By: Kelsey Currence The year 2020 was a reckoning of sorts, a reckoning that will have a longer impact on the American way of life than the 12 months that it incapsulated. Last year accelerated technological advances and changed most industries permanently. It also forced the federal government’s hand to come to the table with some financial help for small businesses, including dental practices, across the country. The Small Business

 By: Becky Bye, DDS, JD When the pandemic began, I explored ways to use my background as a healthcare provider to help with global efforts to eradicate this virus. I especially believed that dentists—with their constant exposure to aerosols and unique understanding of infectious diseases—were in a particularly prescient position. Although I am a licensed dentist, my primary career no longer lies in the clinical practice of dentistry, but rather,

By: Kevin Henry In my 20-plus years serving as the managing editor for Dental Economics, editor of DrBicuspid.com and group editorial director for Dental Products Report, I have seen a lot of great things accomplished by dental practices throughout the country. I have also seen many common mistakes, whether they were located in big or small towns or focused on insurance or were fee-for-service. One of the biggest mistakes I

By: Erin Issac, DMD “But are those healthy gums? Why do they look like that?” asked my 8-year-old patient as I showed him pictures in a chairside flipbook about oral health. We were discussing cavities, but besides seeing the cavities in one picture, my patient, who happened to be a white male, noticed the brown hue on the gums of the patient in the picture. “Well those are healthy gums

By: Jakob Holtzmann Like many of you, I wasn’t around to witness the destruction brought upon the world in the 1940’s. Like some of you, I wasn’t around to witness the cultural and economic challenges of the 1970’s. But like all of you, I’m currently living in the racially strained, virally catastrophic reality of 2020. It’s for this reason that I was honored to accept an invitation to write for

 By: Kevin Patterson, DDS, MD The JP Opioid Interaction Awareness Alliance needs your assistance to help drive down opioid interaction deaths and reduce emergency room visits related to opioid misuse and abuse.  As dental healthcare providers, it is incumbent upon us to minimize the risks associated with our care by creating awareness of the detrimental effects of opioids, especially when combined with benzodiazepines. WE can help with this important work

By: Allen Vean, DDS We all remember our dental education days. Some of us are reminded of hard times, good times and friendships that have lasted our entire professional lives. Moments of learning when your brain finally realized the instructor was giving you a difficult time for a reason. Unfortunately, the school that I attended, Washington University, St. Louis, was a victim of the many private dental schools forced to

Interview with Dr. Jeffrey Lodl Why did you feel it was important to volunteer as a vaccine administrator? I learned that Governor Polis has expanded the Dental Practice Act in mid-January to allow dentists to administer the vaccine. I really felt very fortunate that I had already been able to receive my first dose [of the vaccine] as a dental provider in group 1b. Based on this, I believed it

By: Dayna Johnson When I say “monitor,” I don’t mean you write the numbers down on your spreadsheet, stick it in the three-ring binder and forget about it. I mean you are writing it down, talking about it with your team, and coming up with strategies as a team to improve it or high-fiving each other because you are exceeding your expectations. Numbers tell a story. The numbers help you

By: Gary Benson, Esq. have been representing employers for the last 30 years, and the last three months have included the most surreal moments of my career. For those of you who watch “Stranger Things,” I’m sure you will agree that we are currently living in the “Upside Down.” At the beginning of March, as COVID-19 was an issue in China and Italy but had not yet become a U.S.

Dental implants have been around for a few years now. They’re the number #1 solution for patients who have lost a tooth or multiple and are looking to replace them. Dental implants are a post-like device that is installed in the socket that the lost tooth left behind. Dental implants are made out of different materials, usually metal or zirconia. Zirconia implants are a great option for patients who have