 Hello everybody, Andrew Mayesky here with Dental L. So a lot of students and patients actually have been asking me lately how I feel about, they've probably heard on the news, or you've heard on the news about a dental hygienist who had their license taken away for treating their spouse. So people have been asking me about this, kind of what happened, and a lot of patients especially are coming to me and saying I didn't know that that rule existed for healthcare professionals. You know, I didn't know that you were not allowed to treat your spouse, and no, we're not allowed to. So first of all, I'll explain the situation. So what happened was somebody, so a dental hygienist, a male dental hygienist, got his license taken away because there was evidence of him cleaning his wife's teeth, and we're not allowed to clean our spouse's teeth. We're not allowed to. We are allowed to clean our family members, you know, our brother, sister, mom, dad, but we're not allowed to clean our spouse's teeth. If you're a dentist, you can. So there was something past that they can now treat their spouse's teeth, but a dental hygienist cannot. So there was evidence of this dental hygienist doing just that. From what I hear and from what I've read, his wife had posted on Instagram of, you know, her being excited that her husband was treating her. But I've also heard stories where this was being done at their house or maybe their dental office, you know, that's where it's kind of, I'm not sure. And a co-worker took a picture of it and they used to be friends, but now they're not. So they had leaked the photo and that's how that happened. So yes, so we're not allowed to. I do not agree with the rule. I find it very silly and I'll tell you why. Because I feel if a patient consents to allowing you to treat them, that should be fine. It shouldn't matter if it's a husband, spouse, wife, brother, sister, friend, whoever. If that patient is consenting to you treating them, then I feel that that should be fine. But that's just my opinion. But having that said, though, I don't agree with what that dental hygienist had done because they knew the rules. It's not that he was saying he had no idea what the rules were. He knew the rules and he did it anyway. I'm not a rule breaker. I don't agree with a lot of rules because that's just my personality. But I'm not going to break the rules and I'm not going to encourage people to break the rules. So I don't agree with what he did at all. But having his license be taken away and paying a very hefty fine, I feel as harsh. But if you haven't heard, he did actually appeal that. So it is being looked at by the courts. Who knows how long that's going to take several years. But it's being looked at. So they are finally looking at that rule, silly rule, if I can say that. And hopefully that will change because, you know, as a dental hygienist, you take the best care of your family members. It's just how it is, right? You don't take poor care of your family members. You take the best care of them. And why not be able to do that for your family? You know, why not take advantage of your wife or husband's skill set and allow them to clean your teeth? As an example, I have my own dental hygiene studio in my house, but I'm not allowed to clean my husband's teeth. So when he needs a cleaning, he has to pay and go elsewhere because we don't have insurance. So I would be able to do that for him. But instead, he has to pay and go elsewhere. Isn't that sad? It's kind of like if your husband's a plumber or your wife is a plumber and you have plumbing issues and they're not allowed to fix them for you. You know, it's kind of silly, right? But that's just my two cents, you guys. Thank you for listening. If you have any more questions about that, do not hesitate to ask. I'm curious to hear your thoughts as well. And just a little side note, there are other health care professionals that are not allowed to treat their spouse either. Some are and some aren't, but it's kind of like where's the distinction and why is there one? So comment below with your thoughts, you guys. Thank you for listening and happy holidays.