Partners in Practice

It’s hard to remember what made me want to be a dentist. I don’t have any dentists in my family and, like most people, I never liked going. But it was a service industry, and I guess that was the appeal. I have a servant’s heart, I’m people-oriented – and I loved it from the very beginning.

ter than a team that spends all its time helping other practices succeed? There’s an advantage to being able to concentrate on doing dental work – the things you’re trained to do and the things you love to do – and let business partners, like my distributor, help take care of a lot of those other things.

School was difficult, but I loved the environment and working on patients. I feel fortunate that I was led down that path; that I truly found my calling. Dentistry is something you need to be passionate about, and I was.

In dental school, I had an instructor whose philosophy was, to paraphrase, “If you treat patients like a patient – not a filling or a crown

or a root canal, but as a patient – the money will take care of itself.” That always stuck with me. When you have a business partner to help take care of a lot of those other things, it’s true.

When I built my first office, I didn’t have a business partner like that. I used mail-order catalogs for my supplies, and I would cringe when a salesperson came through the office. I didn’t want to make the business decisions. That’s not what I loved about dentistry. I loved working with patients.

It became clear to me that despite my objections, the business decisions were important. I needed a partner to help me with those decisions – and who bet-

To be able to rely on someone to help with those decisions is invaluable. Dentists basically deal with problems all day long. There are very few patients who come in who don’t have a problem. Even when people come in to get their teeth cleaned, it’s a problem – just not a painful one. When you deal with that all day long, you can use some help finding solutions. If I could tell myself anything as a new doctor, I would say exactly that: “Find people you can trust to help you with your decisions, care about your success and will be members of your team.”

are a great resource for information.

After 28 years, I’ve come to realize a lot of dentistry is based on your belief system. To go from one level to the next – like from my first three-operatory practice to my current 11-operatory practice – you have to believe it’s possible. If your distributor knows 15 other people who are succeeding and has helped them do it, they know how you can do it, too. Why not lean on that information? Building a successful practice is like building a house; there are so many decisions to make, and it’s helpful to have a resource.

Early on in your career, you’re trying to make a name for yourself and your practice. You’re trying to get your systems in place. The right distributor makes all the difference. They’re in other practices, know what works and what doesn’t, and

At the end of the day, all the decisions

you make are driven by your relationships with your patients. You want to be able to see a patient who you started seeing at 3 years old, watched grow up and get married, and now bringing their kids. It’s incredibly rewarding and gratifying to see those relationships grow. It’s validation that you’re doing something right when patients keep coming back, refer family and friends, or smile and say, “Look what you did for my teeth.”

the exact same reasons I did when I came out of school. But the changes from when I built my first three-operatory office to where I am now, I can’t even fathom. The technology has developed so quickly. From practice management, to marketing, to getting patients to keep coming back, there are so many avenues to take in running your practice. In the end, the right business partner makes all the difference. You need the best equipment, technology and support after you purchase it. That’s not all. Software, sundries, practice management, the support team, technical services – they all come into play. When you can get all that from one distributor, it’s a best-case scenario.

Similarly, the relationship you have with your distributor means a lot for your practice. The right one has a relationship with you and they know it’s going to be a longterm relationship. It’s not, “What can I do for my benefit right now?”, it’s, “What can we do for our benefit for the long run?” That’s an important distinction.

I’m a normal guy. Growing up, I learned the value of working hard. I went to school and worked hard, and I did the same on my practice. Anyone can do it if

It’s amazing to see what dentistry has become for me. I still love dentistry for

ADSSouth.com

GEORGIA, LOUISIANA

N. CAROLINA, S.CAROLINA & VIRGINIA James J. Howard, DMD

& TENNESSEE Earl Douglas, DDS, MBA, BVAL

(910) 523-1430 jim@adssouth.com

(770) 664-1982 earl@adssouth.com

that’s what they desire and dream. People say all the time, “When are you going to retire?” I’m a dentist. That’s my identity, that’s what I do. I love to play golf, I love to hunt, I love to fish. I have a lot of hobbies, but they aren’t my identity. I love what I do, and what I do is my identity. When you love what you do, that comes across to patients.

It all comes back to relationships. People don’t buy fillings. They don’t buy crowns. They buy relationships and they buy the way that you treat them.

As I look back, those relationships have meant a lot to a hard-working kid who never liked going to the dentist. ■

“ I only have one regret about selling

my practice. I should have called Dr. Earl Douglas sooner.”

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ALABAMA, MISSISSIPPI

OFFICE MANAGER Virginia Douglas

& W. TENNESSEE Rebecca Kyatt

(770) 664-1982 virginia@adssouth.com

(205) 253-9094 rebecca@adssouth.com