The Automated Dental Micropractice: Dr. William Jackson, DDS April 2008
The Automated Dental Micropractice: Dr. William Jackson, DDS April 2008
Micropractice
Summary
A dental micropractice is defined as a highly automated, low overhead
practice, which utilizes select outsource services to perform many
business-related activities off-site and on-demand. It is an intriguing
concept for a doctor looking to maintain a comfortable income with the
freedom to work less time, and outside of a larger practice
environment. The internet is a major component of the micropractice,
since it allows multiple entities anytime/anywhere access to data.
The need for staff and office space is minimized, due to the use of
automated tasks and outsource services. In utilizing outsource
services, expenses are directly related to usage. In other words, a
part-time practice will have less expense than a full-time practice.
A micropractice is a lifestyle choice for a practitioner. It is well-suited
for the practitioner who wants the benefits of ownership, but doesnt
want to be tied down by the demands of a larger office with a larger
overhead.
Physician Micropractices
A small but growing number of physicians are converting to high-tech,
low overhead practices to make patient care more efficient and less
stressful. The concept, pioneered by Gordon Moore, a physician in
Rochester, NY, is called the micropractice.
In 2001, Dr. Moore took the risky step of opening his micropractice.
Tired of working in a large group practice, he borrowed about $15,000
and opened a tiny office, with no nurse, no receptionist, and no
waiting room. Now, according to Moore, he is making slightly less
money, but its a very good income without shortchanging patients
on time.
Similarly, Dr. Moitrin Savard, a physician in Melville, NY, has no nurse
but shares a receptionist with several other solo practitioners and does
her own paperwork. Mostly, she runs her office electronically
lowering her overhead because she has no salaries to pay.
She keeps patient files on her laptop and bills electronically. Patients
make their own appointments on the website, and she fits her
schedule to meet their needs.
"I'm not being controlled or being told when I'm on call," Savard said
during an interview in her Queens office. "I don't think I could ever go
back to group practice."
Savard said she now has more time to spend with her 3-year-old son,
Milan, and her husband, Peter, who is also a physician and a Stony
Brook medical school graduate.
Is There a Parallel in Dentistry?
The practice of dentistry is different enough from the practice of
medicine to question the feasibility of a micropractice in dentistry. Do
space and equipment requirements preclude a micropractice? The
simple answer is that, given current communication technology tools,
dentistry may actually be MORE suited for an automated micropractice
than medical for the following reasons:
The patient relationship need not be managed across several
entities, like hospitals, pharmacies, several specialists, etc.
Insurance is more straightforward and less intrusive
Disease management is less intensive
Group practice is pervasive in medicine, and one of the primary
motivations for a physician to start a micropractice is to flee the group
setting. This is not the case in dental, but the motivation need not be
the same to take advantage of the end results:
Less overhead
Less business-related stress
More in control of your schedule
What Does an Automated Dental Micropractice Look Like?
In concept, the idea of a micropractice has been around since the
beginning of dental practices. Many years ago, it was not uncommon
to see a dentist working alone or with one staff member. Over time,
that method of practice became impractical. The demands of running a
modern-day dental practice make it extremely difficult for the dentist
to handle both patient treatment and all the business-related
operations.
procedure. As you greet and seat the next patient, while your assistant
dismisses the first patient, books the next appointment, and discusses
financial issues. In the case that you or your patient were running late,
a follow up call to the patient from the call center can accomplish the
same tasks including taking credit card information for payments.
Your last patient of the day is
online. You let her sit with a
information and health history.
the laptop for the various forms
Finally, as you are ready to leave, you take a quick look at your
practice health dashboard, which highlights the key metrics of your
practice. You see that all but one average age of receivables are
on target, the targets that you and your remote consultant defined
during your quarterly planning. You send an email to your remote
consultant, asking for a plan to bring it back into line.
All of these services except the accountant and consultant are paid
as a small percent of your collections. Not only is the expense
predictable, it is much less than if you hired and trained a staff person
to accomplish the tasks.
Pipe Dream or Reality?
Is the above scenario, or some variation of it, possible in 2008?
Perhaps surprisingly, all or almost all of the pieces are currently
available. Better yet, the pieces are integrated and well-tested.
Three components are required to offer the necessary services to
serve a dental micropractice.
1. Software. As youve surely gathered by now, the key to an
automated micropractice is the internet and web-based software.
2. Expertise of a service provider. While the word outsource has
been used extensively in this article, it is not enough to simply
hand the task off. It must be given to experts; otherwise, whats
the point?
3. A network of users. Perhaps the greatest potential of utilizing an
online practice management application and tying into an
infrastructure of service experts is the ability to share key
information and success metrics. For example, the network can
learn together via the services company to bill insurances
much more precisely, and they can share metrics like average
age of receivable (without identifying names, of course).
Planet DDS (www.planetdds.com), in Irvine, CA, offers all three
components. Denticon, a web-based dental software application,
supplies the entire technical infrastructure required to run an
automated dental micropractice. Denticon integrates with other Planet
DDS software for internet marketing, patient communications, online