Many misconceptions exist about the quality of care provided at DSO practices, according to one exec.
Barry Lyon, DDS, is a chief dental officer for the division of orthodontics and pediatric dentistry at Sarasota, Fla.-based DSO Dental Care Alliance. He recently spoke with Becker's about how clinical care can differ at DSO-supported practices versus private practices.
Editor's note: This Q&A is part of a weekly series featuring Dr. Lyon focused on topics in the dental industry and DSO field. This response was lightly edited for clarity and length.
Question: How does clinical care differ at DSO-supported practices vs. private practices?
Dr. Barry Lyon: There have been numerous attempts by state legislatures to regulate DSOs. Legislators, supported by state dental associations and state boards of dentistry, falsely claimed that DSOs practiced dentistry by making clinical decisions, that DSOs had production quotas for their providers and that DSOs owned dental practices. However, the main claim behind their efforts was that DSO-supported dentists were incompetent and unethical providers of oral healthcare, while private practice dentists provided a much higher level of ethical care.
DSOs have quality safeguards that private practices do not. DSO clinical directors can log on to their offices’ computers and review the treatment of any patient. DSOs have random chart audits to see that doctors are practicing to the standard of care. Private practitioners have only themselves to oversee the quality of the treatment they provide. DSOs also have robust compliance programs where employees can report suspected fraud, HIPAA violations, discrimination of any type or workplace safety issues. Common among DSO employment agreements is a clause requiring their dentists to provide care that meets the standards of their state dental boards.
There were legislative attempts in Maryland from 2014 to 2017 to regulate DSOs. As a lobbyist for the Association of Dental Support Organizations at that time, I stated the ratio of private practice dentists disciplined by the Maryland dental board outnumbered DSO-supported dentists 30 to 1.
Patients being treated by DSO-supported dentists can feel confident there exists quality of care policies and safeguards.