find me reading leadership and business books.

What PCSO benefits do you enjoy most? Or, what
do you like most about PCSO?
I have served as the New and Younger Member
Chair and a Bulletin contributor at PCSO. I like
PCSO Bulletin  Fall 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Fall 2017