Patient empowerment: the young patient.

The responsibilities that doctors have for their patients often transcend the obvious. When orthodontists begin treatment relationships with young people, they should understand that preadolescent and adolescent patients are very impressionable and educable. This creates the possibility for extraordinary positive experiences during the period of therapy that may be unexpected by the doctor, the professional office staff, the patient, and the patients' families. In the present day climate created by OSHA and barrier techniques, recognition of our potential role is more important than ever. Children will be exposed over an extended time interval to the work of well-trained orthodontists and orthodontic staff. Role modeling and mentoring may occur that could benefit these patients throughout their entire life. New responsibilities that can create a sense of accomplishment and build self-confidence are introduced and accepted. The genesis of this article was the result of a conversation that developed between Mrs. Burnes and me after she had commented about the positive influence that her children's orthodontic therapy had on their general character development. Noting her area of professional expertise, and combining that with my general interest in the subject of personal character development, we decided to commit our thoughts to paper. Our goal was to identify some of the mutually satisfying interactions that can occur between the orthodontist, staff, patient, and parent.