Cosmetic Procedures %

[HansWalker]

Hello all,

I was curious, what percentage of a dental practice (time commitment, revenue) do you think is comprised of cosmetic procedures? By "cosmetic" I mean veneers, whitening, crowns, etc. I ask this because I am very interested in dental medicine, however less interested in the purely cosmetic side of dentistry.

Thanks

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[12YearOldKid]

Unless you go into something like oral medicine (usually an academic position) there is not much of a living to be made in the diagnosis/prescription game. You pretty much have to be running a handpiece to make money. There are some guys out there who limit their practice to orofacial pain and TMD but they are few and far between.

 

[DrTacoElf]

I think he means more along the lines of elective procedures versus caries, etc. I would say about 20% of the time you get pure cosemtic -- i.e a person walks through the door and wants an anterior reconstruction -- keep in mind this was in a nice FFS practice in a large city. In rural areas i'm sure that % would be substantially lower.

 

[HansWalker]

you're right DrTacoElf, I was referring to elective procedures, not including restorative procedures. There seems to be a trend in dentistry towards purely cosmetic procedures, and I was just wondering if it would be possible to have a practice which did not offer cosmetic services. I'm not averse to "running a handpiece", in fact these instruments are part of the appeal of the profession. I simply was curious if a dentist could make a reasonable living without offering elective cosmetic preocedures.
In other words, would an individual be able to recruit enough business without offering these elective services, or am I just being naive?

 

[HansWalker]

I think he means more along the lines of elective procedures versus caries, etc. I would say about 20% of the time you get pure cosemtic -- i.e a person walks through the door and wants an anterior reconstruction -- keep in mind this was in a nice FFS practice in a large city. In rural areas i'm sure that % would be substantially lower.

What's an FFS practice?

 

[aphistis]

What's an FFS practice?

Fee for service. Translates to "take your insurance plan or HMO and stick it."

 

[airvent]

Fee for service. Translates to "take your insurance plan or HMO and stick it."

LOL that's true. Every once in a while the dentist I work for grumbles about going completely to FFS. Insurance companies are a pain in the a$$. They make you jump through hoops. Twice.