practice transitions
TRANSITIONING TRUST
G
Deciding Whether to Transition Your Practice
or Sell Out to a Commercial Buyer
by Richard V. Lyschik, DDS, FAGD
oodwill is the relationship between a doctor and his/her
patients. It is a relationship that is built over many years
and based primarily on trust. Patients are not clinically
qualified to determine whether the services they get are good or
bad (that is why bad dentists can stay in business), so the reason
they keep coming back to the same dentist is because they trust
that the patients’ interest is always being considered first and
foremost by their doctor.
When a dentist visits with me to sell the practice, the most frequent concern expressed by the doctor is the desire for a successor
who is ethical and clinically qualified to take over the practice.
These doctors feel that they owe it to their patients to choose a
successor who will continue to put the needs of their patients first,
and will deliver good clinical services. They know their patients
will trust their judgment as to who will take over their treatment
once the current owner retires.
As a result, we are not only transitioning the physical assets of a
practice, we are transitioning that trust-based doctor/patient relationship. A practice transition is personal and can be emotionally
and financially satisfying if handled properly.
The alternative to a traditional practice transition is a practice sale
made to a commercial company. There have been some doctors
who have chosen to sell out to these commercial entities instead
of transitioning their practices for various reasons. Commercial
practices are investor owned, and as a result, they must put a
focus on efficiency and economy rather than personal service.
Staff and doctor turnover is often rampant and as a result, it often
depersonalizes patient delivery.
The patients will no longer experience that personal, long-term
trusting doctor/patient relationship, it is more like – well, commercial dentistry. The seller does not know who will be treating
their patients, and there will be doctors with uncertain or
unknown clinical qualifications treating those patients. When you
combine that with frequent doctor turnover, patients are not
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likely to receive the same trusting dental experience that they
became accustomed to with you over the years. There always has
to be a price to pay by someone for selling out rather than transitioning a private practice.
When an owner of a private practice sells to a commercial buyer,
it is usually because they are approached directly by a commercial
buyer and the seller thinks that he/