New Dentist Perspective on Private Practice, Part 2, Q3 2018

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New Dentist Perspective on Private Practice Part 2 of 2 by Dr. Eric Anderson

Dr. Eric Anderson

In our previous edition of Explorer, we featured Part 1 of Dr. Eric Anderson’s article where he shares his transition from dental school to private practice. In Part 2, Dr. Anderson identifies the concerns he sees that could be a challenge for dentistry along with his commitment and excitement for the profession.

The final thought I’ll leave with you comes from my crystal ball concerning the political landscape of dentistry. Our profession doesn’t consistently make “Top 10 Best Jobs in America” lists by accident or coincidence; dentists see the importance of paying dues and being a part of the American Dental Association. The ADA is the flagship association for our profession, and the clout of our membership enables the dentists and staffers actively engaged in fighting for the well-being of our profession and our patients to be successful.

At the moment, corporate offices are “playing ball” with the ADA. I asked the same question of every corporate recruiter who came to present to us at my school: “Does your company pay ADA, state, and local membership dues for the dentists you employ?” Each recruiter replied with a resounding, “Yes.” At least for now. My single greatest fear for the profession is that when their marketshare of dentists reaches a certain

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Dental Explorer | Third Quarter 2018

threshold, the corporate offices will all band together and sever ties with the ADA at once. That precipitous fall in membership would probably leave the ADA with less than 50% marketshare, substantially weakening its position to continue its successful defense of and advocacy for our profession and our patients in Washington, D.C. Instead of one political action committee representing the unified voice of the majority of this nation’s dentists, we would then undoubtably have two, neither with a majority, each lobbying against the other. That’s what happened to medicine. The AMA has had well below 50% marketshare for years, and with all the different speciality groups arguing among one another as to what is best for their profession, the insurers and federal government preyed on the disharmony and took the control of our nation’s healthcare out of the hands of our physicians. I don’t ever want to see the day that insurance companies and politicians are telling us how we should care for our patients, nor do I want to see our patients seek care from anyone other than a licensed dentist.

Enter mid-level providers. You probably won’t hear too much about them in dental school unless you become involved with a student group such as ASDA or SNDA, but this is one of the hottest topics in the dental political landscape right now. A mid-level provider is an individual who does not complete the same training as a licensed dentist, but can perform many

Featured Article of the same procedures as one. They represent a flock of golden geese for the corporate offices. Rather than taking on a new dentist with at least 8 years of post-high school debt averaging about $290,000 who expects to be paid upwards of $100,000, the corporate offices could instead hire a kid out of high school, put him through 2 years or less of training, and have him do the exact same things at a substantially lower cost to the company. This obviously devalues the undergraduate and dental education of all those who have gone through school or who are currently going through it, but more importantly, it poses an unnecessary threat to public well-being. There is a reason it takes so long and costs so much money to become a dentist: it requires a great deal of skill and most of the procedures we perform are irreversible.

If done improperly, many of the routine procedures we do can cause recurrent problems and substantial pain, and can even result in death. Furthermore, if the patient is unhappy or in pain after substandard treatment from a mid-level provider, he will find himself in an unnecessarily difficult position with no good options. Likewise, the dentist is put in a tough spot if the patient then chooses to seek his help after the damage has been done.

Some of the proponents for this quicker and easier way to make a buck masquerade their ulterior motive by claiming “access to care” barriers will be eliminated through lower-cost

dentistry supplied by mid-level providers in “underserved” areas. There is not an access to care problem because there aren’t enough dentists; there is an access to care problem because there is a lack of understanding and emphasis on dental care. Dental spending is not a priority for some people, not when the latest iPhone, wireless headphones, or other electronic innovation has just come out. Not that there is anything wrong with spending money on those things, but claiming there are underserved populations because dental care is too expensive is a red herring. Cost certainly does play a role, but the real issue is dental illiteracy and alternative priorities. Some folks don’t want to spend the money to fix a cavity simply because it isn’t hurting. Others don’t want to spend the money because they could save for a child’s college fund, a new television, other medical bills, or a fun family outing. Its harder to address these underlying yet central issues, and easier to just paint dentists as unsympathetic swindlers consumed with avarice, as a recent corporate dentistry commercial implies.

It should be clear by this point that private practice is the model I would recommend to anyone and everyone graduating from dental school. However, I certainly don’t think any less of my colleagues who were forced to go the corporate route because they couldn’t find a job straight out of school. Private practice is great because you truly run your own show, but as a whole, the private practice world is failing graduating students who are wanting to enter it. As I stated at the outset, if you don’t already have a connection, it is incredibly difficult to find a job in private practice during dental school. Organized dentistry has got to do a better job of connecting private practices and students, and I’m doing my best to ignite a collective effort to do so here in Georgia. Regardless of where you start out, if you refuse to waiver from treating patients fairly and honestly, you will have an exceedingly fulfilling career in the best profession in the world.

Dr. Eric Anderson graduated from the Dental College of Georgia in 2017 and is now in private practice with his father, mother, and sister in Duluth, GA. During his time in school he served as the president of the student body and president of the school’s chapter of the American Student Dental Association.

He remains involved in the dental community, focusing primarily on initiatives for dental students and new dentists, as well as dental legislation.

Third Quarter 2018 | Dental Explorer

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