Time & Money Secrets from One of the Best Dentists in the U.S.

Episode #353 with Dr. Kevin Groth & Dr. Bob Margeas

Working four days a week is hard work. But you can be just as productive working three — if you know how! And to share a few time and money secrets from the best dentists, Kirk Behrendt brings in two of his heroes in dentistry, Dr. Bob Margeas and Dr. Kevin Groth. You can't grow money, but you can grow your practice! To learn how to be profitable without sacrificing time and energy, listen to Episode 353 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Find a mentor, ASAP.

It is possible to work less days yet earn more.  

Pack your scheduled days to increase production.

Stick to doing high-production procedures to stay profitable.

Don't push patients. It’s their mouth, time, and money.

Treat people well, and patients will flock to your practice.

Dentistry is a competition with yourself, not other dentists.

Quotes:

“You get just as much done working three days, three-and-a-half days a week as you do four. And four days a week is hard work.” (13:00—13:08)

“People think, ‘Oh, you're crazy.’ Well, you know what? People come in when you're there. They schedule for production. I'm much more efficient, and patients don't miss their appointments. Because now, if they miss an appointment, they don't get in for eight weeks. Because when you only work four days on, 10 days off, or eight days a month, everybody’s busy. You're packed. Is it easy work? It’s not easy. I can't say it’s easy. But knowing you have 10 days off, pretty darn nice.” (13:24—13:54)

“I never look at the schedule — ever. Ever. Ever. Read my lips. I am against — this is just my own thing. I don't like to know what's going on, because I don't want it to ruin my day. But I know what they tell me. When I'm on Sunday, I say, ‘Hey, what time do I start tomorrow?’ And she always will text me. And she’ll say, ‘Okay, you start at 7:00.’ So, I know I have something productive. If I'm starting at 8:00, it doesn't bother me because I don't have anything that I was going to be doing anyway.” (17:56—18:26)

“My production, per se, has not really gone down, even though I went from 12 days to nine days, to eight days. Why? Because it’s packed in. I may be double-booked at times. But I feel like if I can go four days hard knowing I have 10 days off, wow.” (19:03—19:23)

“Now, where am I losing? I lose on posterior composites, because it takes you a half-hour to do it, and you're getting $200-some. I try to make my associate do those. I honestly do. I say, ‘When I'm in my office, I'm only here eight days a month. I've got to be profitable.’” (30:30—30:47)

“Most of my production is high-production items. Like, the most profitable thing, 100%, in my office, is a posterior single-tooth implant. Why? Because it only takes you five minutes, take the healing cap off, make an impression or scan, and send them home.” (31:16—31:34)

“I'm also at the point now where I'm like, ‘I don't want to do these posterior composites,’ because they do take up a lot of time. So, my conundrum is the fact that patients want to see me. I don't know how to say, ‘You need this work, but I'm not going to do it.’ So, we’re working on that and those type of systems.” (32:40—32:59)

“Do I have a shared production goal with my staff? No. But I know in my head that it takes me $100,000 or $120,000 to pay the bills, or whatever it is. I kind of know what I have to do. I don't want you to think that I don't have a goal. But I think it’s really difficult to say, ‘Okay, we need to do $200,000 this month,’ or to get a bonus, or this and that. Because then, sometimes people feel pressured to talk patients into having things to hit their goal.” (37:05—37:34)

“Sometimes, people will say, ‘Well, I'm 70 years old. I don't know how long I'm going to live.’ I say, ‘Listen. I'm not here to tell you how to spend your money. But I just had a patient, 95 years old — 95 — had six lower implants done. 95.’ And I said, ‘He doesn't know how long he’s going to live.’ I'm just an educator.” (37:48—38:12)

“Ultimately, the biggest thing from Bob Margeas to build a practice is treat people well, and everything else will happen after that. You take care of people, and you do the right thing by them, people will flock to you. They will want the work, and they will come to you in a heartbeat based on, ‘I trust this person.’ And that's really the biggest theme I took away.” (38:37—38:56)

“When I was younger, oh my god, I never wanted to quote fees. I was too scared of them to say no. Why? Because we have egos and we’re like, ‘Oh, they're not going to accept that anyway. That guy works for the school. They're not going to accept the fee.’ So, you don't even bring it up. For me, a phrase that I use, I'm just a referee. I'm just a ref. I call it as I see it, ‘It’s your mouth, your time, and your money. You're not going to die by losing this tooth, normally.’” (39:44—40:21)

“People come in and they say, ‘Do I have to have this replaced? Do I need an implant?’ ‘Do you miss the tooth?’ ‘Uh, kind of.’ I said, ‘Well, you can have an implant. If you don't miss the tooth, the only thing that's going to happen is teeth can move a little bit. Teeth can erupt. But it might take 10 years to do that. But you don't have to have anything.’ And most of the time, as I'm quoting a fee, I say, ‘This is what you need. It’s your mouth, your time, your money.’ I'm usually, by then, walking out of the operatory. Like, let my assistant tell them. If you want to schedule it, schedule it.” (40:23—40:55)

“I think young dentists, myself included, get in that rut of overspeaking in those examinations when giving a treatment plan, because you want to describe every nuance of everything and get them help. But then, it just confuses them like crazy, and then they feel like, ‘Eh, I don't feel this person’s all that confident in what they're doing.’ When I just started saying one-word sentences or just simple, ‘This is what you need,’ the treatment acceptance went through the roof after that.” (45:17—45:43)

“Ultimately, it’s the patient’s right to make their decisions. And I'm also big on educating. I can tell them what's going on within their mouth and let them make the decisions that they feel is right for them based on whatever circumstances of life they're in. And when you can give them all the information, I don't shy away from money or anything like that. I tell them, ‘This is what it’s going to be. This is how long it’s going to take. And these are the expectations I have for this procedure. It’s your call.’” (47:10—47:34)

“I say it comes down to this with implants: it takes bone and money. We can grow bone. We can't grow money.” (49:17—49:26)

“It’s not a competition amongst dentists; it’s a competition amongst yourself, just trying to do the best. And be happy for everybody. Be happy if they're successful.” (55:01—55:11)

Snippets:

0:00 Introduction.

3:23 Why you should take Dr. Margeas’s course.

6:32 What most dentists get wrong about composites.

8:11 Story time.

11:29 Dr. Margeas’s journey.

13:08 Work less and earn more.

15:44 Dr. Margeas’s new versus old schedule.

20:42 How Dr. Margeas schedules his days.

22:00 How Dr. Margeas maintains his health.

25:32 Dr. Margeas’s stance on huddles and staff meetings.

28:50 Delta Dental in Dr. Margeas’s practice.

31:36 How this applies for younger dentists.

33:00 Dr. Margeas’s way of billing composites.

38:12 Treat people well, and they will flock to you.

39:20 Selling dentistry without selling it.

42:28 Don't push patients.

49:32 The value of a mentor.

55:14 Get in touch with Dr. Groth and Dr. Margeas.

Reach Out to Dr. Groth and Dr. Margeas:

Dr. Groth’s email: kevingroth@gmail.com 

Dr. Groth’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grothdental/

Dr. Groth’s social media: @drkevingroth

Dr. Margeas’s social media: @drbobmargeas

Dr. Margeas’s composite course: https://www.cosmedent.com/continuing_education/dr_bob_margeas__practical_tips_utilizing__composite_resin/

Dr. Bob Margeas Bio:

Dr. Margeas graduated from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry in 1986 and completed his AEGD residency the following year. He is currently an adjunct professor in the department of Operative Dentistry at the University of Iowa. He is Board Certified by the American Board of Operative Dentistry. He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Aesthetic Dentistry, a Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry, American Society for Dental Aesthetics, and International Team of Oral Implantologists (ITI).

He has written numerous articles on esthetic and implant dentistry, and lectures and presents hands-on courses nationally and internationally on those subjects. He is currently the editor in chief of Inside Dentistry, on the editorial board of Compendium, and is a contributing editor to Oral Health in Canada. His memberships include OKU Honor Dental Society, American Academy of Esthetic Dentistry, and the American Academy of Restorative Dentistry. Dr. Margeas maintains a full-time private practice focusing on comprehensive restorative and implant dentistry in Des Moines, Iowa.

Dr. Kevin Groth Bio:

Dr. Kevin Groth’s primary goal is for every person to walk out of his office knowing that they received the highest-quality, most personalized care possible. Dentistry is more than just a profession for Dr. Groth. He sees every patient as an extension of his own family, and when you are in his chair, you’ll always be treated well. 

Dr. Groth’s favorite part of being a dentist is that every day and every patient is different. He loves the variety of people he gets to meet and procedures he performs to help patients maintain their smiles. 

Since graduating from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Dr. Groth has been recognized locally by Hour Detroit Magazine as a Top Dentist, and nationally as a Top Doc. As a passionate dentist who wants to provide the best care for his patients, Dr. Groth pursues continuing education through The Dawson Academy, serves on the executive board of the Periodontal Bunting Society, and is the Assistant Clinical Director of the Society of Comprehensive Dentists. He has also served as an adjunct clinical faculty member at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.