DSO executives largely agree that the future of the field will be defined by artificial intelligence, sustainable financial strategies, operational efficiency and improved value proposition.
Four leaders recently connected with Becker’s to share their predictions for what the DSO field will look like in five years.
Note: Responses were lightly edited for clarity and length.
Question: What will the DSO/MSO landscape look like in five years compared to today? What will we see more of, and what will we see less of?
Andreas Augat. Founder and CEO of Viviscus Dental Partners: In five years, I believe we’ll see more regional, mid-market DSOs emerging and scaling successfully. In my opinion, the biggest change we will see won’t be consolidation but how these organizations operate. AI will increasingly become the invisible infrastructure of modern DSOs, embedded across administrative, operational and clinical support workflows. While recent [American Dental Association Health Policy Institute] findings from the second quarter “State of the U.S. Dental Economy” report suggest many dentists still view AI as a potential threat rather than an augmentation tool, DSOs are uniquely positioned to demonstrate the opposite, using AI to remove repetitive manual work so clinicians can spend more time focusing on delivering exceptional patient care and improving the patient experience.
My prediction is that within the next five years, we’ll see the first AI-native DSO emerge, built from the ground up with AI woven into every process from day one. Rather than retrofitting technology into existing organizations, these next-generation DSOs will be designed around intelligent automation, data-driven decision making and seamless workflows, with one clear objective at the center. AI and technology will enable dental teams from these DSOs to deliver the highest quality care and the best possible patient experience in the industry.
Sameer Puri, DDS. Chief Clinical Officer at Imagen Dental Partners (Scottsdale, Ariz.): The DSO landscape will be dramatically different five years from now. First of all, AI will be mainstream, if it already isn’t today. From every aspect of running a practice and a group, from clinical notes, to helping with treatment planning and to radiological review, AI will be as normal as taking a digital X-ray is today. From the group standpoint, the corporate support team will become more efficient. AI will be used to streamline and make more accurate tasks that are repetitive and mundane. Accounting, analysis and RCM are just a few of the areas where AI will be ubiquitous. I like the analogy to a digital scanner. It was a few years ago that polyvinyl siloxane impression material still had a place in the dental office. Today, I don’t know of a single provider that isn’t using a digital scanner of some sort. It almost became the norm overnight, with rapid adoption after years of being a product for a select few offices. AI in the dental workplace will be similar.
Other changes will be in the corporate structure of DSOs. If a DSO is going to survive the next five years, they must manage their debt and how they finance acquisitions. The days of low interest rates are gone, and while rates will be lower in five years than they are today, the smart groups will have learned not to overextend themselves as they have learned the brutal lessons from today’s environment.
In summary, in five years from now, groups will be better run clinically and financially.
Robert Rubino. CEO of Qualitas Dental Partners (Sharon, Mass.): The landscape will see larger and more sophisticated corporate organizations. As the industry matures, leaders will expect improved and integrated software system choices, more sophistication from vendors and better partnerships with payers. You will see less bespoke and detached IT system solutions. Current PMS systems will need enhanced features to serve the control and reporting needs of both the corporate parent and external investors. Compliance regimens will be more robust to meet enhanced regulatory compliance. You will see recently passed state laws mandating minimum insurance payouts enforced and modified for the betterment of patient care. In five years, the care delivery model will benefit from the investments and expertise brought in from organizations with deeper financial pockets.
Rick Workman, DMD. Founder and Executive Chair of Heartland Dental (Effingham, Ill.): Five years from now, the DSO landscape will be even more so defined by the value organizations create for doctors, teams and their patients. We’ll see greater adoption of AI, automation and data-driven decision making, allowing providers to spend less time on administrative tasks and more time delivering care. We’ll also see continued consolidation as practices seek access to technology, education, resources and support that are increasingly difficult to build independently. Ultimately, the future belongs to organizations that help doctors become better clinicians, stronger leaders and more effective caregivers.
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