Why did we create a new “The Dentists Collaborative”?
When we started to construct our new location in North Andover, we were taken by dental equipment suppliers to see their recent “modern” dental offices. They were recent but the only thing modern and different was the decoration and the furniture. The offices were updated versions of my first practice in Andover, MA designed in 1971. The lack of advanced equipment and the designs that didn’t take health care concerns or patient safety advances into consideration were stunningly obvious. I embarked on my own tour of dental offices. I went to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Miami, New York, and Philadelphia. I read journals on modern offices and looked them up on the Web. I was shocked how the “new” was quite old. I next went to look at new medical facilities, and found they these offices were indeed modern. They had medical grade flooring, clean operatory walls, sterile water, and medical grade air (both from the heating/air conditioning system and from the air compressors that run their equipment).
We now had a starting point for our new facility. Our dental office incorporates the advances that are part of most new hospital facilities. We are fully computerized; we have digital x-rays (they reduce radiation to our patients by 90%); we have advanced electric hand-pieces (drills) that have better torque, less vibration and speed controls (which mean less pain and less heat to you the patient); we have incorporated all the medical facility features we mentioned above; and we made our operatories larger and more user friendly for handicapped patients and for any possible office emergencies. We have three different dental lasers (each for a specific purpose) so that we can offer our patients the right treatment with the best therapy possible. With these lasers we can target your dental treatment with the correct laser. What is best is what counts at our office. We designed a small “dental hospital”. This meant that a lot of our equipment is from medical supply companies and not dental companies. Even our phone system allowed us to respond to front desk queries without having to touch (cross contaminate) the phones. Even the lighting that we use in the operatories is set to daylight. It keeps us more alert and offers us better lighting to match tooth colors.
For the protection of our patients we only us disposable products or heat sterilized equipment and supplies. Our sterilization center is well lit, has sterile de-ionized water, and contains four medical grade sterilizers. We are aware that these devices breakdown and we want to be able to guarantee that you will always be getting properly sterilized instruments. During my travels to the “new modern” offices in various parts of the country, I was amazed how many offices had only a single sterilization unit.
After spending time and money on the necessary equipment and design of our new office, the next step was to choose a dental staff. We contacted friends at area dental schools, people we had served on committees with and researchers known to us in the Boston area. We were fortunate; we attracted great people to join our collaborative. They were professors at area schools, directors of programs, researchers, teachers in hospital residency programs and staff doctors at major teaching hospitals. All had seen what we were creating and they were excited. Most of the staff has been with us since we opened in 1998. Elsewhere in this web site there is a list with the CVs of the staff.
But, why this aggressive new concept, why change what has been around for 50+ years? It is necessary! As the linkages of medical problems to dental disease have grown in the past ten years, we have realized that dental care and dental facilities must evolve. The models for this new dental care are there, they are hospitals. They progress with the times, they don’t stagnate, and they advance for your safety and for your health. They are the models that we try to emulate.
In the USA about 60% of dentists are working in a solo environment. They have little contact with their peers and they make most of their decisions without the input of other professionals. Certainly, this is not what takes place in a hospital.
With admission to a hospital you are seen by a battery of specialists who, as a team, map out a strategy for your care. At The Dentists Collaborative we admire and emulate that team approach. As dentistry becomes more complex, bone grafts, implants, newer bridge designs, new materials, new types of equipment (lasers, digital x-rays, special injection devices, new drills, etc.), one voice for these complex problems may not be enough. Another complicating issue is the longer lives of people, the need to keep your oral health and your teeth for many more years than our parents. Unfortunately aging is often linked to medical problems (heart disease, diabetes, hormonal diseases, autoimmune illnesses, hypertension, allergies, and many other complicating health problems). In turn these medical problems are often tied to a plethora of medications. Medications can and often do complicate the therapies we offer our patients. At the very least they certainly may modify therapy and add additional home care burden to our patients. As your dental diagnosis evolves, it becomes entangled with your treatment plan. The final plan will also take your medical problems into consideration. It is not just serious medical diseases that complicate your dental health; it can be something as benign as a tranquilizer (like SSRIs) that affects your saliva flow (dry mouth).
When we plan your treatment we consult with the periodontist, to assess your bone and gum health, the restorative dentist (prosthodontist) who will build and repair your teeth, and possibly the oral surgeon or endodontist for their opinions on the feasibility of the treatment plan.
The advantage of a team approach is obvious and it probably occurs in more than 70% of our cases. We do not charge our patients for multiple treatment consults within our practice.
The next time you think that going to your dentist is just “do I have any cavities”, think again. Dentistry has advanced, it is more complex, it affects your overall health, and it affects your appearance. Seek the dental facility that can solve all of these concerns.
