Henderson, Nev.-based PDS Health plans to add more than 100 new offices in 2027, continuing a de novo growth strategy the organization has followed for more than 30 years — even as it expands beyond dentistry into an integrated healthcare model.
Dan Burke, chief enterprise strategy officer and general counsel at PDS Health, recently spoke with Becker’s to discuss the company’s growth and goals for next year.
Note: Responses were lightly edited for clarity and length.
Question: How would you describe PDS Health’s growth this year?
Dan Burke: To date, 2026 has been another strong year of growth for PDS Health. We’ve stayed focused on same-practice, profitable growth across every practice we support, while continuing to grow organically through de novo openings. We’re on track to add roughly 100 new offices and support about 100 new practice owners this year, building on the momentum we saw in 2025. But no matter our size, our focus remains on serving our practice owners and their teams — one practice, one clinician and one patient at a time.
Q: What can we expect from PDS Health during the rest of 2026 in terms of organic and inorganic growth, industry partnerships, technology, etc.?
DB: De novo growth remains our preferred path, and that will continue through the rest of the year. Steve Thorne and the PDS Health team have spent more than 30 years building a business model that allows us to grow organically while serving practice owners and supporting their teams in delivering excellent patient care.
On the technology side, one area I’m particularly excited about is PDS Health Technologies’ work with dental schools to help students experience practicing in an integrated care environment. We’re implementing our dental-optimized instance of Epic with institutions including the University of Michigan School of Dentistry and University of the Pacific, connecting dental, medical and future surgical and specialty settings through a single patient record. This gives future dentists hands-on experience with dental-medical integration before they enter practice.
Within our own supported practices, we’re operationalizing the Mouth-Body Connection® through technologies and programs that help clinicians better address the relationship between oral and overall health. We’re continuing our implementation of SOTA Cloud imaging and diagnostics platform and Pearl AI nationwide, giving clinicians additional information and insights to support their clinical decision-making. We’re also expanding saliva screening and other diagnostic initiatives that can provide patients with real-time information about their health and help them stay engaged in the care their dentist recommends.
We’re also continuing to work with organizations to demonstrate dental practices’ untapped potential. Most recently, we launched a saliva screening pilot with United Concordia Dental across nearly 125 Southern California practices to help patients better understand periodontal disease and stay engaged in recommended care. We also continue saliva screening work with Delta Dental of Massachusetts, A1c screenings with Delta Dental of Arizona to identify patients who may be at risk for diabetes and blood pressure screening efforts with CareQuest Innovation Partners. These are different programs, but they all get at the same opportunity. The science behind the Mouth-Body Connection® is well established. Now, we have to put that science into action and unlock the tremendous potential of the dental practice as a place where patients can learn more about their health and, with the guidance of their clinician, make more informed decisions about their care. We are proud to work with these industry partners to demonstrate the untapped value in dental practices nationwide.
3. What challenges has PDS Health overcome this year regarding the economy, patient demand, staffing, etc.? What lessons were learned?
Dan Burke: There are always headwinds, whether it’s the broader economy, labor pressures or changes in patient behavior. We’re certainly not immune to those things. But one of the lessons we’ve learned over more than 30 years is not to overreact to any one economic cycle. We stay focused on the fundamentals of the business and on serving our practice owners well.
For us, that means helping owners build strong teams, continuing to invest in the resources they need and staying focused on the patient experience. When you do that well, one practice, one clinician and one patient interaction at a time, you build a business that can perform through different economic environments. That discipline has served us well this year.
4. How has PDS Health’s growth strategy evolved over the years to its current state?
Dan Burke: Our strategy has been remarkably consistent for more than 30 years. We’ve benefitted from having one founder-CEO since our inception. We know exactly who we are. Since the beginning, we’ve grown through de novos — one practice and one clinician at a time. What has evolved considerably is the platform underneath that strategy.
We’ve continued to invest in the technologies, operations, clinical infrastructure and other systems that allow us to scale sustainably.
The other evolution, of course, is who we are as a company. What began as a dental support organization focused on clinical excellence has become an integrated healthcare organization, serving dental, medical and specialty practice owners. The DNA has never changed, but our vision has expanded. The PDS Health identity reflects that evolution and where we believe healthcare is headed.
5. What goals is the company setting for 2027?
Dan Burke: We’re planning for more than 100 additional office openings in 2027, continuing the de novo strategy that has worked well for us for more than 30 years. But growth for us has never simply been about adding offices. The health of each individual practice matters, which is why we continue to pay close attention to same-practice, profitable growth and the success of our practice owners.
You’ll also see us continue to advance dental-medical integration. There is still tremendous untapped value in dental practices across the country, and I think we’re only beginning to see what becomes possible as the profession more fully embraces its role in overall health.
6. What trends are you following in the DSO/MSO field right now? What about in dentistry overall?
Dan Burke: In the DSO space, we’re seeing a clearer divide between organizations that create real value for clinicians and patients and those that are primarily aggregators.
In dentistry more broadly, access and affordability remain important issues. The profession will need to continue exploring ways to make care easier for patients to access, while also supporting clinicians and practice owners as they navigate rising costs, workforce pressures and changing patient expectations.
I’m also watching how the profession responds to a broader shift in healthcare toward prevention and earlier intervention. Dentistry has an important role to play in that conversation, but realizing the opportunity will require continued collaboration among dentists, physicians, payers, employers and other healthcare stakeholders. Candidly, as an industry and a profession we need to be more impatient in our demands for positive change. We can deliver better healthcare at lower overall costs by recognizing that oral health is an inextricable part of overall health. We need everyone to rally around these causes.
7. What will be the biggest challenge facing dental providers in 2027?
Dan Burke: Attracting and retaining top clinical talent will continue to be a defining challenge across the profession, especially as patient demand grows and our population ages.
But I also think there’s a larger opportunity embedded in that challenge. The role of the dental clinician is expanding as we better understand the connection between oral health and overall health. Practice owners who invest in their teams and give clinicians access to advanced, proven technologies and resources will be better positioned to meet that demand and provide excellent patient care.
Outside of the practice, we are seeing some payers actively working on their business model to permit them to pivot to a more proactive and preventive model. We applaud these leaders. Frankly, we need that entire industry to embrace real change to enable them to properly compensate dental professionals for the real value they can and do deliver to patients. Patients need plans to champion them and provide incentives for all healthcare providers to see each patient as a whole person; not an aggregation of unrelated body parts. We at PDS Health are here and ready to partner with those who do.
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