Becker's Dental + DSO Review

8 BECKER'S DENTAL + DSO REVIEW - VOL. 2021 NO. 1 Sponsored by: The COVID-19 pandemic has hit every component of the healthcare sector hard, including dentistry. Fear and uncertainty about the future have caused some seasoned dental professionals to consider career changes or early retirement. Others, however, have risen to the challenge, providing care to patients in need while navigating changing regulations, personal protective equipment shortages and staff safety. Becker's Hospital Review recently spoke with three leaders from Waltham, Mass.-based 42 North Dental: • Mike Scialabba, DDS, VP of Clinical Affairs and Board Member, Board of Registration In Dentistry • Luke Lamphron, CFO • Craig Allen, DMD, Leader of Allen Dental Associates, a practice affiliated with 42 North Dental These experts shared how their DSO is responding to the pandemic and offered best practices that can help dental practices thrive in the coming weeks and months. Dental emergencies don't go away during a pandemic and neither did 42 North Dental's providers 42 North Dental eliminates barriers to quality care by providing business and administrative support to over a dozen practice brands in 77 locations. Its unique DSO model has enabled the organization and its affiliate dental professionals to serve patients safely during the COVID-19 pandemic. "I still have March 17th circled on my calendar," Dr. Scialabba said. "The American Dental Association called for dental practices to postpone all elective procedures. As a team, we rallied around the idea of emergency care and focused on how to manage the situation and reduce risks for employees." As 42 North Dental grappled with how to proceed, its clinical management team shifted into high gear. They knew it was critical to the community to provide safe, emergency care to keep dental emergencies out of the hospital emergency room. Historically, this group of clinical leaders met eight times a year to oversee clinical policies and protocols for affiliated practices. That all changed, however, in March. The group began meeting routinely to establish protocols around emergency care, even before the American Dental Association (ADA) issued its guidance. "Our protocols turned out to be very similar to what the ADA published, which gave us confidence that we were moving in the right direction," Dr. Scialabba said. 42 North Dental's regional density supported a nimble, safe and patient-oriented approach to emergency care. The organization created a hub-and-spoke model which relied on 10 of its affiliated offices. The leadership team selected locations based on considerations like patient parking and facility layouts which enabled providers to comply with regulatory recommendations, such as keeping people out of waiting rooms and maintaining physical distancing. Dental teams used teledentistry to triage patients. This was a safe way to identify which patients needed to be seen in person and which individuals could try interim care steps at home. "Thanks to 42 North Dental's software system, we could easily access all the triage notes for emergency patients," Dr. Allen said. "In my practice alone, we cared for close to 500 emergency patients during the height of the pandemic in the spring." A unified patient management system meant that doctors from any practice could see their own emergency patients at a regional hub with full access to records and X-rays. Another key differentiator was 42 North Dental's multispecialty dentistry model. "Virtually all our supported practices have a full host of specialists. When COVID-19 forced us to scale down to hub locations for emergency cases, we had adequate staff, including endodontists and oral surgeons, to meet patients' dental needs," Mr. Lamphron said. Safe dental care comes with heavy administrative and compliance burdens, but DSOs can help Under normal conditions, running a dental practice means handling administrative work, as well as staying current with industry guidelines and best practices. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has greatly amplified the stresses facing dentists. Now, practices must manage all their usual administrative tasks plus worry about acquiring PPE, monitoring the regulatory landscape and more. Dental support organizations relieve these pressures and enable dentists to focus on patient care. Throughout 2020, 42 North Dental's affiliated practices have appreciated the benefits of participating in a DSO. At the beginning of the pandemic, for example, securing PPE was one of the largest challenges facing dental offices. 42 North Dental made a large investment early on to secure gowns, gloves and N95 masks. "During March and April, it was the Wild West of procurement. Products were expensive and those coming from overseas were often getting stuck in Customs," Dr. Scialabba said. "We knew, however, that dentists can't practice without proper PPE. We secured a legitimate source and committed to a large volume. Dental care is an essential service: How 42 North Dental is supporting practices during the pandemic EXECUTIVE BRIEFING

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