Implant Tribune Asia Pacific Edition

22 Implant Tribune Asia Pacific Edition | 10/2016 TRENDS & APPLICATIONS Growing a successful dental implant clinic By DTI In April 2016, Dr Ian Lane, a manag- ing partner at Queensway Dental Clinic, together with Richard Elliott, Managing Director of Queensway’s Dental Laboratory, presented a we- binar to a global audience of over 350 dentists, giving their insights into what they feel have been the most fundamental factors of grow- ing a successful dental implant clinic. Queensway Dental Clinic (www.queensway.co.uk) was found- ed in 1993, when Dr Paul Averley took over the north-eastern clinic. At the time, it was at the heart of an area where the population’s oral health was signiﬁcantly lower than that of the national average. Over the next 23 years, the prac- tice grew into the award-winning business it is today—a journey that Lane believes would not have been possible without the part- ners, specialists, nurses, manag- ers, technicians and therapists who have invested their time and passion in every step. Between1998and2013,Queens- way Dental Clinic was the largest referral centre for conscious seda- tion in the region, and the clinic treated over 100,000 patients during that time. However, as of 2011, the business model started to change and the partners turned their attentions to expanding the private side of the clinic. By apply- ing the same principles learnt from building a successful NHS practice, Queensway Dental Clinic grew from a four-surgery practice into a 25-surgery practice over time. Lane suggested that this suc- cess can largely be attributed to the Queensway ethos with its pa- tient-centred approach to den- tistry: “We focus on holistic care, meaning there is real choice for the patient, as well as ensuring that shared decisions are made, over which patients have full con- trol.” “We have always invested in our team,” continued Lane. “In- deed, the strong foundations of our clinic have been built on the knowledge and experience of our team. To build a truly successful implant clinic, it is vital to have the right team in place.” With Gold Standard Investors in People accreditation, it is clear that Queensway Dental Clinic understands the importance of nurturing the skills of its team. Investing heavily in the continu- ing professional development (CPD) of every single member, it has seen its nursing teams progress through the Nobel Biocare basic and advanced nursing courses, as well as attain the dental implant nursing qualiﬁcation from King’s College London—and all are expe- rienced to some degree with the All-on-4 treatment modality. Of course, it is not just the clinical skills that contribute to the success of an implant practice. Queensway Dental Clinic has striven to improve the training of its front-of-house staff to ensure that patients receive only the very highest standard of service from the moment they enter the prac- tice. This has included sending the team on lunch-and-learn sessions with Nobel Biocare representa- tives, having cue cards developed to act as prompts on the phone, and giving each of the staff the necessary understanding of im- plant treatment options in order for them to communicate this ef- fectively to prospective and cur- rent patients. Furthermore, Queensway un- derstands the importance of in- vesting in the skills of its partners and takes great pride in the indi- vidual achievements of its team members. Indeed, the partners at Queensway Dental Clinic have all graduated from the Kois Centre in Seattle in the US—ﬁve of only 15 practitioners in the UK to have done so. “The skills we have learnt at the Kois Centre have transformed the way we practise,” said Lane. “As well as improving the out- comes we can achieve for our pa- tients. Seeing many patients who have suffered from many differ- ent problems with their teeth, it’s vital that we have the skills—like those that the Kois Centre teaches so well—to be able to manage the complexity of these cases in a reliable way. Without a doubt, these skills have also enabled us to reassure our patients that they are being treated with the most up-to-date and predictable proce- dures and techniques.” Elliott too graduated from the Kois Centre and was the very ﬁrst technician in the UK to have done so. This signiﬁcant achievement is mirrored in the way Queensway invests in the skills and CPD of its laboratory technicians, represent- ing recognition of the importance of technicians in the provision of implant therapy. Indeed, owing to the training provided by the Kois Centre, as well as the beneﬁts of Nobel- Clinician Software, the team at Queensway has managed to streamline their case assessment and treatment planning process. “We’re all speaking in the same language now,” said Lane. “We can provide effective risk assessments for our patients, deliver effective and reliable treatment plans for implant treatments, design our patients’ smiles, provide diagnos- tic assessments with models and photos, and review cases with the entire team present.” Vital to all this, Lane went on to explain, are communica- tion and working alongside col- leagues who all have the same skill and experience. “This is why,” he said. “We take our train- ing and education seriously at Queensway.” It is also down to the implant provider. Since 1993 (with the exception of a very short depar- ture in 2009), Queensway Dental Clinic has used Nobel Biocare im- plants. “It’s the mix of quality service and quality products,” ex- plained Lane. “We don’t use cheap productsandNobelBiocaredoesn’t provide them. In all, it helps us minimise the risk to our patients and enables us to achieve excel- lent results.” Working with Nobel Biocare enables the Queensway team to use a variety of different tech- niques, including immediate load- ing, and provides the opportu- nity to scan and plan treatments in full 3-D. It also allows the clinical staff of Queensway to li- aise effectively with the labora- tory staff, expediting and im- proving the process from start to ﬁnish. This kind of professional know- ledge, when brought together ef- fectively with clinical, technical and management skills, has been one of the greatest contributing factors to the success of Queens- way’s implant business. “It’s been a challenge,” admitted Lane. “And it requires excellent communica- tion from all aspects of our busi- ness, but it has certainly paid dividends—and it certainly would not have been possible without the relationship we share with Nobel Biocare.” This relationship seems in no way likely to end soon; indeed, the team at Queensway Dental Clinic and laboratory has found working with Nobel Biocare so effective that it has seen an 87 per cent increase in spending on Nobel clinical products, as well as a 250 per cent increase for laboratory items since 2011. “Having a single company solution in our busy practice has been incredibly use- ful in boosting our business,” said Lane. The ﬁgures speak for them- selves. Since 2011, Queensway Dental Clinic has experienced an increase in its implant turnover of 220 per cent with up to 50 per cent of all of its private activity origi- nating from its provision of im- plants. There has also been a con- current growth of 125 per cent in its laboratory business and this can be directly linked to its im- plant success. However, having the knowl- edge and the products is just one part of achieving success. Putting everything into practice represents the greatest struggle for a large and busy centre like Queensway Dental Clinic. For this reason, the team strives to follow ﬁve essential tenets to ensure success. Firstly, it is important to pro- vide one point of contact. Lane ex- plained that having so many disci- plines together under one roof has created a service in which patients can feel conﬁdent. Rather than being passed around between dif- ferent teams, patients at Queens- way can conveniently be treated by one dedicated and well-trained team. Furthermore, Queensway in- vests in progressive treatment Dr Ian Lane

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