North Texas Dentistry Volume 8 Issue 1 NTD 2018 ISSUE 1 DE | Page 28

fraud alert
Do You Know
Where the Fraud
is in Your Office?
by Richard V. Lyschik, DDS, FAGD, CFE
Our recent series on The Perfect Practice has brought
to the new, as well as the seasoned, practitioner a
heightened attention for better business systems,
respectful leadership skills, and the closer mainte-
nance and monitoring of practice performance so as
to sustain the practice’s profitability in our increas-
ingly competitive healthcare economy. We intro-
duced logical, minimal-cost applications and
methods to boost your practice’s “bottom line.”
Unfortunately, even with best practice intentions,
policing for fraud is often lacking.
We hope this series on Fraud In The Dental Practice
gives you a further awareness of your responsibilities
to your patients, your staff and your family. Everyone
becomes a victim when there is fraud present! Be-
come more aware of where to look for fraud in your
dental practice. (We suggest you keep some of this
information from the non-owners in your office!)
Unfortunately, even with the best intentions of being a confi-
dent, hands-on boss and believing that your workspace is im-
mune from fraud, you unknowingly have already been a victim
if you have hired more than six employees to date! We have on
file surveillance videos of staff theft, supply and equipment ven-
dor paperwork manipulation, professional accounting fabrica-
tions, and a variety of impressive fraud schemes perpetrated by
staff, family, and even the doctor! We are most suspicious of
outside management “gurus” who promise to fill your appoint-
ment book and boost your treatment plan acceptances, while
they line their pockets with cash and fill their briefcases with
your computer’s confidential patient data, along with your
profit-generating proprietary methods that they then sell to
another doctor.
What is fraud?
Fraud is a “knowing misrepresentation of the truth or conceal-
ment of material fact to induce another to act to his or her detri-
ment.” It includes any intentional, deliberate act to deprive
another of property or money by guile, deception, or other
unfair means.
THE COMPONENTS
OF FRAUD
The Conversion
Depositing funds into an alternate account
or making purchases with the stolen funds.
The Concealment
The efforts to conceal the act (e.g. distracting the patient
with conversation while the number is written down)
The Act
The action that leads to the gain the perpetrator is
seeking (e.g. copying a patient’s credit card number)
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