In this issue:
Chairside® Magazine – An Evolving Resource for General Dentistry
In 2017, Chairside® magazine is entering its 12th year of publication.
When Jim Glidewell started Glidewell Laboratories in 1970, he already knew that the continual pursuit of knowledge, education and technology would be critical to the success of his company. That commitment has paid immense dividends over the past 47 years, not only for the laboratory, but for the dental industry worldwide. His ever-present focus on improvement has been instrumental in the development of new materials and techniques that are simpler, safer and more predictable.
Jim understood early on the everyday challenges faced by clinicians. While many of these challenges exist outside of the lab’s purview, Jim dedicated himself to reducing barriers where possible so that treatment might be more affordable and accessible for patients, and dentists might have more tools to fortify their success.
In that spirit, Glidewell Dental has been committed to developing educational resources so that clinicians across the country can stay informed about the latest restorative materials, techniques and laboratory services.
One of the earliest forays into publishing by Glidewell Laboratories was Chairside Perspective. First released in August 1998, Chairside Perspective was designed to provide Glidewell customers with proven tips and techniques for practicing dentistry. The lab published Chairside Perspective for eight years, ultimately realizing that the short format wasn’t sufficient for the amount of information and detail that Jim wished to share.
In early 2006, Chairside magazine debuted as the company’s first full-length, magazine-quality publication. Jim’s mission for Chairside was simple: to have his on-staff clinicians offer tips and techniques from their unique perspectives as dentists who practiced inside the nation’s largest laboratory. Friends of the lab — dentists, researchers and business consultants — volunteered their time with the shared goal of helping readers achieve better success in dentistry. Across the life span of Chairside magazine, many important opinion leaders have contributed to these pages, including Drs. Gordon J. Christensen, Bill Strupp and Robert Lowe. Based on an overwhelming amount of feedback received, Chairside magazine accomplished Jim’s goal in strides.
Jim Glidewell’s mission for Chairside was simple: to have his on-staff clinicians offer tips and techniques from their unique perspectives as dentists who practiced inside the nation’s largest laboratory.
Today, Dr. Siamak Abai serves as clinical editor of the magazine. He works alongside Glidewell team members Drs. Justin Chi and Anamaria Muresan and a panel of distinguished private practitioners to bring the Chairside readership comprehensive cases that highlight the restorative materials, cutting-edge technologies and successful techniques available to general practitioners. Their diverse knowledge has helped Chairside become a reliable resource for clinicians across the United States.
It is without question that the magazine would be impossible if not for Jim Glidewell, who believes in giving back to the dental community. He provides the resources, tools, equipment and technologies needed to send out more than 120,000 copies of each issue. His commitment to offering useful insight to dentists is accomplished by a team of employees who work in tandem with the clinical teams.
After 11 years, the industry at large is quite different from how it was when Chairside was first published. Whereas once PFMs were the definitive restorative option that met both patient and clinical requirements, today we also have a wealth of proven all-ceramic options. In less than a decade, monolithic restorations undid the half-century reign of bilayer crowns and bridges. At Glidewell Laboratories, we’re grateful to have been a part of that monolithic revolution. Full-contour ceramic materials, like BruxZir® Solid Zirconia, are showing outstanding long-term results in terms of esthetics, kindness to opposing dentition and durability of function.1 In terms of services offered, whereas once the delivery of implants was often reserved for specialists, general practitioners are placing implants with regularity today,2 and nearly all are restoring them. In short, the materials used and procedures offered in the sphere of general dentistry are greatly evolved from what they were at the launch of Chairside magazine.
In recent years, the advent of dental service organizations, direct-to-consumer advertising and prepaid dental insurance programs has introduced new challenges to the private practitioner. This ever-changing, competitive environment requires clinicians to take on an adaptive mindset, evolving their practices by parsing through the cacophony of information with which they’re confronted. For 11 years, Chairside magazine has freely given the tools necessary, providing a steady, rewarding resource for clinicians who practice restorative dentistry. That is the heart of Jim Glidewell’s vision: offering dentists resources and materials to be successful, knowing well that it reduces the barriers patients face in getting treatment.
At Glidewell Dental, we too must remain flexible and ready to evolve based on what’s happening across the industry; Chairside magazine is not immune from the requirement for change. Jim has realized that it’s time to reimagine the publication to maintain its relevancy and usefulness to the general practitioner.
At Glidewell Dental, we too must remain flexible and ready to evolve based on what’s happening across the industry; Chairside magazine is not immune from the requirement for change.
Going forward, Chairside magazine will evolve to cover many of the challenges that general practitioners face today. For example, while implant dentistry was once a specialized discipline, it is now a part of everyday restorative dentistry. This means there’s no longer a valid reason to distinguish between general dentistry and implant dentistry, mirroring the realities of most restorative practices. To reflect this important evolution in dentistry, we are combining the two sister magazines, Inclusive™ and Chairside, into a single publication.
The new magazine will proudly maintain the Chairside masthead and broaden its coverage, focusing on restorative, esthetic and implant dentistry. Our most popular articles and columns will be found on their familiar pages and we will continue to publish the views of celebrated opinion leaders from across the industry. A new series will offer advice on practice management from the top consultants in the industry, designed to assist you in today’s challenging business environment.
With a whole new look and feel, Chairside magazine will continue to be packed full of the resources most relevant to restorative dentists and their practice success. Jim Glidewell and the members of the Chairside team sincerely appreciate your interest over the last 11 years. We hope you’ve enjoyed our publication, and look forward to providing you with even greater content in the issues to come.
