Tell us about your dental practice.
I opened my practice in 1974, just after dental school. We have two chair-side assistants and a receptionist/office manager. I'm a general dentist, and I see all ages, mostly grade-school age and up. We have an office with three operatories. For a sole proprietor, I'd say it's average-sized.
Why did you become a sole proprietor?
My dad was a medical doctor here in Springfield, and he set up practice on his own, and I thought, "If he can do it, I can do it." Back in the 1970s, it was more doable than it is now (in terms) of the costs of setting up a practice. I like dentistry because when we go home at night, in general, we can stay home. (My dad's) typical routine was to come home, have supper and go back to make hospital rounds and house calls. I didn't want that, because I knew how much he was away from family.
Tell us about the work of the Greater Springfield Dental Society.
The society is responsible for continuing education programs for dentists. We sponsor programs like Give Kids a Smile (with) free dental care to grade-school-age kids during the school year. ... We work with the Ronald McDonald Tooth Truck and donate at least $25,000 a year for that endeavor. Our fundraisers fall under our foundation. We are (exploring) another program called Team Smile, working with kids. It started in Kansas City, working with the Kansas City Royals. The concept is to try and make going to the dentist a fun thing. As a dental society, we're encouraging our members to be involved with the DDS program - Donated Dental Services - through the Missouri Dental Association (to) provide free dental care for patients who couldn't afford it otherwise. ... Besides organized programs, every dentist sees patients on their own (for free) just to help, without anyone tooting any horns.
What are some of the key challenges to oral health in the Ozarks?
One is a lack of realization of the need for good oral health. We have a lot of patients who come to us after they've had multiple years of dental insurance for an exam. The insurance covers the exam, so it's not money, but they don't go because they never have a toothache ... and they come in when their mouths are in pretty bad shape. There's a problem, especially in this economy, of people having money to afford dental care. The people who can least afford health care and dental care, unfortunately, are those with the greatest need for it.
Beyond basic brushing and flossing, how else can people improve oral health?
In today's world, I think a lot of the decay, if not most, is related to diet - soda, fruit juice, sports drinks. We in dentistry get on the bandwagon about soda pop, and rightfully so. Not only does soda pop cause rotten teeth, it causes Type 2 diabetes and other (problems). The sugar causes the Type II diabetes, but also, soda pop is full of acid. I tell patients that ... I can either concentrate on getting them to floss or giving up soda. If I can get you to give up the soda, you have a better chance of having a perfect checkup than if I get you to floss.
Are there dental-care access issues?
There are a lot of adults out there that we never see, because they financially can't afford it. For kids, there are so many programs, like the Tooth Truck, and Jordan Valley Health Center, which sees, predominantly, children, ... children are pretty well taken care of, but (some adults) now fall between the cracks, because adult Medicaid for dental care was eliminated under Gov. (Matt) Blunt.
Where do you stand on health care reform and government's role in the industry?
We feel that the most efficient care is offered through a private enterprise, free market system, individual practices. We are reluctant for too many government restrictions on how we practice, because we really believe the more flexible we can be, the more responsive we can be to people's needs. With federal programs, there's no profit incentive. There's no driving force to make (care) efficient. What I would like to see in dentistry is that, No.1, it's the dentist who needs to be in charge of diagnosing and treatment planning. It's tempting to want to delegate those to others less well-educated and less continuing education, such as dental hygienists who have two years of education compared to dentists' eight years. If we do that, I'm certain we are going to be missing a lot of disease, a lot of pathology and a lot of treatment options. Whatever program we come up with, let a dentist at least be in charge of and present whenever patients are being diagnosed and treatment is planned.
Contact Features Editor Maria Hoover at mhoover@sbj.net.
