Patterson Dental

	Opening your new practice is an exciting time. Whether you’ve transitioned from a previous owner or are starting fresh in a brand-new building, there is much to determine in establishing a new culture.

	But before you open your doors and welcome a new wave of patients, set yourself up for success by paying special heed to these five Patterson solutions to minimize mistakes and maximize results.

	Patients often associate the quality of the care they receive with the overall appearance of an office. Reception areas and waiting rooms can make a lasting first impression, so take the opportunity to customize your space in a way that helps to relax and build confidence. Whether with accent paint, calming music, plant life or even pleasant aromas, your office is an ideal showcase for your personal style.

	Whatever your needs and vision are, Patterson’s DesignEdge team can walk with you every step of the way. From selecting ideal equipment to choosing carpet in each operatory, we offer resources to help guide you to the best decision for your practice. Perhaps you haven’t thought about where you’d like to be located, how many treatment rooms you need, or what colors and design fit your personal style? Let our specialists help you navigate the complex world of dental office design.

Related reading: How Patterson Dental streamlined the startup process for one new practice

	It should come as no surprise that purchasing dental merchandise is an essential investment. When it comes to consumables used in procedures, or everyday giveaways like toothbrushes, floss and toys for kids, we offer a nearly endless selection of products to fit any preference.

	Our exclusive partnerships with premium brands, combined with our signature in-house value brand, virtually guarantees we’ll carry merchandise at a price point that fits your budget. You can find it all on PattersonDental.com – simply search for what you need, and keep your inventory perpetually stocked.

Trending article: Patterson Dental's CEREC technology can streamline orthodontic treatment

	Using state-of-the-art equipment and technology sends a strong message to your patients. A well-equipped office with modern technology demonstrates a commitment to providing the best care available.

	Likewise, patients place high value on practices that offer the convenience of single-visit restorations, reduced radiation exposure and immediate diagnosis. Imagine being able to instantly compare images side by side, or educate your patients with readily available charts, images and videos. Don’t forget Patterson’s team of experts who are ready to help you install and use all this technology so that you can spend more of your valuable time caring for patients!

	Setting up your own dental practice can be quite costly, and not all practices have the capital to bring dream scenarios to life for the grand opening. Still, buying cornerstone equipment is essential, and if you’re concerned about the expense, dental financing may be an excellent option.

	To help out, Patterson Financial Services offers an easy approval process and convenient, customized financial packages. And for patients who aren’t able to afford the expense of certain treatments, we offer consumer financing solutions with payment plans to help ease their financial burdens as well.

Trending article: How Eaglsoft eClaims makes claims simple

	Balancing clinical concerns with office management issues is a key challenge in every practice. Each decision you make on a clinical product, technique or piece of equipment impacts patient satisfaction, efficiency and overhead costs. Utilizing practice management services creates a happier and more productive environment and can help alleviate anxiety.

	From patient scheduling and insurance claim tracking to business and clinical solutions, our eServices can help you select and implement the solutions that will uniquely benefit your business and help you give more of your time to patients.

	At Patterson, we help you begin your new venture with confidence, building systems that support your success. And when you pull the focus away from administrative details, you can pay attention to the things that truly make your practice stand out – excellent patient care and the best possible dental solutions.

Trending article: How CEREC Zirconia makes restorations easier

Articles

Before you open your doors and welcome a new wave of patients, set yourself up for success by paying special heed to these five Patterson solutions to minimize mistakes and maximize results.

5 things to explore before opening your doors

	Filing insurance claims can be a complex, strenuous and time-consuming task in a dental office. With a variety of companies playing key roles in a practice’s success, timely responses and organized statements are vital to the continued growth of the office.

 offers an electronic solution to filing reports, making the process of handling insurance claims quicker, easier and more efficient for every office.

More from Patterson Dental: How CEREC Zirconia makes restorations easier

	eClaims is a service available to Eaglesoft customers, 

’s comprehensive practice management software. The service is designed to help offices efficiently create, review and submit claims to insurance companies through electronic channels. Because the entire claim process can be completed through a single, trusted portal, eClaims customers experience faster turnaround time on insurance payments, as well as see a reduction in the number of rejected claims. In fact, several insurance companies will now process claims in real-time, allowing eClaims customers to know precisely what will be paid within a matter of seconds.

	The benefits of eClaims extends beyond the ease of the initial submission, as the service includes a feature allowing clients to track the progress of each claim throughout the process. Further, it generates individual status reports, notifying users when claims have been received and their position in the processing system.

	Eaglesoft eClaims provides unyielding support to customers, offering access to “eClaim connect,” an online portal delivering insights into the nuances of eClaim submissions, including system requirements, claim searches and billing reports.

	The service is supported by the Patterson Technology Center (PTC) to ensure that customers are able to capitalize on all Patterson computer-related technologies. The 100,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility located in Effingham, Illinois, embodies Patterson’s reputation for high-tech development, testing and support, often resolving more than 90 percent of support issues during the initial discussion. The PTC team provides prompt, professional issue resolution through direct access to technology experts via phone, email, and live chats.

	Also, Patterson customers have 24/7 access to a robust FAQ site with over 60 detailed articles on eClaims alone, as well as animated Eaglesoft video tutorials to assist customers in understanding the many avenues of the service.

More from Patterson Dental: Patterson Dental's CEREC technology can streamline orthodontic treatment

	Eaglesoft was created to be a complete dental software solution for dental practices of any size, and eClaims is just one feature of Eaglesoft’s suite of offerings. Taking advantage of other eServices, such as eReminders and ePrescriptions, allows practices to send patient statements, check patient benefits, submit attachments and process credit card payments all on a single software.

	When the stress and hassle of making phone calls, printing claims, printing statements and processing paperwork are eliminated, a practice’s workflow will improve, ultimately creating opportunities to identify additional revenue platforms. 

Filing insurance claims can be a complex, strenuous and time-consuming task in a dental office. With a variety of companies playing key roles in a practice’s success, timely responses and organized statements are vital to the continued growth of the office. Eaglesoft offers an electronic solution to filing reports, making the process of handling insurance claims quicker, easier and more efficient for every office.

How Eaglesoft eClaims makes claims simple

	CEREC technology is all about integration and convenience, and with CEREC

 AF, flexibility and mobility make using CEREC that much easier. Both the AI and AF feature a monitor, keyboard and PC; CEREC Omnicam with cradle; and a tablet. However, the two units are different in a variety of ways.

	CEREC AI is integrated directly into the Sirona Teneo Treatment Center with a movable arm, which allows for true integration into your treatment room. When the CEREC Omnicam is needed for a restorative, orthodontic or implantology scan, all you have to do is move the arm into place and you are ready to image. The combination of true integration with flexible configuration options makes the CEREC AI the system to turn to when you want CEREC integrated into your treatment center.

Related reading: How CEREC zirconia makes restorations easier

	CEREC AF is an independent unit that provides the ultimate in mobility with an adaptable setup in your existing operatory. With the flexibility the AF provides, you can outfit as many operatories as you want with the CEREC Omnicam.

	With both the CEREC AF and AI, the Omnicam camera can be moved between operatories, floors and even practices. The Omnicam camera can then be plugged into the CEREC AF or AI system in another location and be used. This allows for simple integration at a lower price point. Plus with the CEREC AI and AF, Sirona remote software is capable of displaying acquisition software on another monitor or tablet to allow for an easier user experience based on your existing office configuration.

	With CEREC AI and CEREC AF options, there is no reason not to take advantage of the design features and options that allow you to integrate CEREC into your operatory. Increase the efficiency and the productivity in your practice with CEREC. To learn more about how CEREC or Sirona Treatment Centers can improve your office workflows and provide efficient, ergonomic design solutions, contact your Patterson representative.

Related reading: CEREC technology can streamline orthodontic treatment

	- Choice of monitor: treatment center, counter monitor, tablet 

	- Camera can be moved to one operatory while allowing design and milling in another 

	- Also available in a Connect version, for clinicians who prefer lab-fabricated restorations

	- Treatment center monitor serves as CEREC display

	- Integrates with Sirona treatment center

CEREC technology is all about integration and convenience, and with CEREC AI and CEREC AF, flexibility and mobility make using CEREC that much easier. Both the AI and AF feature a monitor, keyboard and PC; CEREC Omnicam with cradle; and a tablet. However, the two units are different in a variety of ways.

CEREC AI and CEREC AF provide options for mobility and flexibility

	At this year’s Chicago Dental Society Midwinter Meeting, Sirona announced the combination of a trusted restorative material and the leading innovator in CAD/CAM dentistry.

 has long been an industry leader in single-visit, CAD/CAM dentistry. Zirconia has long been sought-after by many dentists as a high-performance restoration material.

	Now, they can be used together. Along with Sirona, Patterson Dental announced the release of CEREC Zirconia in the U.S. and Canada, enabling dental practices to provide their patients with single-visit chairside zirconia restorations.

	“CEREC Zirconia is another innovation that helps our clients do more for their patients and their practice,” said Patterson Dental CEO Paul Guggenheim. “Single-visit zirconia restorations with CEREC will positively impact the experience of every patient in every practice that adopts them.”

	Along with the introduction of CEREC Zirconia came the introduction of the CEREC SpeedFire furnace. Practices can both sinter and glaze with the CEREC SpeedFire to create full-contour zirconia restorations in one session.

	For sintering, the SpeedFire is the smallest and fastest furnace on the market-sintering a crown in typically 10-15 minutes -making the strength of full-contour zirconia possible for chairside treatment. And, if needed, a glaze can be applied with the CEREC SpeedGlaze and then fired in just a few minutes in the CEREC SpeedFire. Thanks to this speedy, space-saving tool, the restoration is then ready to be placed into the patient’s mouth.

	With the CEREC Single-Visit Zirconia workflow, dental teams can create, sinter and glaze a full-contour zirconia crown in as little as 70 minutes. 

More on CEREC Zirconia: Sirona announces CEREC Zirconia can now be used chairside with CEREC SpeedFire

	Zirconium oxide is a high-performance material in great demand, which CEREC combines with a workflow optimally matched to the material. Zirconium oxide’s high degree of flexural strength and biocompatibility allow tooth-conserving preparations for fully anatomical restorations. The result: faster, easier, more economical zirconium oxide restorations than ever before.

	Other benefits of CEREC Zirconia include:

	• Minimal invasiveness. Full-contour zirconia restorations require a lower wall thickness and less reduction in tooth structure for full strength.

	• Strength. Full-contour zirconia ensures that you and your patients receive long-lasting restorations.

	• Perfect fit. A 25 percent larger pre-sintered state yields highly precise margins and occlusal surfaces.

	What makes CEREC Zirconia truly special is the combination of different innovations. It’s the only combination that allows a single-visit treatment with full-contour zirconia, and the innovation that comes along with every CEREC.

More from Patterson Dental: How Patterson Dental streamlined the startup process for one new practice

Continue to the next page to see what CEREC Zirconia can bring to your practice.

	So, what does CEREC Zirconia bring to the dental practice?

	With CEREC Zirconia, you are 100 percent in control of creating restorations and ensuring their quality. The CEREC Zirconia workflow allows you to step in before the restoration is glazed or inserted. That saves time, may save the patient another appointment, and prevents arduous grinding and costly intraoral polishing.

	The high strength of CEREC Zirconia benefits both dentist and patient. Restorative treatment is even possible in confined spaces, and when replacing metal restorations, hardly any of the old preparations have to be removed. Preparations preserve tooth substance and can be cemented conventionally when fitted.

Related reading: Patterson Dental's CEREC technology can streamline orthodontic treatment

	CEREC Zirconia is milled oversized and then densely sintered in the CEREC SpeedFire to its final size. This leads to precise edges and a detailed occlusion. A subsequent glaze firing brings the restoration to a high gloss. CEREC Zirconia stands for high strength – thin wall thicknesses can be processed. Chipping is eliminated and, of course, bridges can also be made.

	Thirty years of CAD/CAM experience now make it possible to bring full-contour zirconia restorations into the practice. The pre-shaded CEREC Zirconia material (colors A1–D3 of the VITA Classical A1–D4

color system), dry milling with the CEREC grinding and milling unit, and the extremely short sintering cycles of the new CEREC SpeedFire – everything is designed for time savings and simplicity.

At this year’s Chicago Dental Society Midwinter Meeting, Sirona announced the combination of a trusted restorative material and the leading innovator in CAD/CAM dentistry.

How CEREC Zirconia makes restorations easier

	As the initials following her name indicate, Shelley D. Shults, RN, DDS, D.ABDSM, is a lifelong learner.

Shults graduated from nursing school in 1982 and worked as a community health nurse before working in internal medicine, family practice and urgent care. She graduated from The Ohio State University in 2001 before becoming board certified as a Diplomate in Dental Sleep Medicine. Now she is pursuing an Advanced Nurse Practitioner master’s degree with the goal of continuing to serve her patients as a nurse-dentist focusing on oral systemic health and obstructive sleep apnea. “I have the desire to continue to learn and do everything I can to enrich the lives of the patients I care for,” she said.

	With the help of her husband and daughter Krista (who is also her office manager), Shults opened Powell Dental Group in 2005. She believes that her role as a dentist is about more than caring for patients’ teeth. With her background in nursing, Shults is a patient advocate who provides holistic healthcare. She believes that the mouth is the window to the rest of the body and her dental care involves far more than a routine checkup

	With each patient, Dr. Shults reviews medical history, performs an intraoral exam, an extraoral exam, a TMJ and head and neck cancer screening, reviews radiographs, considers the psycho-social aspect of their life, and coordinates primary care and interdisciplinary collaboration. “I take a holistic, comprehensive approach that involves treating the whole person,” she said.

	Shults’ focus on all-over wellness gives her the opportunity to help improve patients’ lives and enhance the way they feel about themselves. It has also resulted in some serious diagnoses. In one instance, the questions Shults asked a patient during a routine dental exam revealed that the patient had acutely lost hearing in one ear and was taking a medication that hadn’t been effective. One thing led to another, and soon Shults was conducting a thorough ear exam that indicated that something was seriously wrong. Shults referred the patient to an ear, nose and throat specialist who found a brain tumor at the base of the patient’s skull. Fortunately, the tumor was discovered in time and the patient continues to receive specialty medical care and lives a healthy, productive life.

	Although these types of diagnoses are uncommon, Shults says it’s an example of how important it is to ask the right questions. “Carefully listening to patients speak of their health concerns provides the practitioner clues and direction for referrals. Medical and dental professionals need to work together as a unified, multidisciplinary team in order to provide comprehensive care for patients,” she added.

	Shults’ holistic approach to dentistry has been extremely popular and with the help of her Patterson representative, Chris Sanford, Powell Dental Group is running smoothly. “Chris has been instrumental in the success of the practice,” said Shults. “He informs us of opportunities, helps us find the best deals for our purchases, and keeps us abreast of the latest in technological advances and educational opportunities,” she said.

	The result has been tremendous growth of the practice, which offers limited orthodontics among its services, in the past year. Shults, along with her two associate dentists and her staff members, is seeing 60 new patients a month, all from word-of-mouth referrals.

	“It’s a result of doing the right thing,” Shults explained. “I don’t focus on what dentistry can do for me but what I can do for dentistry, and for each patient. The result is a successful practice that I am really proud of.” 

One doctor shares her views on the importance of oral systemic health and how it effects the way she works with patients.

More than a routine checkup

	Patterson Dental CEO Paul Guggenheim was recently honored by the San Fernando Valley Dental Society Foundation (SFVDSF) with its humanitarian award.

’s third annual gala in Los Angeles, Calif. The event was also a fundraiser to benefit 

	“There are a significant number of people experiencing dental disease that is preventable and treatable,” said Guggenheim, who is actively involved in many organizations that advocate for and assist with providing oral health care to underserved populations. “It is incumbent upon those of us in a position to help to do just that. Helping organizations reach these disadvantaged populations is part of our responsibility as members of our greater community.”

	While Guggenheim lives in St. Paul, Minn., where 

 is headquartered, he is originally from Los Angeles. He maintains ties to several area organizations including serving on the boards of the 

Children’s Dental Center of Greater Los Angeles

University of Southern California Dental School

. He is also a board member and treasurer of the 

National Children’s Oral Health Foundation

Patterson Dental CEO Paul Guggenheim was recently honored by the San Fernando Valley Dental Society Foundation (SFVDSF) with its humanitarian award.

Patterson Dental CEO receives humanitarian award

It’s truly amazing what a difference one person can make. One person with a positive attitude, a vision and a desire to serve others can inspire a whole team of people to do great things. At 

Smile Central Dental P.C. in Paterson, N.J.

, Cecilia Mescain is that person. She is not only the COO, she’s a visionary who inspired one dentist to leave the practice they both worked at to open Smile Central together in 2004. 	 

	They began treating patients between the ages of 1-17 years and because Smile Central accepts all kinds of insurance, including Medicaid, they treat many children and teens who otherwise would not have access to dental care. “We do this from our hearts,” said Mescain. “Our mission is to help people. I think everyone knows that it’s genuine. We are really here for the community and that’s why we have a loyal following.”	 	That loyal following inspired the opening of three additional locations, including an orthodontics office, in order to fulfill the needs of the community. At the four locations, all within a 10-mile radius, Smile Central is providing dental care for underserved kids, educating them about the importance of oral health and providing an experience that shows kids that going to the dentist doesn’t have to be scary. 	 	For the kids whom Smile Central doesn’t reach through one of the four office locations, a dental health education outreach program is delivered from a vintage fire truck retrofitted with a dental operatory. The truck is driven to Head Start programs, schools and daycares in the area, providing treatment, educational puppet shows and a chance for kids to explore the inside of an old-fashioned fire truck.	

Watch the video below to learn more about Smile Central

In addition to running the outreach program, Mescain manages more than 80 staff members between all offices while handling responsibilities including payroll, billing, accounting, training, marketing and compliance issues. While her background in finance and economics has helped her handle the finances at Smile Central, she is currently completing an MBA, which has helped improve her leadership skills, decision making skills and strategies for creating a competitive advantage at the practice.

	For the support she needs specifically for her role as office manager, Mescain has been a member of the American Association of Dental Office Managers (AADOM) since 2008. She describes the organization as a “fellowship” that makes her feel that whatever challenge she might face, she is not alone. “It’s a great resource for all office managers because we can consult with each other. It helps us become better at what we do,” she said.	 	In 2013 Mescain attended the 2013 AADOM conference on a scholarship from Patterson Dental after her Patterson representative took notice of her hard work and wrote a letter nominating her. “I was very humbled and honored by the letter he wrote and that he felt I deserved to receive the scholarship,” said Mescain. “It’s great to get that support − as a Diamond Sponsor of AADOM, Patterson Dental is very much involved in supporting what the office managers do.”  	 	Mescain makes a difference in the lives of children every day and inspires a staff of more than 80 people to do the same. “We have such a wonderful group of people,” said Mescain. “If it wasn’t for them showing up every day and doing their very best we wouldn’t be Smile Central. The team is so valuable, every person that works with Smile Central deserves to be recognized.”	 	When asked about the future, Mescain says she is envisioning two new office locations in areas where they’re needed as they continue on their mission to take care of the community, one cavity at a time.	

 It’s truly amazing what a difference one person can make. One person with a positive attitude, a vision and a desire to serve others can inspire a whole team of people to do great things. At Smile Central Dental P.C. in Paterson, N.J., Cecilia Mescain is that person. She is not only the COO, she’s a visionary who inspired one dentist to leave the practice they both worked at to open Smile Central together in 2004.    