A post I made in a message board for dentists
There have been many discussions about closing versus not closing due to the risk of disease transmission.
My post:
Three words: impending economic devastation.
For forty-one years I operated a solo private general dentistry practice. To say that the profession has metamorphosed is an understatement of grotesque proportions. Dentistry presently is wholly unrecognizable from that which I entered back when Jimmy Carter was President of the United States.
In those days it was a cottage industry: most dentists practiced solo or in a partnership with one other doctor. Many if not most of those partnerships failed badly, often leading to the financial and professional ruination of one or even both of the doctors. Dental insurance was considered a luxury for many working class individuals and was considered an assistance rather than a substitute for payment. Claims were routinely quickly reviewed and approved and processed. Frankly, things were relatively easy to manage and I might add, all forms were hand-written.
Of course, that is ancient history. Today, a dental practice is a business first and foremost. And there are a number of issues which are not addressed sufficiently in school. Chief among them is the notion of capitalization. If you require an explanation of what this implies, you are already in desperate trouble. The second is a mechanism for dealing with catastrophe. Many large businesses carry provisions for major problems which may arise through various means including business interruption insurance which actually compensates significantly, rather than a token amount.
With this horror of an epidemic spreading through the entire world, the lack of preparation for this is evident. It is no one’s fault: it is Capitalism. If you’re a fan of Capitalism,as I am, one must accept the notion of failure, albeit seemingly unfair failure. These are tragedies of personal loss. These are rending-of-clothes tragedies
But far worse would be if one of us were responsible for serious illness or death of a patient, staff member, or family. The old rule “First, do no harm” applies here. We must not hurt anyone. If we treat emergencies then that is laudable because we are weighing risks versus benefits. Doing a tissue transfer on a twelve unit bridge, well, you may be the judge.
These are awful issues with which we all have to wrestle. I wish us all good fortune and success in every aspect of our lives and practices. This is a terrible time for many including, but not limited to, us. Let us not place great tragedy upon our consciences. Do the right thing at the right time.
= new reply since forum marked as read
