My friends and I have a term for those days when you see 50 patients and somehow make no money: barbershop dentistry. Insert a denture. Check a sore spot. Adjust a bite. By the end of the day, you’ve been running nonstop, but what did all of that activity accomplish? We even text each other the spinning barbershop pole when we’ve had one of those days. There’s an important business lesson there. Being busy and being productive are not the same thing.
That’s why I appreciate the article on efficiency in this issue by S. Michael Vaughan, DMD. He makes an important distinction between simply working faster and using our time more effectively. The goal is to make the most of the time we have while always providing our patients with the highest quality of care.
For practice owners, that requires looking closely at how we work. A technology that saves one dentist time may consume another dentist’s time. If I have to scan, design, fabricate, and finish a restoration myself, I need to ask whether that is really the best use of my chair time. In another practice, where those tasks can be delegated, the calculation may be completely different.
The same is true of insurance participation. There are successful dentists who participate in PPOs and successful dentists who don’t. The important thing is to understand your own numbers, your patient base, and your market rather than assuming there is one business model that works for everyone.
You’ll find more perspectives on these questions throughout our annual Business issue, including articles on using digital visualization to improve patient communication, and taking an individualized approach to water flossing.
And because sound business decisions ultimately support excellent patient care, don’t miss this issue’s CE article on restorative treatment for patients receiving head and neck radiation. I’ve seen firsthand how rapidly rampant decay can develop following radiation when salivary function is compromised. Understanding how to monitor these patients and select restorative materials appropriately is critical.
Whatever your practice model, make sure your time is working as hard as you are.
Robert C. Margeas, DDS
Editor-in-Chief, Inside Dentistry
Private Practice, Des Moines, Iowa
Adjunct Professor • Department of Operative Dentistry
University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
robert.margeas@conexiant.com
