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Dr. David Willey: Financial Mistake
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Are you making assumptions about what your patients can afford? One of the biggest mistakes dentists make is deciding for the patient instead of presenting the best treatment options and letting them choose.
In this episode of Dental Fuel, Dr. David Willey shares game-changing insights on how to avoid common financial pitfalls, build a thriving practice, and focus on what truly matters—your patients.
Key Takeaways:
✅ Why dentists should step away from financial conversations with patients 🚫💵
✅ The power of building a strong financial team to handle practice revenue & management
✅ Why we need to stop making assumptions about what patients can afford
✅ How regular financial check-ins (payroll, audits, daily reports) keep your practice profitable
✅ The secret to long-term success: Reinventing yourself every 5 years 🔥
Connect with Dr. David Willey: @lakesidedentalarts
Connect with Ignitedds and Dr. David Rice: @ignitedds Free Intro Call
Connect with Tanya Sue Maestas: @tsmaestas.dds
Learn more about Ignite Coaching : https://ignitedds.com
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Transcript
Introduction and Podcast Focus
00:00:00
Speaker
Dental Fuel, the podcast that focuses on what no one else is talking about, mistakes. The dental world is full of before and afters, and no one is talking about the middle.
00:00:11
Speaker
Dental Fuel brings you the unspoken in between. Dental Fuel is brought to you by Ignite DDS Coaching, empowering dentists to build self-determined futures. Together, we're shaping the next generation of leaders in dentistry.
00:00:24
Speaker
We're back
Balancing Patient Care and Finances
00:00:25
Speaker
with Dr. Willey. In this episode, Dr. Willey talks about the challenges and strategies of balancing patient care with financial responsibilities and some financial mistakes. Let's tune in.
00:00:35
Speaker
Well, Dr. Willey, in addition to a clinical mistake, I know that you've probably have seen a lot of finances come in and out of your door. With lots of patient, probably lots of cash flow in and out as well, too.
00:00:47
Speaker
I'm curious of some financial mistakes that you have made along the way and how you became financially savvy to own such a ah large practice and and be able to manage all of that and oversee it.
00:00:59
Speaker
Well, one of the things we as dentists, we get emotionally involved with our patients is sometimes we let things go and we'll we'll worry about the finances later on cases. So one of the things that I have done is kind of stepped away from the financial end of it in terms of treatment plan presentations in terms of the finances. And I have three really good treatment coordinators can kind of get into the meat of the matter with the patients because in the long run, it's can the patient afford it? Can we you know phase this treatment, what can we do to help them ah be able to afford
Patient Financial Autonomy
00:01:29
Speaker
the dentistry? So um I would just say one of my big things is just kind of get stepping away from the financial and still watching it and making sure that case acceptance is there and that financial arrangements are made and that patients are following through. But it helps us just to really concentrate on focusing on presenting to the patient what's important and the benefits of treatment.
00:01:48
Speaker
and let someone else say, hey, how can we make this happen? So I would say that's probably one of the biggest things as I've learned is is I need to step away from the financial end in terms of direct patient interaction.
00:02:00
Speaker
And that's what I've found has worked well for our practice. And it also young allows the young dentist to not shop with their own money. It allows the patient to shop with their money and make their decisions about treatment where we might be biased. And you know one of the things I will always tell a young dentist in Highlands County, don't be surprised that somebody comes in dirty jeans, could probably buy and sell us all three or four times. So just because somebody ah appears not to have money doesn't mean that they're not willing to spend that money. So don't be afraid to really provide ideal treatment to everyone if you can.
00:02:34
Speaker
Well said. I, you know, I try to embody that philosophy as well, too. And I have patients who come in. And so you may not know this about myself, but I'm in a public health setting. So a little bit different setting than private practice. But same thing, if patients want to talk about finances in the chair, I'm like, oh,
00:02:50
Speaker
We can talk about teeth here, but finances are up in the front. ah we don't We don't want to have those discussions back here. And I tell them, you know, i can count up to 32, but anything past that, we're in danger. So you definitely don't want me ah talking about money here. So I think that that's a great rule of thumb to incorporate in your practice when you're you're talking to patients and really give them that autonomy to make those decisions after the clinical discussion that you have with them.
00:03:15
Speaker
I think that's really big because patients make decisions with their money all the time. Are they going on vacation to buy new tires or is there are their teeth or their smile really important? So, you know, in our practice, we really try and figure out what the main value is for that patient and address that. And that's one of the things I'd encourage.
00:03:32
Speaker
young dentists to do is find out about your patient, really interview them and understand what what they're looking for so you can really address that. Because somebody may not care about the color of their teeth. and All they want to do is be able to chew food or keep their teeth for the rest of their life.
00:03:46
Speaker
And why are we talking about whitening and veneers with someone that that's not important to them? Yeah, patient expectations and what patients want, I think should definitely be at the forefront of our conversations. Absolutely. Absolutely.
Financial Management Practices
00:03:59
Speaker
I'm very curious ah with such a large um office that you have, I'm sure that you have probably an office manager that helps you with this and maybe some people you know behind the scenes out of the office that help you with this. But how do you keep your books in order? I know that we have heard, especially in the dental profession of so many people,
00:04:19
Speaker
you know, having somebody on the inside, maybe take advantage of them when we talk about finances. I'm curious as to what you have done that you you have found successful in your practice. Well, I still handle a lot of the check writing responsibilities as well as following through and checking payroll. But, uh, you know, I, my main goal is to let the the team know that I'm auditing things constantly. So, uh,
00:04:43
Speaker
end of day reports and checking routers and making sure that allocations are made correctly. You know, all these types of things are important in the long run. So I probably If I was to do it over again, probably hire a bookkeeper. But that's one of the ways that I can kind of keep control of things.
00:05:01
Speaker
And I actually, i kind of thrive on it. I like looking at the numbers and percentages and and understanding what's going on in the economics of a practice. And I think that's one of the things that sometimes we lose sight of. There's certain economics to a practice that ensure that you're going to be successful, that your margins will be good. But, you know, to me, I've always learned that if I take care of the patients the right way, I seem to always have things work out.
Importance of Mentors and Advisors
00:05:26
Speaker
and Very good. And how did you become financially savvy? I know that, you know, they don't teach a lot of business dentistry dental school. I've had some really good mentors in my life. I've actually had some personal relationships with some of the leading ah dental educators in terms of practice management, uh,
00:05:44
Speaker
I found a ah really good company early on in life that helped me do some managing in my finances in terms of retirement so that i would be sound by age 50. And now I just enjoy going to work because I i want to work.
00:05:58
Speaker
And I still, there are things I want to buy and experiences I want to have, but it's just, I feel that now I go to work because I want to, not because I have to, but it's, but I've still, it's one of those things, I think, if you find the right advisors ah to help you. And I mean, there's,
00:06:14
Speaker
You've got a ton of different practice management groups out there and you have to find the right one for you. And I've gone through probably seven or eight of them. And now I've kind of settled on one that's helped me grow my practice in a way where i really understand the benefits and the asset that practice has become in the long run.
00:06:33
Speaker
And i want to train our associates that hopefully someday they'll be able to take on that practice and have the systems in place so that they understand the finances of it. And also, um you know, just what a great asset it is to have your own building that helps you You build up equity and helps you you know have something in the long run. but But you have to have ah ah basically a really good team. You have to have some stewards of your practice and you have to find probably three or four really good team members that are willing to step up and watch where supplies are going, how supplies are being done.
00:07:08
Speaker
yeah If people are not pulling their weight, they're there to kind of, hey, come on, let's go. We've got things we've got to get done or there's certain key performance indicators that everybody owns. So that's one of the things I've done in our practice assign a key performance indicator to everyone. So we have a morning meeting.
00:07:25
Speaker
They report that number so they own something and they understand the value of that key performance indicator, too.
Guidance for New Dentists
00:07:33
Speaker
What would your advice be for a new de dentist that's coming out and maybe eat either wants to buy or start a startup practice and they may not be the savviest when it comes to finances and knowing the ins and out of how to run a dental practice?
00:07:51
Speaker
Aside from seeking out advisors like you mentioned and practice management groups, are there any other tips that you would like to bestow? I would try and find another mentor, someone a few years older than you, someone that's done this already and really pick their brain on that. I mean, I ah i meet a lot of other dentists when I go to different meetings and we talk and it's ah we talk in a non-threatening way. It's, you know, hey here's what's working for me.
00:08:20
Speaker
Here's what hasn't worked. Here the challenges. But ah To do a startup practice is a very big challenge. And, you know, if you buy an existing practice, you have to look at the metrics on that practice.
00:08:32
Speaker
You know how many new patients are coming in? Is this doctor on the tail end of his practice and not reinvesting in that practice to keep it growing? Is the practice stagnant? You know, these are things you need to look at as you purchase a practice.
00:08:46
Speaker
If you find a stagnant practice, that may mean great growth potential for somebody new that comes in. But if you find a practice that's kind of plateaued and really hasn't done much and and maybe their new patient numbers are actually dwindling.
00:08:58
Speaker
that may not be a value in the long run. You may be better off to start off on your own, but I will tell you this, the trends are going to be for multi-dentist practice, the economies of scale in terms of being able to share staff, supplies, physical space.
00:09:13
Speaker
um you know When I did it on my own, I realized that it was at that point where I had plateaued and I had to do something different to get to the next level that I wanted to get to. So I would say definitely find a mentor or two.
00:09:27
Speaker
And then you also have to pay for coaches. You have to have a coach. Coaches are not free and you need to find a really good financial coach or a good practice management coach, someone that you that matches your philosophy.
00:09:41
Speaker
And it's not a cult. You find what what works for you. And that's what I would encourage young dentists to do is really find these mentors and coaches to help them on their journey.
Challenges for Solo Practices
00:09:52
Speaker
Something that you mentioned that ah you know kind of just opened my eyes a little bit because I've had a lot of card conversations as of late – is The multi-dentist practice is thriving.
00:10:05
Speaker
Where do you see, how do you feel about the current nature of, you know, your typical mom and pop dental practice? You know, something that we used to see back in the day, maybe back in the 90s, early 2000s, where it was a smaller practice and it was a single dentist. Where do you think that is headed in the next few years?
00:10:27
Speaker
I think some of those will still thrive and they'll figure out ways to make it happen. The problem is that overhead continues to grow and increase. And we have a saying in our office, if you're not growing, you're dying.
00:10:40
Speaker
And you you know, we always need to be looking for growth. It doesn't mean that the numbers have to grow, but it needs to be, are we providing more services? Are we providing opportunities for more patients to come in?
00:10:52
Speaker
And I think these are things that we need to, to kind of look at as, as we, as we have a single practice, but I will tell you that, you know, the way that corporate America comes in and you know, you can get tired. you yeah i mean, the management can, can be some days frustrating and I see why people sell out. But the problem is, is they sell out and then they end up becoming a slave to their own practice again. And, you know, I've just, ah I think right now, as people go out in their associateships, you need to make a decision. Do you want to just get experience?
00:11:23
Speaker
in a corporate practice or you know a box practice, or do you want to find a mentor to help you grow as a person that hopefully, maybe someday you can buy in with them or allow you to thrive so you can move on into another area. But you know our our whole practice is finding young dentists that want to do different things. So I don't do endo.
00:11:44
Speaker
I hate endo. Both are our two new associates do endo. One loves to do implants. I wouldn't let him start implants right away, but he went through the course after a couple years of experience, has some restorative experience. Now he's placing implants.
00:11:58
Speaker
The other one's starting clear aligner therapy. So I'm just finding ways where our practice can offer more to patients and and also help let them know we can kind of not be a one-stop shop, but we can be a place where we can provide a great variety of services so patients don't have to keep hopping from one office to another.
Fostering Associate Growth
00:12:16
Speaker
But with that being said, we still utilize some great specialists for a lot of our cases. And I'm still, we're not ah a jack of all trades and master of none. We're trying to be very good at what we do and then allow others that can really help improve our cases to do their fancy stuff too.
00:12:35
Speaker
What a great way to foster your associates and let them build on the skills and the areas that they're passionate about. it's It's fun to watch. And, you know, that's ah when we interview, we talk about what are areas are you're looking at, because I know restorative dentistry. I know it very well. And I can input give them the thoughts on cosmetics and reconstructions and how implants are really working. But um You know, they have a passion for something else. And it's I tell them each every five years, you're going to have to reinvent yourself in some way.
00:13:04
Speaker
You're going to have find a new procedure or technology that that excites you because, you know, you you just fall into the same lull sometimes. So each every five to 10 years, I'm finding something new that I want to get interested in or new techniques ah that I want to grow with.
00:13:21
Speaker
That's the beauty of dentistry. It's ever-changing and new technology is coming out, which is very exciting for in the profession. It is really cool. Yes.
Closing Remarks and Next Episode Teaser
00:13:28
Speaker
I really enjoy that Dr. Willie advocates for young dentists and encourages them to establish themselves in the field.
00:13:35
Speaker
Tune in next time when we talk about a team mistake. Ready to take the next step in your journey? Book an intro call with Ignite DDS Coaching today and level up your future in dentistry.