Group Function: Bread and Butter Reality with Dr. Mitch Hopkins, Dr. Russell Schafer and Dr. Matt Standridge

"Instagram is dentistry and Facebook is where friends and family are... Instagram is like meth, I can’t get off it." — Alan Mead

Alan sits down with a powerhouse trio—Dr. Russell Schafer, Dr. Mitch Hopkins, and Dr. Matt Standridge—live from Voices of Dentistry 2026. They bridge the gap between "Instagram Dentistry" and the daily grind of running a productive practice, covering everything from why 2D photography still beats 3D face scanning to the hard truths about dental school debt and clinical mastery.

The Guest List:

• Dr. Russell Schafer: The man who helped name the "Group Function" and a recurring voice on the network.

• Dr. Mitch Hopkins: A first-time guest and longtime listener, sharing his journey into implant training and full-mouth rehabs.

• Dr. Matt Standridge: The "Tom Hanks of the Very Dental Podcast," returning to discuss the discipline of dental photography.

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Key Conversations:

The Gateway to Comprehensive Care: Photography

The group discusses Matt's presentation on photography. While high-end DSLRs create "dental porn" for Instagram, the real value lies in using photography as a diagnostic tool for every new patient.

• The "Dummy" Solution: Discussion on the ShoFu camera as a simpler alternative to complex DSLR setups.

• The IG Satire: A hilarious pitch for "Garbage Mouth Instagram"—high-end photography of the most neglected cases to stick it to the "AACD" types.

3D Scanning vs. The "Uncanny Valley"

Despite the push for $10,000 3D face scanners, the consensus remains: 2D photos are more useful for lab design. * 3D renderings often fall into the "uncanny valley"—looking almost human but just "off" enough to be distracting.

• Photos are essential for designing smiles that actually fit the patient's face, not just their arches.

Advice for the "Mid-Career" and New Dentists

The conversation turns to the crushing debt and clinical gaps facing new grads.

• The All-on-4 Trap: Why jumping straight into full-arch implants because of debt can be a recipe for malpractice.

• The Power of Bread and Butter: A defense of molar endo, quadrant fillings, and the "Lean and Mean" model of dentistry.

• The PVS Skillset: Why learning analog impressions (and packing cord!) is still a vital skill in a digital world.

Leveling Up Your Clinical Skills

The episode wraps with a "lightning round" of advice for improving your work tomorrow:

• Design Your Own Crowns: Use software to marginate your own preps. It’s the fastest way to realize where your technique is failing.

• Magnification & Lighting: Whether it’s jumping from 2.5x to 4.5x loops or investing in high-quality surgical headlamps, if you can’t see it, you can’t treat it.

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Some links from the show:

• Clinical Mastery Series (Mitch teaches here)
• Russell's denture ce
• Matt's "Clear Aligner Boot Camp"
• Matt's "Self Ligating Band and Bracket" Course
• Matt at 3D Dentists
• Shofu Eyespecial camera

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