Submitted By: Dr. Stanley LaCroix
A Question of Balance
First and foremost, dentistry is a business. We can never escape this fact. I think this is a part of dental education that is sorely lacking. We go through school learning how to perfect techniques and choose the best treatments, but are exposed to almost no business training. What a shock when we set up a practice and the cold hard realities of life set in. The electric company could care less how good your margins are. They want to be paid. The same is true for all our vendors and our staff who depend on us for their salaries.
How then can we justify giving away treatment? Why have we set up all these programs to provide treatment for those who cannot afford to pay? We have a primary obligation to be profitable. We must be aware of the bottom line at all times. If we are not profitable our doors will close. The wolves are always at the door.
Thankfully there is an answer to this dilemma. There are many ways to
