Building on the Foundation began by his Father
Dr. Derek Busciglio Continues to Grow the Family Practice
Interview by Brian West • Courtesy of Dr. Busciglio
Dr. Derek Busciglio and his family are working hard to provide the services necessary for their patients. His father began Busciglio Orthodontics in 1972. The practice has remained in their original location, in the building his grandfather helped to build, for almost 40 years. I had an opportunity to speak with Dr. Busciglio about his practice, and his campaign against texting and driving.
Focus: Your father started the practice in 1972. Was he the first dentist in the family?
Busciglio: Yes. He was a pharmacist first. He got his Pharmacy degree from the University of Florida and decided it really wasn’t fulfilling him. So he went back to school for dentistry and took the dental exam. Back then when you took the dental exam, they’d give you a piece of chalk and you had to carve a tooth. Now they do a visual abilities test, where you look at shapes and try to organize them, or they’ll have a number of figures on the screen with multiple choice answers, and they’ll ask how many figures you can put in this area. So it just has to do with visual and manual dexterity. Then he went into the Air Force in Biloxi, Mississippi. After that, he returned to school for the additional training required to become an Orthodontist. So he finished school and then opened up the office here. He established Busciglio Orthodontics, which at the time was the first full time orthodontic facility in Brandon.
Focus: You opened the office in Plant City?
Busciglio: Yes. It’s a satellite office. We opened in January of 2010. Previously, we shared an office with another dentist, this new facility gives us room to see more patients in Plant City and offer more days and times for appointments.
Focus: So did your dad’s work influence your decision to study dentistry?
Busciglio: Yes. I grew up here in this clinic. My siblings and I would run around and squirt the water at one another. I thought I wanted to do this when I was little; probably 9 or 10 years old. Today it’s more challenging to stay on track. I have a nephew who’s playing baseball at Jesuit and he wants to be an orthodontist. He can do it. He’s bright. He’s already looking at Duke and Notre Dame to play ball.
Focus: Where did you go to school?
Busciglio: I went to high school at Plant City and went to college at the University of South Florida. My brothers and sisters were going to Jesuit and Tampa Catholic, and right when I was getting ready to go to high school, my parents moved to Plant City and said, “We’re not driving all the way to Tampa.” So I ended up going to Plant City High School and I am glad I did. I got involved in athletics. I played football. Wrestling was my biggest thing in those days . I played tennis; I was just barely good enough to make the team but it was great off-season training. I ended up going to USF and played football there. Then I went off to dental school at Tufts University in Boston in 2000. I finished up there 7 years later after I completed my Orthodontic residency. I came home in July of 2007 and started working with my dad.
Focus: Your sister is about to graduate and join the practice?
Busciglio: She’s on track. We call her the triple doctor. She has a dental degree, a pediatric degree and then an orthodontic degree. There are only a handful of dual specialists in Florida with pediatric and orthodontic specialty certificates. She would have been done already if she hadn’t decided to go back to school. It’s another 2 years to do another residency. I’m proud of her for making that commitment. The timing couldn’t be better, as my dad is retiring, Dana will be getting out of school. There are a lot of dentists who practice orthodontists using braces and Invisalign, however parents should always seek out orthodontists to treat themselves and their children. Orthodontists have the additional 2-3 years of specialty training required to become an accredited orthodontist by the American Dental Association. www.braces.org has more info on that.
Focus: So what’s differentiates your practice from others?
Busciglio: First thing I’d say is family, then training. Aside from my own family, we also have several members of our office staff that have been with us for a really long time. All of our assistants have extra training, what we call expanded functions training. You can be a dental assistant, and then go to expanded functions training for orthodontics, which is what we require. It’s important enough to us to spend the time and money to have that added knowledge and training. We want them to be the best for themselves and our patients. We also do a lot of Invisalign treatments with remarkable results. My dad was one of the first practitioners to use the Invisalign system in 1999, right when it came on to the market. We are taking Invisalign to the next level in terms of treatment types and results.
Focus: Do you get a certain clientele that wants the Invisalign product?
Busciglio: Yes. Absolutely. It’s a clientele that is very interested in aesthetics, typically adults. But, I must say, with the new Invisalign Teen product, I’m treating more teenagers with it and they’re doing very well. You’d be amazed at how well they respond. As long as I get compliance I can do some amazing things with it. You wear the aligners all the time, and remove them just to eat and to brush. We also do traditional braces, but the Invisalign is what we’re excited about. It’s a neat new tool and it’s working out pretty well.
Focus: When is the recommended time to begin bringing children to the orthodontist?
Busciglio: The American Dental Association recommends the first visit to an Orthodontist when a child is about 7 years old. That’s a good time to look at potential developmental problems, early treatments for cross-bites and impacted teeth. It’s important to treat some things early. If a child does have cross-bites, between the ages of 7 and 12 there’s a lot of growth and the jaw will start to grow off center and you can end up with skeletal abnormalities. Those are things you want to correct early. We treat a lot of adults. Probably 30 percent of my practice is adults. Some tell me I never wore my retainers and my teeth have shifted, that’s when we start talking about Invisalign.
Focus: What got you interested in the don’t text and drive game – www.donttextanddrivegame.com?
Busciglio: Well, I was rear-ended in Hyde Park. I was going along, not fast; maybe 10-15 mph. This girl rear-ends me and when she gets out of her car, she just comes right out and tells me, “I looked down to text and looked up and you had stopped.” We didn’t report it, but that was my personal experience with [texting and driving.] Then a friend of mine in Miami developed an online video trivia game. I thought it would be a good way to promote the problems with texting and driving so we partnered up to start my Don’t text and Drive campaign. WFLA came out a few weeks ago to do a piece on it. It was part of their Great Hangup segment on the five o’clock news. It was pretty neat seeing Reginald Roundtree covering my campaign. Most of our patients I’m seeing are teenagers, just getting out of their braces or Invisalign and they’re getting their learners permits to drive. So this is a perfect age to try to get this message to them that texting and driving is as bad or worse than drinking and driving.
Focus: Do you find yourself discussing the perils of texting and driving with your patients?
Busciglio: I’m constantly telling them to stop texting. I’ll be trying to work on them and they’ll be texting in between my work. When I stop for a moment they will pick up their phone again. Even worse, they’ll hold their phone up and begin texting while I’m working on them, thinking it’s not distracting. There’s just no time or place that they don’t think is inappropriate. We have been giving away thumb bands that say, “Don’t text and drive” as reminder for our patients as well.
Busciglio Orthodontics is doing well, and with their recent expansion to Plant City, a new office coming to Wesley Chapel and the additional services that will available through Dr. Dana Busciglio, they should see continued success for years to come. We’d like to wish you continued success in all your endeavors, and in your efforts to inform others of the dangers of texting and driving. Thanks for making a difference.
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