Dental Realist Podcast

On Episode 45 we talk with Benjamin Tuinei to discuss how dentists can fight against low insurance reimbursements. Mr. Tuinei is the founder and CEO of Veritas Dental Resources and host of The Navigating Dental Insurance Podcast. We cover a variety of topics, including:  -How to negotiate higher reimbursements. -How to know when to drop an insurance plan.  -How to communicate with patients when dr...

Clinical board exam time is one of the most stressful periods during dental school. On Episode 44 we discuss how to best prepare for boards in the weeks and days prior. We also relive some of our memories from our boards and discuss some ideas to improve board exams for dental students. We start Episode 43 by answering a listener question and discussing our favorite soda pop.  Contact Dental Reali...

Choosing which job to pursue after dental school can be one of the dental student's most important decisions. On Episode 43 we discuss our individual stories for getting started after dental school, when dental students should start researching job opportunities, who to contact first, and what we would look for in an associate or practice purchaser. We start Episode 43 by discussing our favorite c...

The dental team is one of the most important assets of an enjoyable dental career. During the holidays the dental team is usually given a bonus of some kind, but how do you know how much to give each team member? And how do you scale back if your practice has had a slow year? What do you do if you staff begins to expect a bigger bonus each year? And what kind of gift is appropriate for dentists wh...

With the cost of running a dental practice getting more expensive, the rise of DSOs, and the changing dental marketplace how do private practice dentists stay competitive? To help dentists and future dentists navigate their careers during these changing times, we are joined by Caleb Carter of the Ion Dental Group. We discuss smart technology purchases, what challenges private practice dentists are...

Burnout in dentistry has become a hot-button issue in recent years with more and more dentists being willing to admit they have experienced moderate to severe stress at some point in their careers.  How is burnout defined?  How does burnout manifest itself?  How can it affect a dentist's personal and professional life?  What can be done to deal with burnout when it comes?  We answer these question...

Every dentist encounters patients who have oral hygiene issues that are difficult to diagnose and questions that may not have clear-cut answers. Also, some patients claim to have immaculate oral hygiene home care, but still get cavities and want to know why.  What are the best ways to deal with these patients?  Is "I don't know" an acceptable answer?  What is the dentist's responsibility and the p...

Decisions during your dental career are some of the most important you will make throughout your life. From deciding to go to dental school to deciding where to practice, decisions in dentistry can impact your life for years to come. What should be considered before making these major decisions?  How do you decide between career opportunity and lifestyle location if the two aren't aligned?  How do...

The release of a recent article by  The Atlantic called The Truth About Dentistry raised some questions about some of the information about dentistry that the general public receives. On Episode 37, Dr. Neff, Dr. Stevens, and Dr. Waldron discuss many of the topics in this article. Is dentistry really a science?  Where is the balance between prevention and treatment? What is true and what is false...

Recently, some of the the dental students that Dr. Neff works with asked him some very important questions concerning their futures in dentistry. On Episode 36, Dr. Stevens and Dr. Waldron try to answer some of these questions and give guidance to all future dentists.  Why do dentists seem to only work 3-4 days a week?  What are our favorite procedures?  What should new dentists look for when purc...

With the rise of dental service organizations, is private practice still a viable option for dentists?  What sets dentistry apart from medicine that will allow private practices to survive?  What are the benefits of working for a DSO?  What are the benefits of working in a private practice?  What are the best ways for the solo practice to compete with DSOs?  We discuss all of this and much more on...

With the current economic realities of dentistry what is the rationale for offering our employees incentives and bonuses?  How do you communicate this to staff members?  How can you make employees feel like their job is rewarding when you can't offer big bonuses and benefits packages?  What motivates someone to work at a dental office and to leave?  What makes an employee feel important?  We discu...

According to the American Dental Association, the retirement age of dentists is increasing and we discuss why we think this is, what dentists and future dentists can do to avoid a later retirement, and what the ADA can do to help.  We also breakdown a recent ADA.org interview with incoming ADA president Dr. Jeffrey Cole. What are his biggest concerns about the profession of dentistry? Does he have...

On Episode 32 Dr. Neff, Dr. Stevens, and Dr. Waldron announce and discuss our new mentoring program, Mentur DDS. We started the Dental Realist Podcast to help other dentists and dental students navigate their career in dentistry and Mentur DDS will allow us to do this on a more personal level. We discuss our early days in dentistry and why we wish we would have had mentors that could help give us...

In this episode Dr. Neff, Dr. Stevens, and Dr. Waldron discuss doing a one-year residency after dental school graduation, and Dr. Neff offers his unique perspective on these programs.  What are the benefits of a one-year residency?  What are some potential drawbacks?  What are some things to consider when choosing a residency?  Would it be better to complete a specialty residency?  We discuss thes...

In this packed episode Dr. Neff, Dr. Stevens, and Dr. Waldron start by discussing how patient stress can impact the treating dentist. We continue our discussion by answering a listener's questions about dealing with a bad owner-dentist. Whose job is it to bring in new patients? Who decides which types of materials are to be used? Who should pay for practice marketing? What questions should a new d...

In this episode we answer a second year dental student's email about his future after dental school. -With $300-350k in student debt, is it possible to have the lifestyle his family wants? -What is a good timetable to plan to purchase a practice?  -Is working in public health for a year after dental school a good option?  -What is realistic income in an area that is saturated with dentists?  We an...

In this episode we discuss some actual situations that happened recently at our offices. We start by discussing Dr. Neff's recent experience with a salesperson. Are salespeople out of touch with real world dentistry? Do they really have the dentist's best interest in mind?  We continue our discussion with a unique insurance situation that Dr. Stevens encountered not long ago. What is an insurance'...

In this episode we discuss if dental school is worth the debt that most students take on and options for limiting that debt. We also talk about some of the best ways to repay that debt and if student loan forgiveness is a viable option.  Next we discuss what causes the most daily stress in practice and some ways we cope with it. We then talk about how the stress actually affects us and why dentist...

In this episode we discuss how dentistry is changing and how these changes will affect the future of dentistry. What affect will retiring baby boomer dentists have on dentistry? Dentists are working less than they did in years past. Why, and will the trend continue? How will a higher female dentist population change dentistry? And what aspect of dentistry has dentists the most dissatisfied? We dis...

In this episode we are joined by Steve Parker, editor-in-chief of The Profitable Dentist magazine, CEO of Excellence in Dentistry, founder of Dentiva Dental Coaching and Consulting, as well as an international speaker and dental journal contributor. In this episode we discuss what new dentists need to do to be successful, what experienced dentists are doing right and wrong in their practices, what...

In this episode we are joined by Craig Cody of Craig Cody and Company Inc. Craig is a certified public accountant and a certified tax coach, as well as the author of  10 Most Expensive Tax Mistakes That Cost Business Owners Thousands.  We discuss the role your accountant  should play in your dental practice, how proactive tax planning can save you thousands of dollars, some nuggets on how to save...

In this episode we discuss Howard Farran's article "Suck It Up, Buttercup" and  Decisions in Dentistry's  article "How Educational Debt Influences Practice Choices." With dental school student loan debt being so high are dentists able to choose which procedures they want to do or should general dentists being doing everything? How does dental school debt affect practice options after dental school...

In this episode we address our thoughts on the American Dental Association. Is the ADA really on the side of dentists? Does the ADA support dentists like we want it to? With dental school tuition skyrocketing and dental insurance reimbursements rapidly declining, what would we like to see the ADA do? We cover these crucial topics and much more on this latest episode of the Dental Realist Podcast. ...

In this episode we discuss what we learned recently at Dr. Charles Blair's lecture at the Utah Dental Association Convention and give our thoughts. Currently, how are corporate dentistry and insurance companies affecting the solo owner dentist? What steps, if any, can be taken to ensure the survival of the solo dentist? Where is dentistry headed in the future? And much, much more.  Contact Dental...