This week Russ and Clint talk with Dr. Shant Aharonian from Burbank, California. Shant runs a small cosmetic focused office that emphasizes 3d printing. We discuss printing and milling and smile design. Shant teaches on smile design through photography and how to communicate with both patients and with labs using photography. Also Shant will be giving a One Hour Webinar for Free CE through Hass Bio on the Amber Mill.
Shant's Instagram
If you want to contact him, his email is aharoniandental@gmail.com. His practice website is Smile Design Burbank.
This week Russ and Clint talk with Dr. Melissa Zettler out of Minneapolis, Minnesota. We talk about the fun of running a dental office in a state that likes to tax you on your gross income (like MN), managing staff (especially when you hygienist goes crazy), and trying to get AACD credentials. We finish off with the importance of being consistent.
Russ and Clint talk with Baron Grutter this week. Baron is a dentist out of Michigan who while doing all things bread and butter loves technology and teaching. He also recently created two one day online classes Blue Sky Bio. One focuses on ortho and the other focuses on surgical guides. Both classes can be found on this Blue Sky University which is also where Russell's class is found. Baron's class is more polished than Russell's but that is just how Baron rolls.
In our podcast, we talk about Midwinter and Lab Day and how Lab Day is clearly superior to Midwinter. We also talk about 3d printing and why so many more dentists are getting into the lab space and doing their own lab work. Also we talk about why Baron is not going to be 3d printing aligners anytime soon.
If you want to see when Baron is giving in person courses, go to https://www.barongrutterdds.com to learn more.
This week Russ talks with Dr. Robert Ramsey who runs the Facebook group Dentistry Gone Wild which offers a humorous non-political take on dentistry that we all often need in the world of dental facebook. We talk for the hour about Robert's journey from JnJ to dentistry, and why we both left Corporate America to go do dentistry. Robert talks about the DSOs he works for and his experience doing HMO dentistry (spoiler alert: it isn't all that bad). Finally we discuss refunds and specialists.
Clinton and Russell speak with Stephen Trahan.
Listen and hear his adventures in the Bayou, going to dental school in Louisiana during Hurricane Katrina, being a military dentist and how he ended up in The Lone Star State.
Clinton Timmerman and Russell Schafer talk with Matthew Hernandez, a third generation denturist from Texas who now resides in the lovely town of Mukilteo, Washington. Matthew has started and sold DSO's multiple times and continues to seek opportunities that can help boost the profession.
He has also hunted wild packs of hogs, which actually sounds somewhat dangerous, even when armed with uzis or whatever type of hunting item one chooses.
This week Russell talks with Dr. Josh Nagao. We talk about the importance of continuing education and how honestly... good CE kinda costs money. We both love Pathways, and Josh teaches at Pathways. Josh talk about the courses that he and Dr. Wade Pilling teach together. The next one is an FP1 course being taught April 24-25. If you want to sign up, reach out to one of them via Facebook. We also talk about the importance of comprehensive treatment planning as well.
This week Russell talks with Dr. Usa Bunang and Dr. Jay Siddiqui about their new study club called the DMV 3D Printing and Digital Dentistry Study Club. They focus on teaching dentists about practical applications of digital dentistry in the DC, Maryland, and Viriginia area from all aspects of dentistry from surgical guides to ortho to restorative. We talk about why they formed the study club and their goals.
Clint had to take an unexpected trip to Gainsville, Florida, and attend a dental board meeting. He learned some pearls he thought he should share to help listeners avoid any potential trouble in the future.
Russell also shares going to the new Implant Pathways center in Arizona and how rad it is.
In summation to avoid problems with a dental board:
1) Shit’s gonna happen
2) Document, document, document
3) Contact your patient and show concern; document that you contacted your patient
4) Be honest—with your patient, your lawyer, in your notes, in your testimony to the board. Honesty is the best policy.
5) Refer when indicated. Referring and documenting that you referred can go a long way.
Justin Morgan goes totally oral with Clinton Timmerman and Russell Schafer to talk about what both practice purchasers and practice sellers need to be mindful of when it comes to selling and buying a practice.
Listen and find out what advice Justin may have for you!
Reach out and seek his counsel!
Russ talks with Dr. Andrew Ip from Sydney, Australia. Andrew is a second generation dentist who works in both his mom's practice and his dad's practice and teaches CAD-CAM dentistry as well. We talk for the hour about what it is like to practice in a former British colony as well where the technology is taking us. It is a cool discussion.
Links:
https://ai3dprinting.com.au/ for his website and reviews of printers
https://youtube.com/@ai3d676?si=KBbX64SSTvrRvdgU for his videos
#ai_ortho_implant for his Instagram
Delaney Spaulding joins Russell Schafer and Clinton Timmerman to talk about growing up in the field of dentistry, experiecing the Northeast after college at the Univesity of Georgia and purhcasing a practice in Birmingham, Alabama.
Delaney ripped off the band-aid when she bought her office and went FFS immediately. Listen and find out how she has made her success in The Yellowhammer State, and how Dandy Lab has been a great asset to her business.
This week Russell talks with Dr. Mustafa Shah Khan and Richard Offutt about their new platform and social group Simplifiy Dentistry. Their goal is to bring clinicians together on a wide variety of topics from clinical skills to business discussions. In our podcast we talk about how social media has evolved over time and how dentists have gravitated towards it. We also talk about the downsizing of Align and Dentsply Sirona as well as why maybe that has happened. Finally we discuss what might be done about the hygiene shortage.
If you want to go to their website it is simplifydds.com . Also their Facebook page is active as well!
Kelly Tipple shares what it's like marrying into a profession she previously knew nothing about and all the many joys the field of dentistry bring her.
Russell Schafer was presumably out 3D printer shopping but will be back with us next week.
This week Russ talks in person with Dr. Abraham Hoellerich and Dr. Lance Timmerman live at Pathway Symposium after hours. We talk about a variety of topics such as how to fix CE events, how Abe built his office into the magnificient beast it is, bringing staffs on trips, as well as how sedation. Lots of cursing as well... you have been warned...
This week Russ and Clint get to talk with Dr. Artie Volker. Artie talks about his recent residency he finished in Italy and we talk about how we enjoy taking courses and learning new things and talking with colleagues.
If you want to see Artie speak, you can find him at Dig-A-Palooza 2024 in Oct 2024 and he will be speaking at the Greater New York meeting in 2024.
This week Russ talks with Dr Jeff Hoos who create the H&H technique. He also runs the Dental Insights Facebook group and own a rather large office with 4 other dentists. We talk about his career since he graduated in 1978 as well as how stuff has changed and go on various topics. We end the conversation talking about Dentapreg as well which he likes.
This week Russ and Clint talk with Sam Katacic VP of Sales for Rapidshape. We talk at length about the changes in the market for 3d resins and how automation is driving a lot of changes. Rapidshape has validated over 200 resins on their platform and has processes to ensure that each print is routine and predictable. This is really nice especially if you have staff turnover, it is easy to train new employees to your resin. Also Russ gets pretty excited to hear about their curing unit which doesn't need N2 to cure but rather uses a vacuum. He will be looking into that product for sure.
If you want to learn more about Rapidshape, go to Rapidshape.de.
This week Russ talks with Dentscape AI co-founders Bill Chou and Sylvie Liu, DDS along with their VP of Business Development Ryan Axelson. They've all been on the podcast before when Russ went to Smilecon in 2022. On the previous podcast, they talked about PreTeeth AI Pro which does smile design using AI to simulate what is possible doing different treatment modalities.
Dentscape AI is a web based software that currently can design bite splints and crowns using a simplified interface with the goal being to expedite the entire process so that labs can design units in a day and be more efficient. We talk about the process of developing the AI as well as why they first started with bite splints rather than crowns as well as why humans are still needed to guide the AI. If you are interested in hearing about how AI is "done," it is a cool conversation.
If you are a lab interested in partnering with Dentscape, contact Ryan. His email is ryan@dentscape.ai or you can find him on Facebook as well. If you prefer LinkedIn, his page is https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanaxelson/
Also as a disclaimer, they have given me Russell a few free credits to try out their software, but I am not being paid to endorse them at all. These people are friends of mine.
This week Russ interviews Allison Norris an RDH who pivoted to working in the industry. We talk about her journey and how she founded the The Dentele Group which focuses on placing non-clinical roles in the dental industry. She essentially helps everyone from FDs at small dental offices to dentists who want to work for major companies like Henry Schein. We also talk about her app that she is developing called Cakewalk which is meant to be Indeed for Dentists to help with hiring new staff. If you want to reach out to Allison, you can find her on Facebook or you can email her at AllisonNorris@thedentelegroup.com.
Clint and Russ come together to talk with long time listener Dr. Tyler Rumple. Tyler listens to darn near all the different podcasts out there. Tyler practices near Clint and is a busy PPO dentist who has quite a few hygienists and has merged two dental offices together to create a thriving office. We talk about the joys of owning an office and also about his experience of being in the Navy. Finally we talk about the importance of the ADA and about sectional matrix bands. We reference Tor Matrix bands which are a cheap matrix that seems to work pretty darn well in both Russ's and Tyler's hands.
Russ talks with Dr. Rick Ferguson this week. Rick and his wife are both dentists in Florida but on the side Rick teaches a few things. He runs Implant Educators where he trains dentists on full arch as well as single units. He also runs Digital Educators which is his platform to teach 3d printing technology and digital processes. We talk at length about the different platforms from Asiga to Phrozen to Sprintray to Formlabs and Rick gives us his opinions of the pros of all of them as well as what made him decide to create the mini plate and heat plate for the Phrozen Mini 8ks which kinda makes the Phrozen equal to the Sprintray Pro 55S for a tenth of the cost.
We surprisingly don't go political either!
Finally, we talk about the greatest part of the digital dental printing revolution which has really been the comraderie between dentists. If you want to join his big Facebook group, Dental 3D printing group click on the link and join in the coversation. It is a great group overall.
Russell Schafer explains to Clinton Timmerman how he is able to make Medicaid work for his office through strategic scheduling and dentures.
Learn Russell's simple 3 step denture technique at https://www.practicebiopsy.com/denture-magic-information-page/
Russ talks with Dr. Marcus Cowan this week. Marcus is a dentist who moved with his wife from sunny Georgia to Boston, Massachusetts as his wife goes to surgery residency at there. We talk about his experience moving and starting a new job as well as doing a GPR.
Also Marcus has started an implant planning lab called CowTech Dental Lab focusing on helping dentists place implants from consultation and treatment planning to execution. We talk about the need for helping doctors plan out cases because most cases are not as easy as implant courses make them out to be. We compare printers, resins, and softwares and talk about their pros and cons.
If you want to reach out and find out more about Marcus and his lab, you can find him on Instagram at MarcusCowanDMD and his email is marcuscowandmd@gmail.com.
This week Russ talks with Dr. Steven Dold from Wichita, KS. About a month ago, they both took a botox and filler course together and of course like good dentists, neither of them has done a single case. We talk about how practices have peaks and valleys and good months and bad months. We of course talk about removable and Dold talks about his removable lab Kaylor Dental. Primarily at the end, we talk about how Steven actually does all of his own insurnace billing and why he started doing it was because he kinda needed to.