As the Pittsburgh Steelers Team Dentist, EIOH Alum Remembers Advice from Faculty
As the team dentist for the Pittsburgh Steelers and consultant for the University of Pittsburgh Athletic Department, Eastman Institute alum Rick Gottlieb has also provided dental services to the U.S. Olympic Team, the U.S. Golf Open, NCAA wrestlers and professional soccer players.
When he encounters the occasional severe injury, he draws on his Eastman training. Like the time a football player suffered a significant fracture to his mandible.
“What would Bejan do now?” Gottlieb asks himself when he first triages a situation.
A special mentor and professor during Gottlieb’s GPR residency, Dr. Bejan Iranpour not only helped equip Dr. Gottlieb with the advanced skills to be a successful dentist, but also the ability to be comfortable and confident when faced with especially challenging cases. Dr. Gottlieb also remembers the sound advice of faculty members Drs. Handelman, Ross Tallents and Joe Preston, as well as classmates Drs. Ken Weiss, Steve Kaminisky, Paul Desjardins, Carol Scuro and many others who help him even today when making decisions with patients and staff.
“I wish they were here now so I could thank them all,” Dr. Gottlieb said during a recent visit to Eastman Institute for Oral Health in Rochester, NY.
Dr. Gottlieb chose Eastman Institute for Oral Health after a few of his dental school faculty members, who were also Eastman alumni, strongly recommended the program.
He soaked up everything he could during his residency. On his days off, he would attend Dr. Iranpour’s surgeries to watch and learn. He always stayed late during the week when he wasn’t on call.
“I really tried to put 150% into the education I got,” Dr. Gottlieb said, “and it was well worth it.” A couple days before his graduation, he went to the department to say goodbye. He remembers Dr. Iranpour putting his arm around him and wishing him well.
“His assistant Beverly came over to me and said, ‘Rick, I’ve worked for him for 20 years and have never seen him do that with anyone,’” he said.
Dr. Gottlieb went back to his native Pittsburgh, PA after finishing his two years in Rochester and opened his own practice close to the University of Pittsburgh, where he earned his undergraduate degree and swam competitively. He eventually left the swim team, though, to dedicate more time to his studies. His top priority was getting the grades he needed to be accepted to dental school.
When the initial opportunity to work as the Steelers’ team dentist came up, the timing wasn’t ideal. Dr. Gottlieb and his wife were enjoying watching their son and daughter’s soccer games and traveling many places for their tournaments. During that time, he became acquainted with one of the Steelers’ trainers.
A few years later in 2006, that same trainer reached out to Dr. Gottlieb with an urgent request. He asked him if he could possibly come to training camp and help because the players didn’t have any mouth guards.
“I gathered my staff at 8 in the morning and we worked until 10 that night,” Dr. Gottlieb said. “We took impressions and made mouth guards for all the Steelers players.”
That same day, Dr. Gottlieb was offered the position and he’s been the team dentist ever since.
Generally speaking, football players are well protected with their helmet’s cage, so significant injuries are few and far between on the field. Responsible for all the players, coaches and staff for both home and visiting teams, Gottlieb checks the players before the game, and evaluates and examines them when they have issues. He has even helped a member of the national news media and NFL officials covering the game. When needed, they will have follow-up visits with Gottlieb in his nearby office.
As the team dentist, he has a kit with the basic emergency supplies. If necessary, the athlete will lie on the training table, and Dr. Gottlieb will use his phone’s flashlight for a quick exam.
“I have to say, it was so thrilling being the team dentist when the Steelers have gone to the Super Bowls,” said Dr. Gottlieb, a lifelong Steelers fan.
Dr. Gottlieb expressed his deep gratitude for his wife, son and daughter for their support in allowing him to fulfill his dream. “They are my Hall of Famers,” he said with a big smile. “The Gottlieb family are all Black and Gold fans and we are hopeful for another Super Bowl.”
For the University sports teams, Dr. Gottlieb has helped many student athletes, coaches and trainers with soft and hard tissue injuries in all sports including wrestling, soccer, baseball, football, basketball, volleyball, swim, and gymnastics.
“And I’ve seen some pretty awful injuries, especially with baseball and softball players who have taken a direct hit to the mouth with the ball,” he added.
Even though he was in Buffalo Bills territory while at Eastman, each week during football season, he joined a group of fellow Steelers fans to watch the game in the UR’s student union.
“Take care of Damar,” is Dr. Gottleib’s message to Bills fans. Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills safety who suffered cardiac arrest on the field last year, is a University of Pittsburgh graduate.
After seeing an article in the EIOH magazine Momentum, Dr. Gottlieb spent his day in Rochester auditing a class, learning more about digital dentistry and intraoral scanning.
He enjoyed seeing and was extremely impressed with all the changes in the main building and reconnecting with faculty and staff. The visit stirred many fond memories, including something Dr. Bejan Iranpour told him when he was a resident.
“He said, ’You’re always going to be different because of the education that you got here,’” Dr. Gottlieb recalled. “He was right.”
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