The Very Dental Podcast Network

Alan Mead welcomes Southern California cosmetic and biomimetic dentist Dr. Matt Nejad. Matt shares his career journey—from buying a modest two-chair practice straight out of dental school to run his own self-directed "residency" in meticulous care, to becoming part of an aspirational practice in Beverly Hills. The two dive into the core philosophy of biomimetic restorative dentistry, the power of...

In today's throwback Very Clinical episode Kevin and Zach welcome Dr. Ash Mark of YouTube's "All Things Dentistry" to discuss practical clinical strategies for navigating calcified root canals. The conversation dives into essential tips for identifying and treating calcified cases, including the importance of proper diagnostic imaging (like vertical bitewings and CBCT) and utilizing tools like lon...

How often do you experience your own office like a patient? As luck would have it, Alan lost a filling and had the chance to see what it's like to be a patient in his own office and he learned a lot! Alan discusses the unexpected anxiety of losing a restoration, attempting to place a temporary matrix band on himself, and the crucial insights gained from experiencing his own clinical workflow from...

This throwback episode features a great conversation with Dr. Dave Whitlock! They discuss the unique opportunities, lifestyle perks, and financial benefits of practicing dentistry in rural communities. Having transitioned from high-competition, high-cost metro markets like Phoenix and Dallas to rural Eastern Kentucky, Dr. Whitlock shares how moving away from urban saturation allowed him to lower h...

In this throwback episode of the Very Clinical Podcast, Zach and Kevin welcome back Dr. Sully Sullivan from Nashville, Tennessee. Sully shares the unique origin story of the 3D Dentists Mastermind, which began when he and Hootan stepped in to help run a course in Texas after Dr. T-Bone had a family emergency. He breaks down the Mastermind's core philosophy: dentists must learn to "replace themselv...

In this engaging throwback episode Alan Mead is joined by frequent guest Dr. Dawn Grimes. They have a thoughtful conversation on mental health, specifically how consuming the news and the media's "outrage machine" can negatively impact daily life. Dr. Mead shares his new strategy of driving his morning commute in complete silence to protect his peace, while Dr. Grimes emphasizes the importance of...

In this throwback episode of the Group Function Podcast, Alan Mead sits down with two titans of dental podcasting: Dr. Mark Costes and Dr. Paul Etchison!  Together they decode the rapidly evolving world of Dental Service Organizations (DSOs). They break down complex industry jargon like EBITDA, recapitalization, and same-store growth, making it easily digestible for independent practice owners. Th...

In this throwback episode of the Very Clinical Podcast, hosts Zach and Kevin welcome Dr. Sully Sullivan from Nashville, Tennessee. Sully shares his journey of joining his father's successful dental practice and the strategic moves that propelled their exponential growth. From overcoming generational ego to investing in CBCT technology and executing a massive office expansion from 2,700 to 11,000 s...

Recorded straight from the front porch of the farm, Alan reflects on the relief—and the sudden realization—that comes after hosting a massive high school graduation party for his son, Sean. Surrounded by the ambient sounds of wind chimes and ducks, Alan explores the "Arrival Fallacy" (or Destination Fallacy): the psychological trap of using a major calendar milestone as an excuse to put the rest o...

Alan welcomes back CAD-Ray's Damien Bonner to demystify the rapidly evolving world of chairside 3D printing and digital restorative workflows. The two kick off the conversation with a lighthearted look at phishing scams targeting clinicians before diving into CAD-Ray's scanner lineup, including the Shining 3D Elf and Elite. Damien breaks down the new Shining 3D Ceramix Nano restorative printer, co...

In this throwback episode of the Very Dental Podcast , Alan sits down with his long-time friend and dental school classmate, Dr. Bart Schultz, for a wide-ranging, candid conversation that blends nostalgia with clinical reality. Celebrating their entry into the 50-year-old club, the duo reflects on the evolution of their careers from green, baby-faced associates to seasoned clinicians. They swap un...

Alan discusses the distinct economic realities of general dentistry, focusing on why the industry relies almost exclusively on a traditional flat-fee structure rather than complexity-based or hourly pricing. While individual clinical procedures exist on a vast continuum—ranging from effortless five-minute wins to grueling, unpredictable clinical nightmares—general practitioners routinely charge th...

Alan welcomes Erez Druk, the co-founder of Freed.ai, and returning guest Dr. Giles Damron to explore how artificial intelligence is revolutionized clinical documentation. Giles shares his firsthand experience of using Freed's AI-scribing software over the last two years to write thorough, accurate, and highly detailed dental notes in a fraction of the time. Erez dives into the heartwarming origin...

In this throwback episode, Kevin and Zach feature Dr. Chris Salierno talk about the real-world operational realities of implant dentistry. Moving past the textbook "before and after" presentation, Chris shares valuable lessons learned from his early residency clinical errors, examining how aesthetic, functional, and hygienic complications ultimately shape a successful final restoration. The conver...

Alan gets real about a major pet peeve that's been festering on his Instagram feed: the rise of the "sobriety influencer." Celebrating over 24 years of clean time himself, Alan breaks down why the highly curated, aesthetic world of online recovery culture—full of sunny morning routines, mocktails, and six-month "experts"—feels completely detached from the gritty, anonymous reality of church baseme...

This episode of the Very Dental podcast is actually a terrific throwback to the Dental Hacks days! Step into the time machine as Al and Jason welcome Dr. Steve Ratcliff from the boardrooms overlooking the impressive Spear Education auditorium. This candid conversation delves into Dr. Ratcliff's early days at Spear, his role in developing their revolutionary study club modules, and the philosophy b...

In this throwback episode from the 2023 Voices of Dentistry summit in Scottsdale, Arizona, Kevin and Zach sit down with "Papa Randy" himself, Dr. Randy Houska. The South Dakota solo practitioner shares his rogue dental journey before diving deep into classic patient myths—including the persistent tale of babies "sucking the calcium" out of a mother's teeth and wisdom teeth causing orthodontic rela...

Alan kicks off the July 4th holiday week by diving into the psychological relief of "hard endpoints" in dentistry. From the binary satisfaction of an extraction to the gamified progress bar of using disclosing solution during hygiene, he contrasts these clean wins with the existential anxiety of restorative work—like chasing deep caries or dropping crown margins on a difficult second molar. But in...

Alan welcomes Beth Parkes, a clinical dental hygienist and educator from Canada, to break down the evolving world of hygiene instrumentation. Beth challenges the common "ultrasonics-to-completion" mindset, advocating instead for a balanced marriage of 80% power scaling and 20% intricate hand instrumentation for optimal tactile feedback. The duo dives into the resurgence of guided biofilm visualiza...

This throwback episode from  2023 features  Dr. Meylinda Meredith . Zach and Kevin welcome back special guest Meylinda, as they kick things off with some hilariously relatable (and occasionally creepy) bad neighbor stories. The conversation then shifts to the front lines of dental education, diving into the post-COVID realities of dental school, the controversial shift to pass/fail and typodont-ba...

The cliffhanger is paid off in this highly anticipated follow-up episode! Alan welcomes back Dr. Matt Standridge to finish their deep dive into the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) controversial white paper on Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB). Matt pulls back the curtain on the paper's actual citation list, exposing questionable sample sizes, misplaced reference numbers, and instances w...

Alan is once again joined by podcast veteran Dr. Matt Standridge to dissect the American Association of Orthodontists' (AAO) controversial 2026 white paper on sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and orthodontics. Together, they pull back the curtain on the document's surprising omissions—including a shrinking author panel that entirely removed sleep physicians—and critique its heavy, restrictive reli...

This throwback episode from  2023 features  Dr. Meylinda Meredith . Zach and Kevin sit down with Meylinda, a fellow UMKC dental school alumnus and current clinical faculty member teaching operative dentistry. They dive into a fascinating discussion comparing private practice associateships with a career in dental education, exploring everything from the perks of academic vacation time to the uniqu...

Alan dives into the long-awaited alignment between dentists and orthopedic surgeons regarding antibiotic premedication for joint replacement patients. Reflecting on a wildly sarcastic blog post he wrote back in 2012 , Alan breaks down the history of joint prophylaxis confusion—from the shotgun antibiotic approach of the 1990s to the frustratingly vague "case-by-case" guidelines of 2012 and 2017. ...

Alan once again sits down with Dr. David Clark for a deep dive into a massive paradigm shift shaking up the Bioclear Method! Dave discusses the clinical realities driving the development of the new Tooth and Surface Specific (TSS) matrix system and drops a bombshell announcement: the wholesale transition away from legacy composites toward color-stable materials. They explore why whole-tooth restor...