This month, dental industry leaders spoke with Becker’s about new initiatives, workplace culture, dental practice success and more.
Here is what five dental leaders told Becker’s in October:
What will make or break the future of dental practice success
Corey Anderson, DDS. Affordable Dentures & Implants (Bridgeport, W.V.): Practices are going to need to figure out the revenue cycle more tightly than is current practice as national and state economic trends shift. Patients will expect dental insurance to cover more services than it does, which would be an opportunity for dental insurance to update coverages to better match current practices and current patient expectations. Geographic DSO market penetration may peak in some areas and result in a need for improved patient outcomes and satisfaction in order to continue to extend brand reputation. As a whole, this could be a win for patients. Financially, the combination of these potential changes could stress practices even more than they are now, causing some practices to shutter.
Why culture is king for dental practices
Nick White, DMD. Dentist at Lake Mary (Fla.) Pediatric Dentistry: Culture is what defines the values and beliefs of an office. From the way the office team is dressed, to how they answer the phone. The way they smile and interact with patients from the minute they walk through the door, to the minute they check out and leave. And this starts with the top down. The doctor has to define the culture they would like in their office. They have to communicate this and train their team to implement it. Will they be customer service oriented, going the extra mile for their patients, or will they be a production numbers-driven office focused solely on the amount of revenue?
PDS Health launches integrated primary care business
Joe Feldsien. President of PDS Health Medical (Henderson, Nev.): PDS Health has more than 1,100 dental practices in 24 states, and every one of them has the potential to incorporate a PDS Health Medical nurse practitioner, MD, or DO. The idea is to provide same-day, same-office care that’s convenient for the patient and rooted in a shared culture.
Even though the medical and dental businesses are distinct, when you walk into one of these locations, it feels integrated. Same reception area. Shared culture and values. Collaboration between clinicians. And that collaboration is where the magic happens. Two clinicians working together, looking at the same data, in the same space. That’s how we help patients get the best care possible.
Allied OMS’ new CFO plans to strengthen company’s role as ‘new model for MSOs’: Q&A
Bill Murray. CFO of Allied OMS (Southlake, Texas): I have always reveled in working with smart surgeons, and Allied OMS’ structure immediately stood out to me. Unlike traditional platforms, Allied is majority owned and governed by surgeons. That distinction is fundamental — it ensures that clinical priorities and financial outcomes move in lockstep, with every decision centered on patient care. I was also impressed by the caliber of the Allied team — ambitious, forward-thinking, and seasoned with the right mix of experience and resilience. This combination made the decision to join Allied both compelling and exciting.
Doug Drew. CEO of U.S. Oral Surgery Management (Irving, Texas): I’ve been doing this for quite a bit, and I’ve learned from a lot of great people along the way. I think it’s really important for a leadership style to match your personality in order for it to be authentic. If you’re trying to act in a way that doesn’t naturally fit how you are as a person, I just think people don’t necessarily gravitate to something like that. I’m a relationship-oriented person, whether it’s in my personal life or professional life. I’m careful who I surround myself with because I want to get to know people, spend a lot of time with them, and for me, building those great relationships leads to having collaborative discussions to get to the right answer. I know I’m not going to have all the right answers, certainly in a new specialty for me, but surrounding yourself with great people and creating that culture where there’s mutual respect and people feel comfortable sharing their opinions is really important. If you can do those things well, it helps people understand you’re doing this not only to help build a great company, but you’re doing it to create great opportunities for people up and down through the organization, whether it’s at the PSC where we support our surgeon practices or at the practice level. I think businesses like the one we’re in are really relationship based, and if you put that first, everything follows fairly easily from there.
