Today we’d like to introduce you to Samir Alrajab.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
It all started with a box of woodcarvers and a cavity. The woodcarver was a gift from my father, who noticed how much I obsess with tools. Anything from pottery, fixing a bicycle, assembling an old computer… I was fiddling with it.
One day a toothache took me to the dentist’s office. He was very personable and made me feel at ease as he showed me all his tools and explained how he would fix my cavity with each instrument. The profession looked so alluring as he was able to alleviate my pain with his tinkering of tools. That next day, I informed my family of my goal for being a dentist. They were shocked since non of my family was in the medical field. I was determined. My two older brothers are 10 and 12 years older than me, with an incredible sense of hard work and integrity. Being the youngest, their example pushed me to study endlessly to reach my goal.
In total, I have been to 4 different dental schools. I started in a city about 7 hours away from my family in Baghdad. Increasingly the drive to visit my family became dangerous, and just over a year later, I transferred to a school closer to home. Two years go by, and Iraq becomes further destabilized, and I head to school number 3 in Egypt. 4 years down the line, I wrap up dental school and complete my residency in Egypt and head back to Iraq.
After all the struggles to get to the professional world, my start was exhilarating as I finally came home and opened my first office with a good friend. With only a few months settled in, insurgency in the country escalated, and safety was nowhere in sight. I had to close my practice and migrate to the United States, where all my credentials were no longer valid.
Going back to the basics, I started a position as a dental assistant to support myself and studied during the evenings to get myself into dental school number 4. A year later, I was at the Rutgers School of dental medicine.
In total, I spent 9.5 years studying the field. I noticed that wherever I practiced, people are the same. They share the same fear and anxiety toward coming to the dentist. And their pain is the same. I took it as a challenge upon myself not to be an ordinary dentist. I took many courses that helped me understand patients’ fear and anxiety, refined my techniques to make their visits as easy and less comfortable as possible. Keeping their needs and well-being as my objective. It did not take too long before I started seeing people traveling from Florida, Louisiana, and Oklahoma to visit me. Some people drove 6 hours one way to set on my chair. It was eye-opening.
My best friend and also my classmate and I decided to start our first office here in Houston. We shared the same work ethics and same goals. Keeping Patients’ needs and comfort in the center, we refused to be ordinary dentists. So we invested heavily to build a high-tech dental practice providing our patients with the best result, high precision, comfort, and quality dental work that last. We wanted for our patients a new experience, a new perspective, and a new smile. We named it Nu Dentistry.
We started Nu Dentistry right with the Pandemic. We changed the design of the whole office with Covid in mind to keep our patients safe; It was not easy. But even with all the obstacles we encounter, Patients started to notice that we care. Patients from all over Texas and out of state began to show at our doorsteps. At Nu Dentistry, we offer general and all specialty dentistry under one roof, from cosmetics dentistry, Veneers, Teeth whitening, surgeries, implants, orthodontics, and sleep dentistry.
We make sure that your time in the dentist’s chair is as short as possible without sacrificing any quality of work or attention to detail during your appointment. In each private dental suite, you will find a fun and relaxed office that we designed with you in mind. Our goal is to create a warm and inviting atmosphere to help you enjoy your visits throughout your journey to a beautiful new smile. Whether you are in for a routine cleaning or have a major procedure done, we want you to be at ease.
Relax as you watch Netflix, Hulu, or YouTube on T.V.’s stationed in front of you and mount above you on the ceiling so that you can always watch whether you are sitting upright or lying back during your procedure. Our Bluetooth headphones leave your watching uninterrupted and the noise of your procedure a thing of the past. We believe that the dentist’s office should never be a scary place, and we do our best to make even the most involved treatment as anxiety- and discomfort-free as we can.
Now, we are expanding to Spring, Tx, in September.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The path was not easy; moving between continents and starting over every time was not easy. Learning new languages, new cultures, and unique environments was not easy.
Starting our office in the middle of the pandemic was a considerable challenge. I learned early in life that the harder I work, the luckier I get. No good thing comes easy. Hard work, persistence, and gather good people around you will take you far. I was fortunate that I had found my better half in Houston, we got engaged recently, and she is playing a significant role and support in my life.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
At NU Dentistry, We offer general and all specialty dentistry under one roof, from cosmetics dentistry, Veneers, Teeth whitening, surgeries, implants, orthodontics, Root canal treatment, Emergencies, and sleep dentistry. We are committed to providing our patients with the highest quality dentistry utilizing the most advanced technology a field can offer.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
My outlook for the future of dentistry is bright. I believe the whole industry is moving fast towards comprehensive and holistic care to accommodate patients’ limited time and fast-paced life; there should be no need to travel between multiple offices to address their needs. Also, technology is playing a significant role in ensuring high-quality dentistry with accurate, precise results and safety.
Contact Info:
- Website: nudentistry.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/nudentistry
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nudentistry
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/nu-dentistry-houston
