Randall Berning's Smart Words For Smart Doctor CEO's

Dentistry Is Relationships

One of the most enjoyable parts of the dental profession are the relationships we all form. Doctors have very close relationships with their staff and patients. Specialists seek and connect with general practitioners and form working relationships that can last for decades. The same is true for the many support persons and firms that serve dentists. Consultants, accountants, financial services advisors, specialized legal counsel are just a few. But also there are relationships between those firms. This past weekend provides a great example. I was sponsored by Treloar & Heisel, the well known insurance and financial services firm that I have known for many years, to provide a residents presentation at the Southeastern Society of Pediatric Dentists in Atlanta. Pictured here are the professionals I was with at the meeting. All of them are dedicated to serving dentists. From left to right, Joel Keirns, Dental Operations Leader, Medical Protective, Joseph Pantoja, MBA, CLTC, Jeffrey Wherry, CFP, ChFC, Managing Director T&H Financial Group and Christian Pearson, Southeast Financial Service Representative, Treloar & Heisel.

What Am I Buying?

As doctors start their careers in practice, many reach the point of considering a purchase of an equity interest in an existing practice, among other options. The question that usually comes up is what in being purchased? Every once in a while I will see a proposed transaction where what is offered is a percentage of the hard assets only. This recently occurred and underscored that it is prudent for young professionals to confirm that intangible assets such as goodwill and patient records are or are not offered as part of the contemplated sale.

Fun Photos! On Building Confident Leadership Presentation

As I noted in an earlier post I spoke at the American Orthodontics Booth at the American Association of Orthodontics Meeting at McCormick Place in Chicago. Just received several photos that show the presentation in process. Thank you to AO for sending on the photos! The photo to the right shows one of the early slides for the Three Magical Questions To Guide Your Course presentation and a very enthusiastic presenter! The slide to the left shows Dr. David Musich answering a question related to practice growth and development, and Beth Barrett, both long time friends. I have had the privilege of providing services over the years to Dr. Musich and Beth Barrett, a well known speaker, has provided her slide program on The Fee Master: Orthodontic Fee Calculation Method now available in our web store.

UCSF Advanced Endodontic Study Club Dives In!

I have had the great pleasure of speaking to the members of this study group on several occasions. On one occasion it was a program in beautiful San Francisco and on another it was held at a truly wonderful location, the Bernardus Lodge and Winery in Carmel Valley. They are committed to advancing their knowledge and their practices and want up to the minute information. The program I provided this time was Have Exactly The Practice Transition You Want Coupled With Smart Doctor CEO Web Tools.  This time the program was held at the LaPlaya Hotel and Resort, Carmel By the Sea. Another superb location for continuing education. Over a two day period we had a great time learning, eating at spectacular establishments and applying vision, mission, time line and transition items for each doctor using the Smart Doctor CEO Interactive Coaching Newsletter. Shown in the upper right photo are long time friends Dr. Art Panella, Dr. Randy Rush and Dr. Larry Silva. Shown in the lower left photo are doctors learning about the web tools available in the Newsletter.

Disability Insurance Resource

As many of my clients and colleagues know I am always on the outlook for well regarded professionals that can help a doctor with the challenges they may encounter. I am pleased to have made the acquaintance of attorney Mark F. Seltzer who concentrates his practice in disability insurance law. He has come highly recommended. He has considerable depth in the area and has been in practice for more than 30 years. His firm offerings include filing and processing and maintaining disability insurance claims. Representing clients who have had their claims denied or terminated. Negotiating settlements and litigating cases against disability insurance companies for breach of contract, bad faith, and other causes of action. A consultation is available if you are considering filing a disability claim or have had a claim denied or terminated, or need assistance with your disability insurance company. http://www.seltzerlegal.com

New Book Available Professional Responsibility In Dentistry

Good news! My colleague and long-time friend, Joseph P. Graskemper, DDS, JD has a new book being released by Wiley Blackwell. It is entitled "Professional Responsibility in Dentistry: A Practical Guide to Law and Ethics". His new book covers many aspects  for the new and the not so new dentists in the field of Dental Law, Ethics, Professionalism, Risk Management, and Practice Management by applying True Cases to make it interesting. Amazon is taking pre-orders for the book which has a release date of August 2011. Joe is also the author of the "Risk Management – The Series" on our webstore under the Special Reports banner. I have the greatest respect for Joe. He is a professional’s professional, a wealth of knowledge, competence and expertise and he enjoys sharing through writing, speaking and teaching at Stony Brook School of Dental Medicine.

AAE Super Annual Meeting

Some annual meetings just don’t seem to come together. This was not the case for the American Association of Endodontists meeting in San Antonio! A wonderful meeting and great venue. I presented two programs, Avoiding The Crumbling Associateship for owners in the morning and Negotiating The Contract: Tips for Associates in the afternoon. Audience particpation was excellent! Photo here shows some of the Nova Southeastern residents after the morning session.  At the awesome Rio Cibolo Ranch (AAE hired 28 buses to carry a 1000) to the event, I enjoyed visiting with long time friend Dr. Terryl Propper and met the General Chair Dr. Anne Williamson. Seeing the Alamo during the 175th anniversary year was a most memorable occassion.

Form of Entity Choice

A question that many doctors ask, especially as they start their practice, is "What form of entity should the practice be, sole proprietor, professional corporation, limited liability?" No  doubt some doctors give the form of entity question little thought and just start out as a sole proprietor, but then at some point they read an article or talk with a colleague that asks why they are a sole proprietor. The implication can be that choosing to be a sole proprietor is somehow wrong. To help doctors think through the question of entity choice, a new monograph has joined our Special Reports, What’s "Wrong" With Being A Sole Proprietor, If Anything? Written by Kathy Tayon, Esq. Kathy is a Florida Bar Board Certified Health Care Lawyer and a partner with Fowler, White & Boggs. She has been representing health care providers for over 19 years in matters including forming new business, buying and selling businesses, employment contacts, management contracts, leases and operational and compliance issues. 

The Variety That Is Dental Practice

Some reflections after a trip involving 6 days in California seeing 5 practices and, after a 1 day return to the office, a trip seeing Chicago and Charlotte practices. First, as much as those of us that have studied dental practice administration would like to have a certain degree of uniformity to key systems and managing personnel related aspects of dynamic and often larger practices, the more divergent it seems these areas are becoming. Why? It may be due to the Doctor CEOs not evaluating the course of the development of these areas but instead allowing them to self develop, as one doctor stated to me, "a life of their own". Second, there is still wide variety between what is understood to be effective and what is actually is used by administrative staff. In my experience, many of the more capable national practice administration consultants do advocate to their clients the benefits of implementing effective systems and seem to advise in a similar manner regarding some of the key systems, although I have not examined or compared their formats in detail. However, the breakdown seems to occur at the practical level of the office staff team who find it is often daunting to completely implement suggested changes for the larger practice given many additional pressures and demands when the practice already has a well understood, if inefficient, system in place. The beginning of the year offers a good time for Doctor CEOs to rigorously evaluate systems with their staff and deliberately look for modifications that will support added efficiency. The pay off can be substantial.

When Is It Time To Retire?

Practice owners fall into one of several groups when it comes to timing their retirement. For some, the time is self evident, health concerns, practice decline, or a date set many years ago as the "date to retire". But for many others there is no certainty, in part, because even if they have practiced for many years, it remains enjoyable. Some of the reasons I hear are, the love of practice and patient care, the enjoyment of growing a sizable enterprise, the feeling of belonging. And yet, the energy may not be what it once was and there is a nagging feeling that other areas in life, including the needs of a spouse or extended family need more time. For the first group, setting a date and the sequence of items that flow with the decision are basically set once the decision is made. For the later group, at least starting the process, getting the form of the transition/succession detailed in a terms sheet, securing a practice valuation and exploring for the doctor and practice what amount of time is needed to effect the transfer can be beneficial. There are many structuring options that allow, with the foregoing in place, to expedite or delay the actual transfer of the practice to make it comfortable for the practice owner. In short, I like to encourage doctors who are considering the timing of retirement, whether from a small practice or larger one, to start the process and then come back to nailing down the actual date range and looking for a good candidate.