In the last post I started talking about DSOs and the impact I believe they will have on my profession over the coming years. There is no denying the fact that for many dentists currently practicing that there is something very attractive about corporate dentistry.
The idea of just doing your dentistry and having little or nothing to do with the business of dentistry sounds incredible. Dentists, in general, are clinicians and not business people. Most dentists hate spreadsheets, ROIs, marketing and business plans, cost analysis etc. Just let me 'drill and fill' and then go home to my family....
Nothing wrong with that at all but if you think that you can practice that way and still maintain a private fee for service practice I think you're mistaken. It is my belief that in order to prosper over the coming years the 'private fee for dentistry' dentist will have to work a bit different than how he/she is working today.
This reminds me of the days before insurance and marketing. Dentistry enjoyed a booming business model. Just get to your office and the patients will be waiting at the door. Present treatment and they will accept. Provide the care and get paid. Those were the days.
Then insurance hit the profession and soon thereafter (if my chronology is correct) marketing rules changed and ads started to appear just about everywhere. The practice of dentistry was changed forever.
Dentists had to adapt in order to maintain their private fee for dentistry profile. Dental spas appeared (as did mine) with coffee, tea, cake and cookies in the reception room. Massage therapy, nail salons, valet parking and much more became the way to differentiate your practice. Well, today almost every office offers much of the same benefits. There is nothing special about these extras anymore.
And now not only do we have to compete with insurance type practices and abundant marketing but we are also now having to compete with corporate dentistry. What is private fee for dentistry to do?
I would suggest that we look at the comparison between fast food and gourmet restaurants as an example. Sure, you can dine out for a couple of dollars, have Wifi, get your coffee or soda refilled and have a clown possibly join you at your table. The cost of the meal is figured down to the last penny. Staff is paid accordingly, usually at minimum wage or less. Customer service is basically nonexistent. But people find corporate dining is what they want, can afford and hopefully enjoy at a certain level. Nothing wrong with this at all.