MORE ABOUT KENYA SMILES, A DENTAL PREVENTIVE CARE MODEL

In a previous blog, we talked about KENYA SMILES: Improving the Oral Health of Children, A Unique preventive care model easily adapted throughout East Africa and beyond.  KENYA SMILES will be replicated throughout Kenya and other East African countries and taken next to Myanmar.

Among its activities, KENYA SMILES has delivered dental care supplies and educational materials in durable, colorful backpacks and presented oral health lessons to approximately 5000 Kenyan children.  Further, the program has provided nutrition counseling and energy-efficient cook-stoves to hundreds of mothers, health care providers, educators, and care givers in the slums of Nairobi and in rural areas near Mt. Kenya.  Professionals working with KENYA SMILES have created dental curricula in English and Swahili for use in schools, presented four mobile operatories and equipment to the Kenya Dental Association, the Nairobi School of Dental Sciences, and Meru Dental Services to treat children in underserved areas and coordinated two high level exchanges between professionals in California and Kenya.

We at Practicon stand up to cheer this major Global Grant Project of Rotary International led by RI Districts 5160 (North Central California), 9212 (Kenya), and 6150 (North and Central Arkansas).  It is our pleasure to support KENYA SMILES.  For more information, please contact Rotarians PDG Laura Day or Sheila Hurst, Ed.D., at 4kenyasmiles@gmail.com.

DENTAL HEALTH AROUND THE WORLD COURTESY ROTARY INTERNATIONAL

Rotary International (RI) is a worldwide organization composed of leaders and “do-ers” in their respective communities.  RI has tackled numerous global service projects in an effort to improve lives regardless of country, race, gender, creed, or political ideologies.  An example:  RI set a goal of eradication of polio worldwide by the year 2000, and largely achieved that goal.

Another health-related goal RI Districts 5160 (North Central California), 9212 (Kenya), and 6150 (North and Central Arkansas) are addressing is KENYA SMILES: Improving the Oral Health of Children, a unique preventive care model begun in Kenya to be replicated throughout East Africa and planted next in Myanmar.  Before the end of 2014, a multi-national group of Rotarians will travel to Myanmar to coordinate and deliver an oral health component consisting of good nutrition education and preventive care information along with the distribution of individual dental care kits to as many as 3000 children.

The RI initiative, KENYA SMILES, is “improving the oral health of children in Kenya through a sustainable dental preventive care program that promotes education, provides information, and builds awareness about oral health to help free children from preventable tooth decay and mouth pain.” states an article written by participating Rotarians.  Kenya’s population is estimated to be 43 million, served by fewer than 1000 licensed dentists.  KENYA SMILES has already proven to be an invaluable help in closing this gap by providing positive, sustainable results that can be replicated in countries around the globe.

The program has brought together dental associations, dental schools, universities, government authorities, corporations, foundations, and individuals in the U.S. and Kenya.  Practicon, Inc. is pleased and honored to be a supporter of this far-reaching, vitally important initiative.

LET YOUR TEAM MEMBERS KNOW THEIR FULL VALUE

When considering their compensation, many team members think only of their take-home pay.  In reality, they make much more than their net paycheck indicates.  The problem is that most team members have never been told the value of their total compensation package, including gross wages, taxes deducted before they receive their paycheck, insurances paid by the practice, holiday and vacation pay, paid personal leave time, and other benefits they may receive.  When informed of the value of their total compensation package, team members realize that, in fact, they receive much more than just the dollars included in each paycheck.

December or January is the month to prepare a Personal Compensation Statement for each team member, to be given to her or him early in the year.  The Statement informs each individual of the worth of her/his total package for the previous year.  Divide the annual compensation total by the number of hours a staff member worked to calculate the per-hour wage rate which is significantly higher than the net wage-per-hour rate which most team members consider.  Customize and personalize the following example so that it includes wages, taxes, and benefits earned by each person on your team, part-timers included.

INDIVIDUAL TOTAL COMPENSATION STATEMENT
FOR CALENDAR YEAR _____

Gross wages                                                                                                 $________
Bonus                                                                                                           $________
Social Security tax (employee portion)                                                       $________
Social Security tax (employer portion)                                                       $________
Medicare tax                                                                                                $________
Unemployment insurance                                                                            $________
Workers Compensation insurance                                                               $________
Health insurance                                                                                          $________
Retirement Plan contribution                                                                      $________
Vacation - ____ days/year                                                                          $________
Holiday pay - ____ days/year                                                                     $________
Personal leave - ____ days/year                                                                 $________
Continuing Education expenses                                                                 $________
Uniform allowance                                                                                     $________
Personal or family dental care                                                                    $________
Other (describe)                                                                                          $________

                                    Total Compensation/Year                                    $________

                                    Compensation/Hour                                             $________   

Thank you.  You are appreciated as a professional member of our dental team.  It is a pleasure to prepare this summary of your earnings and benefits so that you may be aware of your total compensation for last year.  Together we can make this next year the best one yet for our patients, our practice, and ourselves.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

CALCULATING THE BREAK-EVEN POINT FOR YOUR PRACTICE

The Break-even point (BEP) is the minimum amount of money needed to pay overhead, compensate the doctor(s), service debt, and provide a profit (Return on Investment, ROI).  Production and collection goals and the annual budget can be projected once the BEP Is determined.  Remember, if a BEP is based on production rather than on collections, it must be adjusted to the collection rate for the practice if the rate is less than 100%.

An example of the calculation follows:

FORMULA:  BEP = Total Fixed Costs / 1 - % variable costs are of gross collections

Fixed Costs include office overhead (staff salaries and benefits, occupancy costs, administrative costs, taxes, insurance, etc.), the dentist’s compensation, and debt service.

Variable Costs are considered to be laboratory fees and clinical supplies (those costs which vary according to patient load) and are, typically, 15% to 20% of collections in general practice; 8% to 12% in pediatric and orthodontic practices;         

If total Fixed Costs are $625,000 and Variable Costs are 10%:

            BEP = $625,000 / 1.0 - .10 = $625,000 / .9 = $694,500 BEP (Collection goal)

MOBILE PRACTITIONER---AN EVOLUTION IN THE PRACTICE OF DENTISTRY

As dentistry is changing and evolving, so are the ways some practitioners prefer to practice.  I’ve recently read of one manifestation of the various changes in practice, the mobile dental implant practitioner.  These dentists work in a number of offices, often 12 to 15 different locations, bringing with them their dental assistant, instruments, equipment, medicaments, and materials.  The traveling dentist must be well organized and flexible in order to transport safely all items necessary to work in a different dental office every day.  Further, the resident dentist and the mobile dentist must be comfortable and trusting with one another’s treatment modalities and interactions with patients.

The mobile implant practitioner is not a specialty because currently no such designation exists.  If a dentist practicing in a single office location were to choose limitation of his or her practice to implant services, lack of referrals would make that nearly impossible.  If however, that dentist is willing to be mobile, he or she can stay fully scheduled because many GPs and specialists now prefer to keep all care in-house.  Additionally, most patients prefer to be treated in the office with which they are familiar, and the coordination of treatment planning and execution of procedures is smoother between the implant practitioner and the referring dentist when they are both in the same office.

While the idea of bringing a mobile practitioner into your office to treat your patients may not appeal to you, be aware that the services of mobile practitioners are increasing.  At some point you may find that bringing a mobile practitioner into your office is both cost effective and stress reducing.  

WASTE PREVENTION IN YOUR OFFICE

There are two ways to increase profitability in your office:  earn more and spend less.  Many dental practice management consultants, advisors, speakers, writers, and instructors focus on the “earn more” part of the equation.  Time and energy focused on the “spend less” concepts are equally productive.

Saving money in your practice is possible, and those savings flow directly to the bottom line to become increased profit.  Many tools should be utilized as part of your “spend less” efforts, including (1) annual budgeting, (2) comparative shopping, (3) advance planning for capital expenditures, and (4) staff involvement.

An effective way to get your team members to buy in to savings projects is to ASK their opinion and advice about savings, and then implement all feasible ideas so that staff members feel valued and contributory.  A word of advice:  unless you, the Dentist, intend to use their ideas that are practical and possible to implement in your office, do not seek their input.

If you choose to involve staff, assign team members the challenge of listing at least three ideas for saving money in the office.  A list of more than three ideas is encouraged; three is minimal.  Correlate the individual lists into one master inventory of creative possibilities.  Then distribute copies to the entire team for discussion, evaluation, and planning at the next Staff Meeting or at a lengthier Practice Retreat.

A client who recently used this method received a wealth of ideas that, when implemented, generated significant savings for his practice.  Staff suggestions covered the entire practice---from basics such as lights off in every unoccupied space to ideas for using less material during procedures to improvements in time and motion during   clinical procedures to efficiencies at the business desk.  That office improved efficiency while better serving patients and saved a great deal of time and money in the process.  And remember, in a busy dental office, TIME = MONEY!