The landscape of the dental industry is changing dramatically. Gone are the days of solo practices dominating the market. Now, group practices are on the rise, giving patients more options when it comes to choosing a dental provider—and dentists more options when deciding how to practice. Joining or transitioning into a group practice doesn’t come without its challenges, but with the right knowledge, software and vision, making the switch can set you up for a future of success.

6 OUT OF 10 DENTISTS surveyed are members of a DSO or group dental practice

of the CEOs/Owners of the practice are the ones making big ticket purchasing decisions for the group practice (ex. intraoral scanners, dental lasers, imaging systems, etc.)

LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT

BEST AND WORST

THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT

What’s the BEST thing about working at a group practice?

10

GROUP PRACTICE

How many people work in the office? How many locations does their practice have?

The continuty of care to patients among mul-tiple doctors treating patients can be difficult to achieve; having good communication and good practice management software can alleviate some of these challenges.”—Survey respondent

“

13% 11%

23%

23% 71%

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

14%

6%

20%

8%

8%

10%

4%

0%

2%

28%

On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do those surveyed like working at a group practice, with 10 being “I love everything about it”?

74% of dentists are not very likely to leave the group practice and start their own solo practice

ON AVERAGE...

25%

26%

4%

4%2%

30%38%

What’s the most CHALLENGING thing about working at a group practice?

74%

Working with multiple doctors and staff

Not being able to make all the management decisions

Emphasis on revenue only

Not getting to build relation-ships with specific patients

Fear of lower quality of care

Not getting paid enough

Other

Multiple doctors; colleague collaborations

Not having to manage the day- to-day; can focus on dentistry

Benefits & time off

Job security

24%8%

28%26%

10%9%

7%14%

3%

68%

1-5

6-10

11-15

16-20

21-25

26+

2-5

5-9

10-14

15-19

20+

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

The pay was better 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Too risky to start

I was afforded more opportunity

I didn’t want to run my own practice

It was the right place for now, but someday I will start my own practice

I wanted the structure of a group practice I wanted to

focus on dentistry, not administrative tasks

Too expen-sive to try to start a new practice

Too unstable of an industry to start a solo practice

I’m more comfortable in a group setting

Why did you decide a group practice was the right place for you?

Why did you decide to join a group practice instead of a solo practice?

GROUP VS. SOLO

12% 9%

18%

9%

52%

8%

22%

13%

32%

25%

Source for all data: 2018 DPR Group Practice Survey

What do you think is the future of dental practices?

Group practice growth will slow and solo practices will grow

Things will stay about the same as they are now

Group practices will continue to grow and solo practices will continue to decline

73%

23%

4%