Ask the Dentist!
Not All Dental Offices Are the Same
Most patients don’t realize the transformation dentistry has been undergoing for the last several years. Large dental franchises have been rapidly expanding in the U.S. for some time now, buying out solo dental practices and rebranding them under their franchise name. While this may not necessarily be a bad thing, from my experience the focus seems to shift from what’s best for the patient to what’s best for the bottom line. In these dental models’, staff come and go so you may not see the same staff members or even the same dentist during your follow-up appointments, which makes it impossible to develop a trusting doctor/patient relationship. To me, this is one of the most important aspects of a quality dental practice.
You don’t have to look hard to see the impact of large corporations on the business world. Walmart, Amazon, and Home Depot are just a few examples of the way the economy has changed over the last few decades. Volume business has been able to keep prices down, which for the consumer is a good thing. For the small mom-and-pop shops not so much. Unable to compete, these small local businesses are slowly disappearing and along with them so is quality customer service. Most, but not all, large corporate businesses seem to lack employees who seem to actually care about doing a good job and taking care of the customer. For the sake of price, or in some cases no other options, poor customer service is accepted as the norm by customers.
For large businesses high volume, low prices, and monopolizing the market have all worked at the expense of quality customer service and sometimes questionable product quality. This should sound a lot like the beginning of this article. This business model is being applied to dentistry, which in my opinion, doesn’t align with what a dental model should be. High volume in a dental practice makes it difficult to spend the time needed with each patient. Lower prices on dental care and services is not the same as getting a lower price on a washer and dryer. To some patients’ quality service from employees who care may not be big deal if they can get a cheap deal. Extensive market advertising offering free this or free that is often a tactic to get patients in the door. On more than one occasion I’ll see a patient for a second opinion appointment who went in for the “free” exam and cleaning and came out with a treatment plan for several thousand dollars of unnecessary dental work. As the old sayings go, nothing in life is free, and you get what you pay for.
Honesty, integrity, and quality customer service are what I believe a dental practice should be founded upon. If you need a new dental home, give us a call or visit our website for more information on our office.