Offering integrative care has become a crucial part of providing the best care for patients of Sara Larbi, DDS.
Dr. Larbi opened her practice, The Dentist Lounge in Santa Monica, Calif., a year ago and is working to formulate the next standard of care in dentistry. She recently spoke with Becker's about the trends she's following in dental care, supporting her staff and the importance of holistic care.
Editor's note: These responses were lightly edited for clarity and length.
Question: What are some trends you are following in the dental industry?
Dr. Sara Larbi: Airway health. A lot of what we're doing is different forms of care under airway health, so we're looking at growth and development, snoring and people with sleep apnea. Tongue releases are another big thing we're looking at. We're looking at all these developmental things that may have been contributing to symptoms in the body that patients may have been unaware of prior.
Our patient base is very healthcare-centered, so a lot of them are looking for solutions and have been told the same thing over and over again and they're also willing to put in the work at home. It really is a partnership between us and our patients to get to the root cause of what's causing their issues, whether it's supplementation or basic things they need to change in nutrition. It's a nice teamwork approach to trying to get them to better health. We consult with ENTs and primary care doctors. That's a really nice foundation of what we're doing. We're very fortunate that our patients come and see us every six months, so we'll check blood pressure, we'll talk to them about blood sugar, just to give them that extra push to go to their primary care [doctor] so they have integrative care.
Q: How would you describe your experience leading your practice after opening a year ago?
SL: It's been wild. It was a crazy first six months just learning how to manage the basics of running a business. Now, things are kind of settling down. We're finally able to focus on dentistry since we're going down this niche, but it's been great because a lot of patients are finding us and we're working off of referrals. It's been fantastic.
Q: What advice do you have for new dentists entering the field?
SL: The most important thing is to always be learning. Don't ever think that you know everything. It's very important to do your own research. It's our job to go out and seek education and information so we can stay up to date with our patients.
Q: Are you struggling with staffing shortages?
SL: Knock on wood, no. I think the biggest thing with that is everyone on our team is a valued member and we make sure to remind them daily that they play a very integral part in the office. We know our staff very well and their families. We plan a lot of dinners or outings so we can get to know each other on a deeper level outside of work and make sure they're seen and heard. Their input is valued, so we always ask for recommendations on what we can do to make the patient experience better because every team member plays a role in making that experience valuable.
Q: What are some of the greatest challenges facing the dental industry?
SL: It's from an education perspective. We really do have a responsibility to go out and seek new information. It takes time for that new information to be applied in a clinical setting, so I have personally witnessed resistance to new information that's come out and innovative and progressive ideas that can be implemented in dentistry ... The biggest one is the use of fluoride. We have hydroxyapatite, there's a lot of great research on that to help remineralize dentition. Xylitol is another great ingredient. Also, just moving away from mercury. I'm still seeing some mercury. We have a lot of great biocompatible materials that are friendly to the body. Even for diagnostics as well. Hopefully, at some point, we can make it a standard of care to do a 3D scan on most patients so we can actually catch pathology early on.
We just have to stay up to date with everything so we can provide the best for our patients. It's been the standard of dentistry, so it's hard to move away, but the new generation has to create the new standard of care.
Q: Would you ever consider joining a DSO?
SL: No, I wouldn't. I'm really early on, but my fear is that when it comes to DSOs, it becomes more about quantity and less about quality. Our practice is really set up on [quality]. Even the amount of time we take with each patient, it's quality time, quality restorative materials, a lot of information gathering, a lot of talking. I don't think that would be sustainable for the DSO model.
Q: What is the most exciting thing to you about dentistry today?
SL: The most exciting thing for me right now is learning this integrative approach to dentistry where I can actually try to help save lives, even if it's just catching a restrictive tongue that may be contributing to speech development or breastfeeding if they're infants. Also, what's been most exciting for us at our practice right now is learning so much about how the mouth is interconnected with the body and finding these little details.
Q: What got you interested in integrative care?
SL: Once I started working as a dentist, I felt like a lot of the things we were doing were very redundant and repetitive, and it felt like a Band-Aid solution. So I started doing my own research, like why is this happening? Why does this person keep getting cavities even though they're brushing and flossing? As I started to understand the reasoning, I was excited to share that with my patients. It's more [about] trying to provide the patient with solutions that are actually going to improve their current state.