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By SHELLEY HANSON
WHEELING -- Chris Zambito, 36, of Wheeling has been working in the field of dentistry for 10 years, but one could say he started his "training" long before as a child.
Zambito is a dentist with Zambito Family Dentistry, a practice that was started by his father, Ricardo Zambito, in 1980. Chris has been working as a dentist there for the last 10 years.
He said his father was the best mentor he could have ever asked for. He recommends those entering the field to have a good mentor as well.
"What he provided me was experience. Although I have been working for 10 years, I have seen enough situations, a lot of times over his shoulder, to add many years of experience to my 10 years," he said.
"He's been at it since 1980, and in our building since 1982, so he has great experience. The key is 'great experience'. You have to respect and look up to your mentor and strive to be as great as they are one day.
"That's what will make you great, and the cool thing is you will become that great and most likely a lot faster than they did due to their guidance."
Zambito has also learned a few lessons in the past decade.
"Always follow your gut. Trust your experience, trust your knowledge. Patients come to see you because you are the expert so no matter how bad a patient wants you to 'try' something always follow and trust your knowledge and skills," he said. "I'll leave it at that."
Regarding the future of his profession, he believes the future of dentistry should be focused on prevention.
"As far as restoring things, implants are fantastic. We plan the patient's implant surgery virtually, then we can 3D print a surgical guide in-office that will guide our surgery within 0.01mm of our virtual plan," he said.
"It sounds like something off the Jetsons, however we have been using this technology for years and it's fantastic."
Zambito noted his family is what compelled him to continue working and living in the Ohio Valley.
"This is home for me. The Zambitos came from Sicily and very quickly moved to Wheeling," he said. "It has been a great place to grow up, a great place to raise a family, and a great place to work.
"It's a fantastic place to travel from, we have big cities just a short drive in either direction."
The valley, he noted, has a bright future and potential to improve if everyone helps each other.
"The opportunity we have in this area is huge. Now, I think as a community we need to work together to provide opportunities especially for our young adults, to return home and have a career," Zambito said.
"When a small business opens locally we need to support it as a community and reward the owners/investors for taking the risk of providing a service in our area whether it's a food and beverage location, shopping, etc."
His business philosophy, he added, is "Do the right thing."
"I live by this especially in the workforce because I feel if you treat each patient the exact way you would treat a family member, then you won't lose any sleep at night," he said.
Zambito said he is most proud of his family, which includes his wife Gina, whom he married in 2015, and "being a good dad" to his three sons Marco, 6; Louie, 4; Dominic, aka Nico, who is almost 1. They also have a pet dog, Bito, who is 12 years old.
"Some days at work can be very demanding; however, every single day I can't get home fast enough to see their faces," he said.
A typical day for Zambito starts with him taking his older sons to school in the morning. Then he gets to work in time for the morning team meeting.
In addition to having a family and working as a dentist, Zambito is also chairman of the board for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and is a member of the Wheeling Area Chamber of Commerce Board. He also enjoys coaching his children's sports teams. He is also an IBS Implants faculty member. It is the most minimally invasive and modern implant technique.
Zambito said he also wants people to know how important customer service is to him.
"At Zambito Family Dentistry there is one thing I personally guarantee, when you come to see us you will get first class service and you will be treated just like a family member," he said.