Practice Management

The further you get into your career, the easier it is to become complacent, to make yourself believe there’s no point to invest in new technology or that the pains that come with practicing dentistry are just part of the job. But no matter what your age or how close you think you are to retirement, you have to continue to grow. You have to stay curious and passionate about what you do, whether you’re planning to retire in 5 years or 20 years.

In a shift at the top of the one of the dental laboratory industry's leading marketing firms, Terry Fine was recently named President of AMG Creative, Inc. Prior to the promotion, Fine served as VP of Sales and Marketing for the Colorado-based agency. Fine takes over the position from AMG founder Bill Neal, CDT, who will continue in his role as Chief Executive Officer for AMG.

This is an important decision.

When Irish dramatist Oscar Wilde wrote “To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect” in the nineteenth century he probably did not imagine just how relevant this adage would ring true in the twenty-first century.

With dental-related ER visits on the rise, Dr. Norman Holtz's New York-based dental practice is available to patients at all hours.

The Mississippi Dental Board now requires all dental offices in Mississippi to have an automated external defibrillator (AED) onsite. This mandate deadline date is July 1, 2012. The regulation also requires that all licensed dentists and dental hygienists licensed by the State of Mississippi maintain a current certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Henry Schein announced the launch of Dentrix® G5, a new version of the Dentrix practice management system.

It is always a good idea to deal with a dental supply company whose staff takes enough time to share new dental products with you, ones that will help bring more patient comfort, care and value to your practice.

DPR Technology Editor Dr. John Flucke uses Google Voice to simplify communications both inside and outside of the dental office.

Unlike the majority of his peers in dental school at the New York University College of Dentistry, Dr. Zuckerberg wasn’t pursuing dentistry as part of a family legacy. On his first day of dental school, talk of bridges had him thinking about the Brooklyn versus Verrazano.

Research presented by the American Association of Dental Research shows that periodontal treatment and appropriate dental care can help lower the medical costs for diabetic patients.

I never met Dr. Thomas Hoyt, but his idea to create a publication dedicated to bringing new product information to the dentist is what made Dental Products Report possible. Dr. Hoyt passed away this week, on March 21, 2012. As the original visionary and publisher behind DPR, Dr. Hoyt utilized his experience as a dentist - he graduated from Loyola Dental School in Chicago in 1953 - to determine best practices for meeting the information needs of his peers.

Thirty years ago a long-lasting friendship was formed between dentists Michael Chalef and Harold Enoch. Both were sitting in on the Georgia Dental Licensing Board exam when they first met.

I believe I just got a glimpse of the future. For some time I have been speaking and writing about the far out ways we could be using digital technology in the future. Things like cloud computing, data mining, self learning virtual brains, data base marketing, artificial intelligence and fully automated e-services. All of these far out future ideas have been put into play with a new online service called Practice Activator from ActionRun.

COLUMBUS, Ga., July 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Aflac (NYSE:AFL), the number one provider of voluntary and guaranteed renewable insurance in the United States, provides a simple, no direct cost option for employers to make dental insurance coverage available to employees without the hassle of network restrictions, deductibles or annual premium reviews. Addressing a top employer challenge of making competitive benefits available to attract and retain talent, Aflac's dental insurance policy helps meet the needs of both employers and employees.

The new year brings many of us face to face with a daunting set of wish lists. We call them “resolutions” or even “goals.” We look at what we want to accomplish personally and professionally and-having written them down-proceed to ignore them and work in ways that manage to bring about somewhat opposite results. How does that happen?

Mini Dental Implants are a practice builder for general practitioners, offering a highly profitable revenue stream, an expanded patient base and increased referrals. General dentists can begin placing MDIs after a one- or two-day certification course and with a minimal investment in the system.  MDIs offer a low-cost option for patients who cannot afford or do not qualify for root form implants.

If I took an educated[1] guess on what topics the majority of The Pride Institute’s phone calls for “help” were based on, I would have to say half of the calls are from hygienists who feel under appreciated, undervalued and underused, while the other half come from dentists who are, quite frankly, a little anxious about their relationship with their hygienist(s). Considering the No. 1 secret to succeeding in these challenging times is a modern, interactive hygiene experience, we need to get to the bottom of what seems to cause frustration for the key players involved in continuing care.

Information provided by Henry Schein Inc. A complete online digital prescription workflow that helps route and manage lab casework, DDX Labscripts is a new feature of Henry Schein’s DDX (Digital Dental Exchange) digital case management system.

For those Baby Boomers (and older) the term is largely pejorative, owing to its association with those who aided the Axis Powers during World War II. But there is another side to the collaboration coin. It is synonymous with team work. 

1. The BlueView cure-through matrices offer clinicians plenty of options and are available for Class II, Class III, Class IV and Class V restorations. 2. The Matrix Tape features blue tinting to provide much needed contrast between the matrix and tooth structure, making it easy to see preparation margins and correct matrix placement.

No self respecting discussion about communicating with patients of record would be complete without including social networking. Here are a few statistical tidbits, according to Socialnomics’ "Social media (is not) a fad: It is the biggest shift since the Industrial Revolution.":  

Purchasing an intraoral camera is one of the fastest, easiest and highest returning investments a dentist can make. A quality intraoral camera system can generate a full return on investment in as little as 1 to 3 months.

January 13, 2011  | dentalproductsreport.com Have you heard a lot of patients who need to schedule either hygiene or restorative treatment say, “I think I’m just going to wait because..." (Pick one)

You may not be a football fan, but hang in here for a minute with the analogy, because there are some important dental “plays” that you can implement when you have a change in your schedule.

A Web-based dental laboratory and supply-chain management software, SoundTrack is a suite of innovative tools designed to help labs drive revenue growth, decrease costs and strengthen customer loyalty. Designed to blend seamlessly with emerging dental technologies, labs can manage hundreds of concurrent cases online from anywhere there’s an Internet connection.

Lava™ Design Software 7 from 3M ESPE offers a new and powerful software platform that delivers greater design flexibility, customization capability and “best in class” functionality. Lava Design 7 offers a full range of indications and exciting new features including parallel scan and design, rescan, opposing arch and full arch scanning. Additionally, an integrated file transferring system makes data transfer within the Lava™ Network simple.

They are lurking in your office waiting to steal treatment plans and hide them in the unscheduled treatment reports in your computer. If you track case acceptance, you are one step ahead of these robbers because you can then start to identify and analyze your systems and communication skills to find your vulnerable areas and take steps to shore them up. Guessing or using your “gut feeling” about case acceptance will not serve you well. A good goal to aim for is 85% for new patients; 90% for patients of record.

Many dentists have a written document that outlines their practice’s vision and philosophy. Ideally, the doctor shares this with the dental team and with patients as it is not only a statement of what you aspire to attain, but it is a useful tool for clear communication. It has been said that the difference between a vision and a hallucination is how many people see it! If your team and patients have not seen your practice philosophy, it may be a hallucination.

“You’re wrong!” A patient complaint is as powerful as a slap in the face. The words sting and when they come from a patient it most certainly feels like a threat to your integrity. Most people are tempted to show how they cannot possibly be wrong. Most people want to prove not only that they are in the right, but that the other person-in this case, the patient-is wrong.