By FRED KRONER
fred@mahometnews.com
As a teen-ager, Andrew White had a better idea what he didn’t want to do with his life than which area he would want to be his focus.
“I knew physical labor wasn’t a career path I might go for,” said White, a 2004 Mahomet-Seymour High School graduate.
That decision was an easy one to reach after spending nearly a decade of his summers detassling corn.
He didn’t have a shortage of other options, though White said, “I didn’t know for sure, but I was pretty good at school and I liked continuing to learn.”
Through his father’s influence, White developed an interest in seed corn and soybeans.
“I thought I wanted to be a geneticist or do research,” he said. “I liked that, but it was way too repetitive.”
One of his neighbors in Briarcliff, Gregg Rose, was a Champaign dentist, and White was able to get an inside look at that profession.
“I worked in his office while I was in high school to see what the office work was like,” White said.
His own experience with dentists was limited.
“As a patient, all I knew was getting my teeth cleaned,” White said.
Through his time at Rose’s office, White learned more about the inner workings of the operation.
“Fillings. Crowns. Bridges. There were a lot of different aspects,” he said.
The variety was what White found to be most appealing.
“Dentistry is not repetitive,” he said. “Every procedure each day is a little different.
“I like the hands-on aspect. It’s a fun job.”
White graduated from the Southern Illinois School of Dental Medicine, in Alton, in 2011.
After working for three years in community health in Murphysboro, he looked to his hometown to start his own practice.
White made overtures about buying out a local practice, but those he spoke to weren’t yet ready to retire.
There are advantages, he said, to taking over an existing practice.
“You get the equipment, the staff and the patient base,” White said. “If you do good work, you usually keep them.
“You can start from scratch, but with all of the new technology (for the equipment), it’s harder. Most people who go to a dentist have probably established themselves somewhere.”
In March, 2015, White took over the Champaign practice of a dentist – David Wickness – who was relocating from his South Prospect site.
White wound up with a good client base and – though living in Mahomet – quickly became immersed in the Champaign community.
This calendar year has been one for change.
Unexpectedly, he had the chance to take over a Mahomet practice when Mark Williams retired.
“I’ve known the Williams’ for a long time,” White said. “He’s one I didn’t contact (in 2014).”
Williams’ daughter, Claire, was starting dental school as White was finishing and he thought she would return to central Illinois. Instead, she is practicing in St. Louis.
“The Mahomet thing just popped up,” White said.
Since Jan. 10, he has been serving two communities.
He practices in Champaign on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays and has office hours in Mahomet (in the Eastwood Plaza) on Thursdays as well as Friday mornings.
“We had to shuffle things, but the patients I’m seeing (in Champaign) are the same number,” White said. “I’m doing it in three days.”
As for White’s Mahomet practice, he was able to adjust Williams’ schedule of seeing patients on multiple days to make it fit his schedule.
Though White is confident that Mahomet has the population base to support at least one more full-time dentist, he is not looking to be that person.
“At this point, the practice in Champaign is so established, there’s no chance of coming to Mahomet full-time,” White said. “I like the commute in and I have a good set of patients.”
What he is finding is that it is more convenient for a few of his former Champaign patients to schedule their appointments in Mahomet, and vice versa.
Most of his staff also does double duty, working in both Champaign and Mahomet.
“We have a separate hygienist for Mahomet,” White said, “but my assistant and front desk person travel.”
He is pleased by the reception he has received in his hometown.
“I’ve been very happy with how it has gone,” White said. “On Fridays, we’ve added a second hygienist.
“It’s a transition, but it seems to be going well.”
A key part of the transition involves White.
“Fridays were my administrative days, to do paperwork,” he said. “Now I’m seeing patients on Fridays.
“One thing a lot of people don’t realize is that the person who works in your mouth also writes the checks and orders things. It falls on you.”
White said he never had a bad experience visiting a dental office as a child and he tries not to add stress to his patients, young or old.
Sometimes, it’s not what is said, but what is not said.
“I don’t use the word ‘shot’ or ‘needle,’ “ White said.
Prior to starting a procedure, he said, “We use pre-numbing gel before any work is done. If you have a good, positive interaction, you can accomplish a lot.”
Working part-time in Mahomet is not the only change for White in 2019.
After four years of renting office space in Champaign, he has purchased and is currently remodeling a building on Broadmoor Dr. (the former Kinder Cassel Learning Center).
“We hope to move into that in December,” White said. “I’d guess we’d be closed less than a week.
“We’ll probably just work in Mahomet (during the transitional moving time).”
Due to confidentiality laws, White can’t talk about patients or even confirm whom he sees.
However, if someone were to ask if his parents, Ron and Margaret, were also patients, he has a ready response.
“I could tell you if they weren’t my patients,” he said.
End of conversation.
