October 23, 2003
The public has become ever more educated about the practice of dentistry, thanks to our many forms of media coverage. Gone are the days when a dentist could open a practice and over its 30-year life never change with the times, invest in new state-of-the-art equipment or redecorate the office to keep it clean and modern-looking. If you are going to practice dentistry, get comfortable with change early on.
If you plan to purchase an older practice, try to overlook the age of the equipment, furniture and décor for the moment. More important factors are the active patient count, the selling doctor’s lab-fee percentage of production, and equipment that is functional and in good working condition.
From Day One of purchasing a practice, you will be producing income that will allow you to buy new equipment and redecorate the office. You can do it a room at a time or save money by doing a complete overhaul within the first two years – if you purchased a good business. Purchasing a practice is considered income-producing debt.
New start-ups are more risky, but the young dentist may have no other choice depending upon where he or she has chosen to practice. A proper marketing plan is key to the success of the practice; if planned properly, new starts have a very good chance of early success.
When choosing your equipment you’ll find all kinds of marvelous options. Most important is discerning which items are necessary to the operation and success of the practice – and which ones are expensive toys that won’t be utilized once the newness wears off.
Digital radiography is almost a “must have” these days because it creates up to 90 percent less radiation exposure than do traditional x-rays. This is a tremendous marketing tool for your practice, and your money is well spent on digital equipment. The educated public expects it.
Another excellent piece of equipment is an intra-oral camera. It is much easier to gain patient acceptance of a crown if the patient can actually see the fracture or decayed margin of that huge amalgam. While lasers are available, their use is limited; until technology makes tremendous advances, this is one piece of equipment you can eliminate from your “must have” list. A good fiber-optic hand piece will serve you better in the long term.
When doing a new start, be realistic in choosing equipment. Buy only that which will improve your production and quality of care. Even if you’re doing a build-out to accommodate five treatment rooms, you only need to equip two in the beginning. Once you see what your new-patient flow is, you can always equip more rooms. Dentists by nature would like their offices to be perfect from Day 1, but it doesn‘t make sense to borrow money for equipment you will not use immediately.
If the practice has no patients; the start-up loan is “brick-and-mortar” debt. You owe the money, but how are you going to pay the note on the loan during the initial start-up phase of your practice? This is an extremely important issue to be addressed in the business plan.
For more information, request an initial consultation from an experienced dental consultant.