Athena Consulting: Dental Practice Solutions

Several doctors have emailed me to ask what my free consultation consists of and how long it takes.

The average time for a phone consultation is between 40 – 60 minutes, depending on your future plans and what you perceive your needs to be. Most phone consultations are for those doctors ready to begin their new start practice projects.
I begin the conversation by asking you some background information such as where and when you graduated from dental school, are you a GP or specialist, and did you do a residency.  I need to know how much experience you’ve had since dental school.
I then ask what your plans are, and your vision of what you want your dental practice to be.  We talk about where you would like to locate and I answer any questions you may have; most doctors have many questions, and several of those questions regard how I work with you on your new start project.

If you are serious about starting your practice, I then ask permission to discuss your personal financial situation, marital status, children, your FICO score, student loan debt, credit  card debt, etc.  This allows me to give you feedback on whether or not you are financially in a position to qualify for a loan at this time.  Most dental lenders require a minimum of one year work experience as an associate, or a residency in order to qualify for a new start loan. 
Having an experienced and expert new practice start consultant on board is extremely important to the success of your project and your practice.  There are many things you know you don’t know, but what about all the things you don’t know you don’t know?  A project needs to be well planned, a timeline established,  a starting project budget determined, and most important of all, implementation of all the steps required in chronological order so money isn’t wasted and your project delayed. I will generally run you through the highlights of the process, discuss how I work with you and we have a discussion about my own fees and Agreement.

Do you know how to run a business, operate and manage a dental office?  Most doctors learn dentistry in dental school and not the business of dentistry, other than a practice management course or two.  You also need efficient administrative systems put in place for your new practice and the staff trained on these systems.

If you’re thinking of opening a new practice, send me a consultation request from my website and we’ll set up a mutually convenient day and time for our phone discussion.  I try and make myself available during the evenings and on some weekends, because I know you’re very busy during the normal work week. 

I look forward to discussing your new practice plans and vision with you!