Dental Economics' Chief Editor Dr. Chris Salierno says, "Our profession continues to be challenged by a changing landscape. We cannot sit idly by and hope that the world will adapt to us." He announces a special conference that will arm you with what you need to give your dental practice growth a nudge.
Our profession continues to be challenged by a changing landscape. I analyze the important research being done by groups such as the American Dental Association’s Health Policy Institute (HPI), which is under the direction of Marko Vujicic, PhD. Late last year, the HPI published a bit of good news—the dental economy finally might be growing again. (1) While national spending on dental services has been slowing since 2002 and relatively flat since 2008, Dr. Vujicic and his team reported a slight increase in spending from 2014 to 2015. But wait—it’s not time to break out the champagne just yet.
The HPI believes this increase in spending is likely due to the improved funding in Medicaid for children, thanks to the Affordable Care Act. Spending among the elderly was also slightly improved. Spending by working-age adults still remains flat.
It’s too early to say whether the dental economy will continue to grow and in which populations. But there’s one thing I can say definitively right now—our practices still require active management. We must investigate economic trends, both nationally and locally, and work to adapt our practice models to those trends. We cannot sit idly by and hope that the world will adapt to us. A third of US dentists report that they are not busy enough. (2) If you fall into that category, or if you are busy enough but not profitable enough, then it’s time to make some changes.
In this issue, I am proud to announce the second annual Principles of Practice Management Conference. Please join me and an all-star lineup of practice management experts in Charlotte, North Carolina, July 20–21. Last year I left the PPM conference with pages of notes and was able to implement positive changes into my practice immediately. Whether or not the dental economy continues to grow, we can grow our businesses.
Cheers,
Chris Salierno, DDS
References
1. Wall T, Vujicic M. U.S. dental spending up in 2015. American Dental Association website. http://www.ada.org/~/media/ADA/Science%20and%20Research/HPI/Files/HPIBrief_1216_2.pdf. Published December 2016. Accessed March 13, 2017.
2. Vujicic M. Solving dentistry’s ‘busyness’ problem. J Am Dent Assoc. 2015;146(8):641-643.
