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ePaper created 2017-11-24, 11:00:53 | version 1.38.0
| opinion business side of dentistry Finance as an isolated issue needs methodical re- search, backed up by a comprehensive action plan and supported by a wide-ranging business plan. However, while practice owners and managers may wish to spend significant time looking for and securing fund- ing, the practices bring other demands, including profit and loss (P&L), existing financial management, compliance, and of course, the small matter of deliv- ering outstanding patient care, which will always be first and foremost for any reputable dental practi- tioner. That commitment to patient care will also require time spent on hiring a team who share your philos- ophy, and delivering a training package that ensures that every member of the team shares the same ethos when it comes to the delivery of clinical excel- lence. All of this takes time, even before you have moved on to compliance, an area not to be neglected but which is incredibly time-consuming. Compliance is often cited as the number one concern for dentists. Time must be spent ensuring your practice meets the regulations and interpreting the guidelines to ensure your practice is fully compliant. It should also go without saying that staying on top of both P&L and financial management is imperative to the continued success of any business, dental prac- tice or otherwise. Without a firm grasp on your exist- ing finances, you cannot consider an expansion, no matter how entrepreneurial your spirit. Not only would your search for funding become exponentially more difficult, but in the unlikely event that you did gain financial backing you would simply be throwing good money after bad. With so many demands on their time and their fi- nances, how can today’s generation of entrepre- neurial dentists keep moving forward and find the cash that they need to meet existing demands and fund future expansion, without compromising on outstanding patient care? There has not been a sus- tainable funding model, and it has been stifling those dentists with the vision to take their practices for- ward. author The difficult balancing act between cli nical excellence and corporate expansion sion not just for the business opportunity, but for the challenges it brings. But once again, there comes the issue of funding. After much time following the traditional financ- ing routes, I came across Dentex, a UK partnership group for the dental profession, which allowed me to follow my interests without losing my autonomy. At my practices, we have always taken pride in the fact that we are one of the few dental practitioners out- side of the large cities able to deal with the majority of our patient’s requirements in-house, with no need for external referrals. My wish was to maintain, and if possible expand, my existing practices into a small portfolio. Aside from access to real-time financials and the investment I required to facilitate my plans, Dentex’s partnership model has enabled me to gain insights from a cross-practice comparison of financials, high- lighting where I could make savings, or further in- vestments, without hampering the services we have become known for. The centralisation of all other elements of running the practices, such as cash flow, advertising, P&L, training, compliance, maintenance, has also liberated funds that would otherwise have been wasted through duplication of administration. And on a per- sonal note, I have been freed to spend time pursuing my charitable interests and mentoring. Some of my colleagues who are less focused on growing their own portfolio of dental practices have used the partnership model to unshackle themselves from aspects of practice admin in order to return to the clinical focus that originally fuelled their passion for dentistry, while others have taken the opportunity to slip into semi-retirement. Work–life balance has always been a difficulty for practice owners. As any small business owner will at- test, ‘switching off’ at the end of the day does not come easily when there is always something to be done. Having the safety net of being part of a wider group of dentists and being able to offload the aspects of the business that bring you less satisfaction means that you can wave goodbye to your last patient, con- fident that everything that should be done has been done. Days off lose their anxiety. Dr Mitesh Badiani is a Regional Partner at Dentex, as well as Clinical Lead at Devon Dental Centre of Excellence and Plymouth Dental Centre of Excellence, with over 20 years of dental experience. While it might not be the path that they originally expected to follow, for some dentists—including my- self—the non-clinical aspects of dentistry can hold as much interest and satisfaction as one-to-one patient care. There is a certain pleasure in seeing a practice flourish and grow, and for those with an entrepreneurial bent it can lead to ideas of expan- This new way of collaborating has meant that I have the freedom to pursue my own path while gaining support in areas such as financial responsibility and compliance. Dentists do not want to be tied up in red tape, but they do want the autonomy to decide what is best for their patients and their practice. The part- nership group model is the ideal compromise._ 08 roots 4 2017