This month, dental professionals spoke with Becker’s about M&A opportunities, staffing issues and more.
Here is what five dental professionals told us in April:
Aviation, hospitality and the NFL: What dentistry can learn from other industries
Hamza Asumah, MD. Director, Operations of Juniper Services (Sparks, Nev.): Dentistry should borrow the hospitality industry’s discipline around experience design as a core operating system. The hotel and luxury service sectors long ago recognized that the quality of the service interaction — the warmth of the greeting, the frictionlessness of check-in, the handling of a complaint — is not ancillary to the product; it is the product. In dentistry, we have professionalized the clinical encounter and, with the rise of DSOs, we have brought operational sophistication to multi-site management. But the patient experience layer — everything that happens before the patient opens their mouth — is still largely improvised and varies wildly not just across organizations, but across operatories within the same building. The Ritz-Carlton trains every employee, regardless of role, on 12 service values and empowers even a housekeeper to spend up to $2,000 to resolve a guest complaint without manager approval. That kind of institutionalized service culture, embedded into the operating infrastructure of a DSO, would be transformative for case acceptance, retention and brand equity. As someone who runs operations across multiple states, I can tell you: your clinical outcomes matter, but patients recommend you based on how you made them feel.
What 5 dentists would do differently in their careers
Rick Mars, DDS. President at The Dental Care Group (Aventura, Fla.): Not one thing. You have to appreciate that being a dentist is a journey. Where you start in your journey is going to look way different than where you finish. You learn every single day when you are a dentist. Sometimes the lessons are small, and some days they are life changing. You grow with these lessons and know that your team and patients grow because of the lessons you teach them. Successful dentists find their niche. It can be clinically or administratively (or both), and when you do find it, you embrace it and run with it. You will have good days and great days and occasionally not so good days, but know that good ones will far outnumber the bad ones.
The dental developments keeping leaders up at night
Len Schiavone. CEO of CORDENTAL Group (Cincinnati): The one area that is continuing to gain our focus is the various state pilot projects that are highlighting the use of oral preventative expanded function dental assistants. As an example, Missouri completed its successful pilot and would greatly assist the dental industry given the many workforce challenges affecting the dental industry. This potential change would help accommodate new patients that want and need to be seen for oral healthcare and routine preventative care. These pilot projects are finding that [oral preventive assistants] [expanded function dental assistants] can safely and effectively support the dental team, as it is not about replacing providers, rather it is about strengthening the team, allowing dentists, hygienists and assistants to work at the top of their training while crucially improving patient access to care.
What increased hygienist autonomy means for dentistry
Thomas von Sydow. CEO of Cornerstone Dental Specialties (Irvine, Calif.): This is indeed a grey area and there are no easy solutions. Hygienists are licensed by state dental boards as a clinician. If we look at medical, the analogy would be nurse practitioners and physician assistants. In most states, nurse practitioners operate independently, and physician assistants are under the direct supervision of a licensed medical physician. In practice, I see many dental offices still using hygienists as super DA’s, mostly doing cleanings, and they are viewed as kind of a lost leader and case identifier for the dentist. Many offices and groups see them as clinicians, and they mostly do scaling and root planing with perio maintenance.
Having worked with thousands of hygienists, most prefer the latter … I really don’t think the majority care if they are under indirect supervision or not. What they want is to work to their maximum allowable scope of practice. I think changing laws in general would not have a major impact, as the dentist/hygienist relationship is highly valuable to both if done right. How they are recognized by their organization is more important. If there is independence, optimally, independence and scope of practice should have requirements of who can do what.
Specialty DSO eyes new growth levers after entering several states
Mike Rice. CEO of Phase 1 Equity (Chicago): Organic growth is something we look for in every opportunity. Growth is talked about with the doctor and is part of our integration and execution plan. Organic growth has many levers and is part of our overall integration plans utilizing technology and best practices.
We also have some of our practices at capacity, which is a good problem. Whether it be technology, physical expansion or additional providers, we’ll look to alleviate those capacity constraint issues in the near term. We also believe in adult aligners as an organic growth opportunity. While it varies by market, we’re excited about the growth it can deliver. Long term, if you create the right culture for the providers and their staff, and create a great experience for patients, organic growth follows.
On the inorganic side, we are looking at opportunities in both new and existing markets. It can come in the form of additional affiliations with existing practices or de novo opportunities. We also have an active pipeline in the pediatric dentistry market where we have a lot of ongoing discussions. I anticipate entering that market within the coming year.
At the Becker's 5th Annual Future of Dentistry Roundtable, taking place September 14-15 in Chicago, dental leaders and executives will gain insights into emerging technologies, practice growth strategies and the evolving landscape of dental care delivery, with a focus on innovation, patient experience and operational excellence. Apply for complimentary registration now.
