Bite February 2013

FEBRUARY 2013, $5.95 INC. GST

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President precedentPossibly the least interesting thing about Dr Karin Alexander is that she’s the first female president of the Australian Dental Association

Your toolsReal reviews by real

dentists of really useful stuff, page 33

Gulp!

BUPA swallows Dental Corporation, page 4

Future visionsHas the reality lived up to the predictions of the future of dentistry? 0

Take your partner What do you want in a business partner? The answer is on page 30

Data dump Even though everyone has mobile devices now, has it changed the way you market your practice?

Country and westernMeet the dentist who likes both types of music

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Extreme MeasuresThe difference is in the details.

The A-dec 500 chair is qualified for a 181.44 kg patient. We test to four times the warrantied load. The photograph is a simulated representation of a static load test for an A-dec 500 chair. As part of the actual stress-point evaluation, a combined load of 725.75 kg was spread across upper and lower sections of the chair.

Because your focus is on the patient, every A-dec solution is proven to deliver smooth, trouble-free performance. We test to fail. By evaluating the strength of the A-dec 500 chair, for example, we subjected the chair to four times its guaranteed weight limit. Stress points were analyzed. Functionality scrutinized. A-dec goes to extremes because your investment should never let you down.

Visit a-dec.com/thedifference to find out how every detail behind an A-dec solution adds up to lasting reliability.

ChairsDelivery SystemsLightsMonitor MountsCabinetsHandpiecesMaintenanceSterilisationImaging

For more information Email: [email protected] Phone: 1800 225 010 Visit: www.a-dec.com.au

© 2012 A-dec Inc. All rights reserved.

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COVER STORY YOUR BUSINESS YOUR TOOLS YOUR LIFECONTENTS

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ContentsNews & eveNts4. Changing of the guardBUPA swallows Dental Corp; graduate employment numbers are scary; and more

your world10. Back to the futureA decade ago, the future of dentistry looked like a limited, and more female-dominated, workforce. Bite looks at how the predictions measure up to reality, and what the future holds

your busiNess 15. Master dataDespite everyone’s new-fangled mobile gadgets, has marketing really changed that much? Amanda Lohan investigates

24. Brace yourselfOrthodontist Dr Stephen Papas needed a practice with cutting-edge design and technology to treat adult patients. THis is what he got

28. Sparring partnersWhen dentists come together to start a new practice it’s vital that they realise there are several essential ingredients in the recipe for business success your tools 8. New products

The best new gear and gadgets from suppliers you can trust

33. Tools of the tradeThe best sutures ever, a very hi-res camera, a handpiece with enormous torque and more are in the spotlight this month

35. Ergonomic design product guide Everything you need to know about the erogonomic products for dentists

your life46. For love of countryDr Andrew Langton-Joy of Canterbury Family Dental, Canterbury, VIC, plays guitar, banjo and mandolin in The Original Snakeskins

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Cover storyFamily tiesThe ADA’s new federal president, Dr Karin Alexander, has taken on the job during interesting times

February 2013

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custom content8,163 - CAB Audited as at September, 2012

Editorial Director Rob Johnson

Sub-editor Kerryn Ramsey

Creative Director Tim Donnellan

Contributors Mary Banfield, Andy Kollmorgen, Susanna Nelson, Amanda Lohan, Sarah Hollingworth

Commercial Director Mark Brown

For all editorial or advertisingenquiries:Phone (02) 9660 6995 Fax (02) 9518 5600

[email protected]

Bite magazine is published 11 times a year by Engage Media, Suite 4.17, 55 Miller Street, Pyrmont NSW 2009. ABN 50 115 977 421. Views expressed in Bite magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher, editor or Engage Media. Printed by Bright Print Group

COVER STORY YOUR BUSINESS YOUR TOOLS YOUR LIFENEWS & EVENTS

04

Multinational health insurer BUPA will buy Australia’s Dental Corporation through a Scheme

of Arrangement (Scheme) under the Corporations Act. Dental Corp has announced BUPA Australia will acquire 100 per cent of the shares in Dental Corporation on completion.

In an interview with Bite, Dental Corp executive chair Mark Evans said, “We had been talking for a couple of months, especially when the plans for a Singapore listing of major shareholder Fortis Healthcare didn’t happen as expected. While that was disappointing—because we had plans for international expansion with Fortis—for a variety of reasons, it couldn’t happen, and at the same time, we always needed to find a liquidity path for our shareholders.”

The liquidity path he’s referring to is in addition to the scheme of arrangement, to cancel all outstand-ing Dental Corp options by way of an option scheme of arrangement in consideration for a cash payment.

Fortis and financial investors will be entitled to receive $2.347 per share and management and dentists will be entitled to receive $0.9388 per share (representing 40 per cent of $2.347) plus three annual earn out payments over the next three years. Each of these three earn out pay-ments will be primarily determined by reference to the adjusted EBITDA and enterprise value of Dental Corp in each of the 2014, 2015 and 2016 financial years.

The ownership structure of Dental Corp at present is roughly 60 per cent Fortis, 10 per cent financial investors, 10 per cent management and 20 per cent with the dentists, Evans said. In a nutshell, the deal is for Fortis and the financial inves-tors to have their stakes purchased

outright, with the dentists getting the equivalent of 40 per cent of their shareholding with the rest paid out over three years.

Evans was keen to stress that the new ownership structure would not change the Dental Corp business model—instead, he said, “it is com-pletely about healthcare delivery and that’s the part of BUPA we’re dealing with.”

BUPA Australia and New Zealand managing director Dean Holden said the acquisition would strengthen BUPA’s existing healthcare offer-ing which already included private health insurance, aged care, health coaching, optical outlets and corpo-rate health services.

“BUPA is excited by this acquisi-tion and we look forward to working in partnership with Dental Corpora-tion’s senior management team and dentists to continue to build on their track record of growth and success,” Holden said.

“This deal assists in BUPA’s aim globally to be a healthcare partner to many more people around the world,” he added.

BUPA acquires Dental CorpAround Christmas last year BUPA Australia announced its plan to acquire Dental Corporation

“We always needed to find a li-quidity path for our shareholders,” says Mark Evans, executive chair of Dental Corp.

Grad stats show dramatic employment drop

The most recent figures from the Graduate Careers Council of Australia show a dramatic drop in the number of dentists in full-time employment—down 10 per cent on previous years. The Australian Dental Associa-tion Inc. (ADA) says this has happened because newly registered dentist numbers are grossly exceeding demand.

“The ADA has been trying to have the government listen to its concerns about workforce oversupply for some time now,” said ADA president Dr Karin Alexander. “For years the ADA has called for a comprehen-sive health workforce study to be conducted. This has not occurred. Therefore without knowing with any certainty what the demand for dentists is in the community, govern-ments have invested substantial funds in training new dentists yet have also permitted a very high number of overseas trained dentists register as dentists here. It is illogical and economically unsound to invest so much money in the educa-tion of dentists, only to have them take up employment in less skilled roles.”

Traditionally, more than 94 per cent of graduating dentists have been employed shortly after graduation. The 2012 survey results released in late December show a very differ-ent result; dentists now report that only 83.6 per cent were in full-time employment at the time of the survey.

“Australians have always wel-comed the overseas skilled per-sons,” said Dr Alexander. “Aus-tralia is accepting dentists from countries that have workforce shortages to meet a demand that does not exist in Australia. There needs to be a rationalisation of what is going on.”

NEWS & EVENTS

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COVER STORY YOUR BUSINESS YOUR TOOLS YOUR LIFENEWS & EVENTS

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ADIA-funded grant to help cancer research

With the support of the Australian Den-tal Industry Association (ADIA), the Australian Dental Research Foundation (ADRF) has awarded the 2012 ADIA Research Grant to Associate Professor Hans Zoellner from the University of Sydney. The grant supports research into the relationship of malignant can-cer cells and those of healthy gingival structural tissue (fibroblasts). The find-ings of this research originated from earlier work studying aspects of oral cancer and have shed light on other forms of cancer.

The grant, funded by ADIA, is awarded each year to the primary applicant for the highest-ranked research project of those considered by the ADRF. A/Professor Zoellner’s project, characterisation of protein and mRNA exchange between malignant cells and fibroblasts, was considered by the ADRF Grant Committee to be ground-breaking research into how cancer cells behave and potentially evade treatment. “We have recently observed that cancer cells exchange cellular material with fibroblasts, and the resulting cancer cell diversity may help cancer cells evade chemothera-py. Separately, from an immune stand-point, it seems likely that the cancer cells receive enough components of fibroblasts so that they are less recog-nised as foreign, while the fibroblasts now bearing cancer cell compo-nents would act as immune decoys,” explained A/Professor Zoellner. “In understanding this process, we hope to inhibit the mechanisms through which it occurs and therefore increase the effectiveness of treatments.”

TGA needs cash

The Therapeutic Goods Administra-tion (TGA) should be provided with supplemental Australian government funding to review the regulatory stan-dards for dental product, according to the Australian Dental Industry Associa-tion (ADIA). The request was made in the Association’s 2013 prebudget submission.

“At the urging of ADIA, the recent Senate inquiry into the regulatory standards for medical devices recom-

mended that the TGA undertake two reviews into dental product standards. The dental industry believes it’s appro-priate that the TGA be provided with additional funding so these reviews can be conducted in a timely manner,” said Troy Williams, ADIA chief execu-tive officer.

Oral B tackles dental anxietyNearly half of all Australians suffer some level of anxiety about visiting the dentist, so Oral-B’s has released a new TV commercial to raise awareness of the continued concern of “Dental Anxiety”. Oral-B® has taken a light-hearted approach to raise awareness of dental anxiety. The nursery rhyme “Big Bad Wolf” is used to convey the fear that patient’s may experience.

Previous studies by the Australian Dental Association reveal that nearly one in two patients have some fear associated with visiting their dentist. Furthermore, 20.6 per cent have a moderate to extreme fear of going to the dentist. Some of the most common anxieties are injections or uncomfort-able procedures.

UN phases down amalgamA new convention finalised under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) has confirmed a role in dental care for dental amalgam containing mercury.

A member of the Australian Dental Industry Association (ADIA) dental regulation committee, Pam Clark, was a participant in the negotiations that concluded in mid-January in Geneva, Switzerland. These negotiations settled upon a phased-down approach to the use of dental amalgam over many years, an outcome supported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and professional organisations repre-senting dentists.

“There was widespread accep-tance that dental amalgam is a major source of mercury pollution, particu-larly in waterways. In this context, the dental industry is supportive of moves towards alternative restorative materi-als,” said Troy Williams, ADIA chief executive officer.

Beyond phasing down the use of dental amalgam, the treaty also specifies a best practice approach to minimising the release of waste dental amalgam, currently typified by the use of amalgam separators in dental prac-tices that permit the capture, separa-tion and eventual recycling of mercury.

The new treaty will be referenced as “The Minamata Convention on Mer-cury” which refers to a city in Japan where serious health issues arouse a result of mercury pollution in the mid-twentieth century. Currently the Australian Dental Association (ADA) and the World Dental Federation (FDI) have both issued definitive state-ments, backed by research, that dental amalgam is a relatively safe and highly effective restorative material.

Associate Professor Hans Zoellner (centre) from the University of Sydney.

NEWS & EVENTS

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NEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOuR buSiNESS YOuR LiFEYOuR TOOLS

New products

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New-release products from here and around the world

Introducing Oral-B Pro-Health Oral-B’s biggest breakthrough since fluoride

Procter & Gamble’s Oral-B, the toothbrush brand recommended by dentists worldwide, is to launch a revolutionary new tooth-paste—Pro-Health. Now available in Aus-tralia, Oral-B’s all-in-one super toothpaste is like nothing else in the market. It combines two powerful ingredients, stabilised stannous fluoride and sodium polymetaphosphate. More than 15 years in the making, Oral-B Pro-Health marks a scientific breakthrough as it is the first time that industry scien-tists have been able to combine stannous fluoride—widely regarded by experts as pro-viding exceptional benefits—with other in-gredients in a stabilised form that is proven effective. Through clinical trials, the unique

formulation delivered unprecedented results and the new paste is proven to deliver comprehensive care across the eight areas that dentists check most - cavities, gingivitis, plaque, sensitivity, enamel, tartar, whiten-ing and breath. This represents a marked advance in at home oral care by providing a number of therapeutic oral health and whitening benefits combined in one prod-uct. Oral-B Pro-Health is Oral-B’s biggest breakthrough since fluoride. In 1955, Oral-B was responsible for introducing the first fluoride toothpaste proven effective. Since that time, it is estimated that Oral-B has help prevent more than half a billion cavities in the United States alone.

Local dentist makes mixing easier Dr Erik Magee director of Remin P/L has designed and devel-oped an innovative product to facilitate: dispensing appropriate amounts of restorative materials; mixing or dispensing mixed materials; delivering materials to the intended destination; protecting light sensitive materials; co-ordinating micro-brushes with the materials dispensed; measuring files, post burs, posts, gates-gliddons, GP; and handling MTA.

This product is called the “i-Mixwell “ and comes with the “i-Coverwell” (patents and trademarks pending) an opaque lid which can cover the unit entirely or be offset to reveal the holes for the micro-brushes. The wells allow for 2 drops of bond and the 4 wells are in an offset pattern to enable easy dispensing of materials. The slots are designed to accommodate a number of functions. The 25mm slot has mm measurements and can have AH26 deposited in it for easy pick up by spirals, ezi-fills or GP. The 12mm slot was designed for receiving MTA to allow easy pick up and placement after discussion with an Endodontist colleague. This slot can also be used for dispensing composite to minimize waste of materials. The wider slot can be used to dispense lining materials after they are mixed for consistent pick up. It can also be used for dispensing cavit to get the right amount for an average access cavity.

The “i-Mixwell” fits nicely in the palm of the hand being the size of a business card. It will be available for purchase in a box of 10 with the “i-Coverwell” for a Congress price of $98 includ-ing GST and postage and handling in Australia. For further information contact [email protected].

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YOuR TOOLS

NEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOUR TOOLS YOUR LIFE

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YOUR WORLD

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Predicting how changes will affect dentists over the next decade depends on whether you’re a glass half-full or half-empty kind of practitioner.

Beyond the inevitable impact of tech-nology on both clinical and business practices, it’s how dentists adapt to the tensions of increasing costs, greater competition and the progressively more complex needs of patients that will shape their future.

Over the next decade, one of the big-gest factors affecting the profession will be the amount of dentists in the work-force. According to 2005 labour force projections compiled by the Australian Institute for Health & Welfare (AIHW) and the Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health (ARCPOH), the number of dentists and oral health pro-fessionals working will almost double. This means over 15,000 dentists and 4000 dental hygienists, dental therapists and oral health therapists will be prac-

tising by 2020. For patients on public waiting lists, this is a good thing. But how will it play out for dentists?

“Some will see the opportunities, others the risks,” says Dr Phillip Palmer, managing director of Prime Practice, a dental practice management com-pany. Palmer sees a rising trend in the corporatisation of dentistry as a response to the projected workforce numbers. “The corporates will increase their footprint by buying up smaller practices, leading to larger practices, and there’ll be an increase in employee dentists as opposed to owners,” he predicts. “I think there’s a growing demand from dentists, especially female, for more part-time positions, with flexible shifts and longer opening hours, which a larger practice can ac-commodate.”

Palmer notes that there’s another side benefit to this corporate approach: dealing with the increasing costs of compliance. “For those dentists who just want to do clinical work, being an employee of a larger business means

they can concentrate on just being a dentist instead of dealing with a huge amount of paperwork,” he says.

Administrative duties are not likely to decrease. Troy Williams, CEO of the Australian Dental Industry Association (ADIA), thinks that rules will tighten for dentists. “The Australian government is beginning to have a better understand-ing of how important regulation is for the dental industry, but many dentists aren’t fully aware of their statutory obligations when it comes to buying cheaper overseas products…this is something the ADIA is committed to improving and will keep lobbying the government on.” He also sees the growth of larger practices, where the corporate model means equipment and supplies are centrally procured. “Our dental care is still the most ex-pensive in the world,” he says. “This is a way of managing costs.”

Dr Toni Surace, a practising dentist and managing director of Momentum Management, also foresees a smarter, more business-savvy approach by

Back to the future

A decade ago, the future of dentistry looked like a limited, and more female-dominated, workforce. A.M. Walsh looks at how the predictions measure up to reality, and what the future holds

YOUR WORLD

dentists. “Businesses will need to be-come more entrepreneurial to survive,” she says. “It will be hard for some as it may feel like it’s too big a change.” Not only does this involve an increased awareness of advertising and market-ing, but with the growth of social me-dia, it’s imperative that dentists learn to manage outcomes and responses to their service. “People use search engines now to research their health issues and are more aware than ever of whether they’re getting good value and quality care. And people are going to post a review online, something that already happens in the US.” Dr Surace recommends dentists look ahead to have a vision of their practice and how they want to be perceived by patients.

This “vision” of dentistry is certainly one that’s set to evolve as dentists be-

come more active in the public health debate. “Great to see the mouth finally being accepted as part of the body,” wrote leading nutritionist Rosemary Stanton last year when the government

announced it would be injecting $4.5b into a public Dental Health scheme. “Imagine the outcry if we excluded foot or arm injuries or problems with ears from Medicare,” she said. “It’s this growing awareness of the importance of good oral health that is also going to play a large part in the future.”

Professor Chris Peck, Dean of the School of Dentistry, University of Syd-ney, echoes recommendations by the National Advisory Council on Dental Health’s final report in last December

that “the system adopt a population oral health approach which includes preventive strategies”. Peck concurs: “If you’re looking at the next 10 years, I think we’re going to see a greater focus on preventive practice… Dentists working with other oral health profes-sionals, as well as nurses, physicians,

Back to the future

“I think there’s a growing demand from dentists, especially female, for more part-time positions, with flexible shifts and longer opening hours, which a larger practice can accommodate.”

Quote Dr Phillip Palmer, managing director, Prime Practice

“When you consider that the majority of dental diseases are preventable, then let’s see a focus on prevention and research,” says Professor Chris Peck, University of Sydney.

12

pharmacists, physiotherapists—it’s this kind of thinking that will benefit the community.”

For Professor Peck, this points to a shift in the way that dentists are becoming more a part of a systemic approach to overall health and wellbe-ing. “Dentistry is becoming much more mainstream and by that I mean that in the past it really hasn’t been part of the general health industry. Now, not only dentists are asking why, but also other health professionals… for example, with diabetes, a number of associations and foundations are keen on getting oral health expert advice now on what the interactions are, because there are interactions there. I think this is incred-ibly encouraging. I think we’re going to see advocacy groups as well as health professionals working much more closely together,” says Professor Peck.

Using a more team-based approach may be essential for not only increas-ing positive patient outcomes, but for also attacking the ever-threatening fiscal bottom line. “Dentistry is about a $7 billion industry in Australia and it’s

growing. It’s just not sustainable,” says Professor Peck. “When you consider that the majority of dental diseases are preventable, then let’s see a focus on prevention and research.”

It all points to a new kind of dental professional, one who’s willing to embrace change on all fronts, but at the same time remain patient-centred.

Adaptation is the key. “I still see a strong place for small practices,” says Professor Peck. “They’re the ones who are going to be geographically co-located [with medical practitioners]. It’s expensive to build a dental practice but sharing premises where you have clinical facilities for health profession-als really makes sense.”

YOUR WORLD

With the growth of social media, it’s imperative that dentists learn to manage outcomes and responses to their service.

REVIEWERS WANTEDWe want you to write for Bite!

Every issue we’re asking dentists to review their tools—telling us in a couple of paragraphs what they love about them and what they don’t like. Check out the reviews starting on page 43.

There’s only two rules—you have to be a practicing dentist, and it has to be something you use. The whole idea is to start a conversation between our readers. We don’t want to tell you what to buy. We want your peers—the people actually using the equipment—to guide you to what’s good and what isn’t.

If you’d like to write a review, email Rob Johnson at [email protected], and he’ll tell you what’s involved.

ReviewersMar2011.indd 4 8/3/11 3:30:10 PM

For further details contact Jon Baines Tours (03) 9343 [email protected]

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NEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOUR TOOLS YOUR LIFEYOUR BUSINES

In May 2009, CoreData surveyed more than 1000 Australians and revealed that 58 per cent of respondents would stop having the Yellow Pages delivered if they had the choice. Since then, the physical size of the directory has almost halved. Some believe

this spells the end of print advertising, however many Australian dentists are still finding value in the more traditional forms of advertising.

“There’s no doubt the way consumers search for information is changing,” says

Yellow Pages group product manager, Simon Uzunovski. “Print was the only way consumers could find a local service pro-vider, nowadays, more and more consum-ers rely on online, via mobile, the iPad, and the iPhone to find the information they need.” Uzunovski cites 18 months of growth for the Yellow Pages’ digital proper-ties as evidence of this trend towards online information gathering. However, he adds, a large portion of the population still prefer to use the book. “As long as there’s demand we’ll continue to print and distribute it,” he says.

The Yellow Pages are undoubtedly the stalwart of print advertising in Australia, but Uzunovski says they are changing with the times too. With the Yellow Pages Digi-tal Network attracting more than nine mil-lion visits a month across mobile, desktop and tablet devices, it’s one of the largest digital advertising networks in Australia.

Uzunovski says that geographic region plays no part in a person’s reliance on the Yellow Pages, although Chloe Colantoni, practice manager at Denticheck, dis-agrees. Colantoni believes that her Hobart patients rely more on the printed edition

Master dataDespite everyone’s new-fangled mobile gadgets, has marketing really changed that much? Amanda Lohan investigates

Dentists need to know who their customers are and how they search for

local services.

15

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Optimised attachments for extrusion and rotation

InvisalignG3

Improved SmartForce®

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The next generation of SmartForce®

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for non-Invisalignfor non-Invisalignpatients

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A new highly elastic, clear aligner material for more predictable tooth movements

Compliance indicators

Eruption compensation tabs

6 individual replacement aligners at no cost

16

of the Yellow Pages than patients in bigger cities. As a result, she has chosen to main-tain a large print ad at an equally large cost. “We track every new patient through our software and we have done for the past five years,” says Colantoni, “We can quantify everything, including how they found us and whether they become long-term patients. By a long shot, the Yellow Pages are still the first port of call.”

Despite the printed Yellow Pages continuing to exceed online referrals to the Hobart practice, Colantoni says that online referrals are on their way up, particularly since applying search engine optimisation to the site (to appear higher in online search results), and changing the practice’s prominent signage to include the web address.

Colantoni manages all of her digital ad-vertising campaigns through this website. New software provides access to a number of interactive marketing channels such as patient emails and SMS reminders, and allows her to track each of these channels in detail. This has resulted in a need for Colantoni to spend far more time on mar-keting than she used to, however she says that the ongoing process allows her to stay up to date more easily.

Apart from appointment reminders, Colantoni’s strategies include an email reminder to use annual private healthcare benefits before they expire; a program she says generates an instant response. Colantoni says that, initially, she was wary of overusing technology and bombard-ing patients with gratuitous messages. Careful attention to appropriate message

targeting and a focus on providing useful information, however, have resulted in an overwhelmingly positive response from grateful recipients.

Interestingly, the ‘2012 Yellow Social Media Report’ (which surveyed almost 2000 Australia businesses) found that an increasing number of small and medium sized businesses are now using social me-dia as an alternative way to connect with their customers. The report also revealed, however, that many of these social media campaigns lack a clear strategy, generally

failing to provide the sort of information consumers look for when they use social media (namely, giveaways and discounts). When it comes to these social media marketing channels, including Facebook, Twitter and user review-based TrueLocal, Colantoni prefers to steer clear. “It’s very messy with privacy laws and you need to sit on there all day, every day to keep it interesting and handle comments—I don’t think it’s right for our industry,” she says.

In working with the previous principal to establish the right marketing mix for her Hobart practice, Colantoni says that

it took some convincing to pull away from the channels that—based on her data—weren’t working. One area of print media that Colantoni eventually pulled away from was the local newspaper. “We used to do a lot more of it. When I started, it was probably our main form of getting the word out there but we never knew whether it was effective... we haven’t done it in the last few years. I tracked it and it brought in maybe two new patients. No existing patients saw it,” she says.

A move towards digital chan-nels did not, however, mean giving up the tools that were still effective, and even now one of Denticheck’s most

popular marketing tools is their printed reminder notice. Using variable digital print technology, the reminder postcards show an image of a foggy bathroom mirror with the patient’s name scrawled across it. “They cost a little bit more to do, but people love them and put them up on their fridge—kids have even taken them to school.” Following the success of an early postcard campaign, Colantoni forwarded a sample to Denticheck’s head office, who are now using it as an example for other practices.

The key to Colantoni’s success has been a strong focus on evidence-based strate-gies, making use of software to test and

track the effectiveness of each campaign and establish Denticheck’s optimal mar-keting mix. Uzunovski says no one solution fits all, so this kind of research is essential. “The first thing any dentist should do is work out who their customers are, and where they search for a local service provider. Is it in print? Online? Mobile? Search engines? Once a dentist knows this information they can spend their market-ing and advertising budget accordingly.”

“The most important thing is to make sure you have a presence in the places your customers search.”

YOUR BUSINESS

More and more patients rely on online to find the services they want

“We can quantify everything, including how they found us and whether they become long-term patients. By a long shot, the Yellow Pages are still the first port of call”.

Quote Chloe Colantoni, practice manager, Denticheck, Hobart

Halitosis

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The ADA’s new federal president, Dr Karin Alexander, has taken on the job during interesting times. Kerryn Ramsey reports

arin Alexander became president of the ADA last November, there was no-one more proud than her 89-year-old mother. But it was more than just motherly love—there was a professional bonding as well. That’s because Dr Alex-ander’s first position as a qualified dentist was at her mum’s practice, attached to the family home in Adelaide’s suburb of Royston Park.

“Sometimes she can’t understand why I accepted the presi-dency because of the travel and the extra work,” says Dr Alexan-der referring to her mum, Dr Vera Alexander who worked as a dentist until she was a mighty 84. “At the same time, she loves the fact that I’m doing it.”

For Dr Alexander, it was her mum’s determination and fearless-ness that inspired her to enter this profession. Vera moved to Australia from her home in Lithuania just after World War II with her husband, electrical engineer Victor, “with virtually nothing but the clothes on their backs”.

Although she was a qualified dentist, the overseas degree wasn’t accepted back then, so she had to restudy her degree in Adelaide. “They didn’t have the Australian Dental Council to run exams to check whether you were able to be registered here,” recalls Dr Alexander.

Undeterred, Vera passed her degree with flying colours, and opened her family practice in 1955. And now more than half a century later, it’s her daughter who has the same patience and

doggedness, using these traits to move up the ranks as ADA’s first female president.

“If you had asked me if [I planned to be president] many years ago, I would have given you a very quizzical look,” says Dr Alex-ander, who still runs her much-beloved Royston Park surgery as well as a four-clinic practice in Adelaide’s CBD.

An invitation to join the Practice Management and Member’s Services Committee back in 1983 was her first involvement with the South Australian branch of the Australian Dental Association (ADASA). Learning about the machinations of the association and government piqued her interest, and later took a position on the Peer Review Committee.

“Working on various committees to see how the ADA works was almost addictive,” she admits. “When you get a reasonable result, it makes you want to do a little bit more. Very, very slowly, it draws you in.”

One of her most challenging—but satisfying—outcomes was a joint project in 2003 with the SA Dental Service (SADS) and ADASA to improve the dental care for aged residents at nursing homes, with nine dentists providing treatments for residents. “It was to see whether it improved their health, and whether it was possible to do,” says Dr Alexander who still visits her two nursing homes on a regular basis.

Under SADS’s Dr Martin Dooland, the dentists use portable equipment supplied by SADS at the various nursing homes. The service also became a Commonwealth-funded research project. “Even after the original project finished, SA Dental Service quar-antined money for us to continue working in the nursing homes.”

After 14 years working for the SA association on various

tiesFamily

COVER STORY

20

committees, as well as managing her practices and having two toddlers, Alyssa and Paul (now aged 28 and 25), she decided to have some time out. But before she’d even drawn breath, she was offered the position of vice-president of the SA branch. Despite her slight trepidation, she took on the position and from there, she moved up the ranks, becoming president of the SA branch in 1999. After two terms as a federal councilor, she moved on to federal executive and then, as the highest accolade, national president, succeeding Dr Shane Fryer.

“I’ve done it because it adds another dimension to my clinical work,” says Dr Alexander, whose husband Robert Grima, a health service management accountant, also co-manages her two dental surgeries to free up her time. “I can understand why and how outside influences work in our profession and how they affect us

and sometimes how we can change those for the better,” says Dr Alexander.

As the media broke the news of her position by pointing out she was the ADA’s first female president, Dr Alexander found it “a little bit annoying”. As she explains, “People were saying, ‘You’ve broken through the glass ceiling’ but I actually consider I’ve just created a new pathway for people to follow.

“One needs to do the hard yards—understanding the issues and developing contacts around Australia. But, really, there’s no reason to stop anybody from becoming president. I would love to see other females take up the work—and there’s quite a lot of work involved—but the camaraderie of one’s colleagues on council and executive makes it fun. One has to remember that the council currently consists of all males apart from me—and they are the ones who voted me in.” This includes the newly ap-pointed federal executives—Dr Carmelo Bonanno as vice-presi-dent, and Drs Rick Olive, Hugo Sachs and Terry Pitsikas.

With a new year, Dr Alexander is ready to tackle some of the most controversial issues with gusto. The country is on the cusp of a new dental deal, kicking off with the Dental Benefits Amend-ment Bill passed by both houses last November, allocating $2.7 billion for up to 3.4 million children to access dental services through Medicare, beginning in 2014.

According to Greens Senator Richard Di Natale in The Sydney Morning Herald, the legislation “is part of a broader package I announced with the health minister in August, which will see a $1.3 billion investment in the public dental system and further investment in the dental workforce and infrastructure”.

Despite the fanfare, Dr Alexander says the ADA is “a little

COVER STORY

“Like my mother, I really love working with people, love helping them out, love getting patients who come in scared and in pain and being able to have them walk out with a smile on their faces.”

QuoteDr Karin Alexander, president, ADA

guarded” about the legislation. “It would be a nice change if the government discussed the new scheme with the Dental Associa-tion before they had it fleshed out and ready to go.”

While the ADA has had a good working relationship with Di Natale, health minister Tanya Plibersek and shadow minister for health and ageing Peter Dutton, the fine details haven’t been released—and, as Dr Alexander says, “the devil is always in the detail”. The Bill means that children from ages two to 17 in Family Tax Benefits A can receive $1000 over two years. The ADA, however, is still waiting for specific details, including item numbers, administration paperwork, and specific services to be included, such as general anesthetics, especially for children with high needs—often from poorer socio-economic areas.

“We’re not asking them for high-cost items such as crowns but sensible things that will help people get those kids to good health,” explains Dr Alexander. “They have decay so we need to fix that and then get them into good oral health patterns. We want to provide quality treatment and not just a half-hearted mishmash of things we might be able to do.”

When it comes to issues on dental care for children, Dr Alexander is well versed, with her hands-on approach at her two practices. “With some families, I have four generations coming to see me,” she says. “One of the mums even said, ‘My kids cried because they couldn’t come in to see Dr Karin’.”

Compassion is undoubtedly another strong trait for Dr Alexan-der, whether she’s fixing kids’ fillings in the surgery or pushing governments to provide funding that will improve dental care for the disadvantaged. But as well as helping patients, she also has compassion for her own colleagues, particularly when broaching the touchy topic of 600-plus dentists who were under audit for suspected Medicare payment irregularities in 2010.

While Medicare had demanded repayment of $21.6 million from dentists in early 2011, most of these dentists claimed they’d performed the specific services but just failed to fill in all the paperwork.

When the retrospective changes to compliance arrangements were announced last May, the dentists were critical, finding the arrangements unfair. As a more rational approach, an amend-

ment in October meant dentists who made purely clerical errors will now receive debt forgiveness.

According to Dr Alexander, the Medicare ‘misuse’ was an easy mistake by dentists. “This was a completely new system. Many practitioners are in single practices; they’re busy, it was another set of fees with different ways of doing it, so they often skimmed over it. It was a little foolish to not have read the fine print but it was such a different scheme. However, if any dentist has mishandled the scheme or committed any fraudulent behaviour, then there is no sympathy for that at all.”

When it comes to complex and contentious issues, she’s well aware that her position as president is “probably a bit more than the normal nine-to-five”. But whenever she needs a good sounding board, there’s one dentist she can always turn to—her dentist-savvy mum. “Even now, she still grabs Bite magazine or the Dental Journal and says, ‘Have you seen this microscope…have you seen this laser…what about this technique?’ She’s still completely with it and still interested.” Perhaps it’s a genetic trait that makes Dr Alexander ‘completely with it and still interested’ in even the most challenging issues.

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NEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOUR TOOLS YOUR LIFEYOUR bUSINESS

24

Orthodontist Dr Stephen Papas needed a practice with cutting-edge design and technology to treat adult patients. Susanna Nelson reports

The bulk of an orthodontic practice has usually consisted of children and teenagers having their teeth straightened early in life. Dr Stephen Papas’s Brisbane practice, Imagine Orthodontics, is a little different—his business is pitched firmly at the adult market, and his patients don’t sport the mess of wireworks and grimaces tradition-ally associated with the field.

Ninety per cent of the patients at Dr Papas’s city practice are adults, and this has had an obvious influence on the sleek, contemporary design of his surgery. “The general aesthetic of the practice aims at pleasing the adult demographic,” he says. “It has a modern, stylish feel with clean lines and a mix of visual textures throughout.”

The practice was designed and completed by Queensland architect Joe Adsett. Joe is a patient, and had a from-the-chair perspective that enabled him to create a built environment that would be relaxing and pleasing for both staff and patients. “It’s a beautiful environment in which to work,” says Dr Papas.

Dr Papas has aimed to ensure the clinics have a fresh, unclut-tered feel, with ceiling-mounted lights and the latest Planmeca chairs, renowned for their ergonomic design. “We opted for the Ultra upholstery option for the chairs, which prompts a lot of compliments from our patients with respect to comfort. The first patient we saw after we opened fell asleep in the chair!”

The emphasis on aesthetics doesn’t end with the practice itself. Dr Papas’s special focus is on visually unobtrusive and invisible orthodontics that move away from the metal braces that are the bane of many teenagers’ lives. “Only 10 per cent of my patients have metal braces on their upper teeth,” he says. He predominantly uses aesthetic appliances: ceramic braces with

aesthetic wires, lingual braces and Invisalign technology, and he is currently one of only three practitioners in Queensland whose practice focuses on this type of invisible orthodontistry.

Dr Papas explains how he uses the Invisalign technology: “We use an iTero scanner. The scanner is an intra-oral scanning system based on a ‘parallel confocal’ scanning protocol, which creates a 15-microns-accurate three-dimensional model of the dental arches. The information is processed locally and uploaded to the practitioner’s Invisalign VIP database. “Parallel confocal imaging essentially filters out reflected light that is not at a par-ticular focal length. The data processing of the scanner is impres-

sive, projecting 100,000 parallel red-laser beams and processing a 13.5mm scan depth in a fraction of a second.”

Comfort, as well as aesthetic appeal, is enhanced by this process. Among other benefits for patients, the iTero scanner eliminates the need for the lengthy and uncomfortable polyvinyl siloxane (PVS) impressions normally required and provides a highly accurate three-dimensional model of a patient’s teeth—more accurate than PVS impressions—with the elimination of the chances of impression material defects. “Because confocal imaging rather than trifocal imaging is used, there is an equal capture of all intra-oral structures without the need for a coating

Braceyourself

“Only 10 per cent of my pa-tients have metal braces on their upper teeth.”

QuoteDr Stephen Papas, Imagine Orthodontics, Brisbane

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YOUR bUSINESS

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of opaque powder,” Dr Papas says. “This allows me to delegate the Invisalign process to my staff with the confidence that a per-fect 3D model will result.”

The occlusal record is also taken with the scanner so that a perfectly accurate, digital bite record can be obtained. This is more accurate than Invisalign’s software-interpreted bite record, which creates an occlusion based on wear-facets and intra-oral photographs. The scan can then be immediately uploaded to the Invisalign database for faster case development. “I’ve had a case arrive for ClinCheck review the following day,” Dr Papas says.

The treatment involves a series of clear, removable align-ers that gradually straighten the patient’s teeth over the course of a six-month to two-year period, with the aver-age course lasting around 12 months. “The Invisalign

aligners fit more accurately, so it follows that tooth movements are more controlled. This leads to better results and faster treat-ments,” says Dr Papas.

As soon as the initial scan is taken, patients are able to view a three-dimensional, computer-generated simulation of how their teeth will look when the treatment is complete. “The Invisalign Outcome Simulator allows an on-site simulation of dental align-ment prior to an Invisalign submission,” says Dr Papas.

Perhaps because adult orthodontics are still a bit of a niche market, the technology has been slow to catch on. “Currently we’re the only practice in Brisbane to use the iTero scanner for Invisalign submissions,” Dr Papas says. “There may have been

Your business

“The general aesthetic of the practice aims at pleasing the adult demographic. It has a modern, stylish feel with clean lines and a mix of visual textures throughout,” says Dr Stephen Papas.

a slow uptake on this generally because the scanner is a reasonably expensive piece of equipment—unless there is a high volume of Invisalign patients in a practice it may not be a worthwhile investment.

“My decision to use an iTero scanner was fairly straight-forward, considering that I see a high volume of Invisalign patients, and considering the benefits mentioned above.

“I think the big selling points for me were the assurance of a highly accurate representation of the arches and a highly accurate bite record. The cost of the scanner in a high-volume Invisalign practice is little more than the costs associated with PVS impression taking, so in this instance it’s definitely a good investment to gain significant advantages. Being able to confidently delegate what is otherwise a very technique-sensitive process is a big balancer in the cost-effectiveness equation.

“The current generation of scanner is on a mobile cart which houses a PC, a UPS and small compressor so it’s a larger piece of equipment than would be ideal. The handheld scanner is also fairly bulky in small hands, however because the image accumulates sequentially there is no data lost along the way.”

Dr Papas is passionate about his field, and is currently col-laborating with the University of New South Wales to develop new orthodontic technologies. His practice forms part of the Invisible Orthodontist network of practices around the country—a group which aims to move the field away from the conventional ‘mouth full of metal’ model towards braces-free dental correction.

Depending on the procedures involved, a course of treat-ment can cost between $4000 and $9000.

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NEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOuR buSiNESS YOuR LiFE

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With the coming of the internet and the global financial crisis, the way we invest

today has totally changed. Gone are the days when we can just invest in managed funds which will give us a decent return as the years go by. As an example any funds invested prior to 2007 would probably be worth less today than they were then. With com-pulsory Super this is even more fright-ening as these funds are supposed to be supporting the future retirement of everyday Australians.

The old saying “nobody cares more about your money then yourself” really applies today. So if we are to take control over our investments or super funds where can we invest? There are basically three asset classes where we can invest in:

Cash:Without doubt still the safest place to invest. However interest rates at the moment are low, inflation is always eating at the return and quite frankly unless you have millions of dollars in the bank the net returns will be very low.

Property:Bricks and mortar have always been an extremely popular investment vehicle for Australians. However in recent times property values have declined substantially as have rental returns. The problem with property is knowing what property to buy, when to buy it and the time and cost it takes to buy and sell. Property is also expensive to buy and sell.

Add to this the not-well-known factor that all depreciation allowances claimed for investment properties are added to the selling price for taxation purposes—that simple sum substan-tially increases the capital apprecia-tion and, as a result, the capital gains tax payable.

Derivatives:This includes shares, options, futures, foreign exchange and managed funds which invest in these.

Over decades the share market has consistently outperformed any other form of investment for the average man in the street. Shares are probably the easiest of these to understand and if managed correctly can give annual double digit returns. Shares also pay dividends most of which are what is known as franked which means the company has already paid tax on the return so the tax on the dividend is reduced substantially. So how do we know what shares to buy? Most people buy shares from tips received from stockbrokers, friends, television pro-grams and newspapers. The problem is what are the best shares to buy and when is the best time to buy or to sell or take profits.

So how should shares be bought?Shares should be bought using sound

analysis and at a price where they are undervalued.

There are two types of analysis –

Fundamental analysis looks at the fundamentals of a share such as profit-ability, growth, earnings, returns, value, debt, management and industry it is in to name a few.

Technical analysis looks at the graph of a share to understand what is hap-pening to the price of that share. Com-bining this with certain indicators gives a clearer picture as when to buy or sell the share.

With the amount of information available today on the internet and the multitude of software programs out here, finding out this information can be very tricky. However combining both fundamental and technical analysis in conjunction with the right software can lead to a predictable, low risk, reliable strategy that can easily give double digit annual returns.

Dr Jeff Brown is a practicing dentist with over 20 years experience in the stock market. He has developed a low risk, reliable share investment strategy that has produced consistent above average returns.

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s the managing director of dental business consultancy Momentum Management—a company that works with dental businesses to create value and develop positive, long-term outcomes—Dr Toni Surace sometimes inadvertantly sees the ugly side of dental partnerships after the break-

down of a relationship. What makes the situation worse is a lack of preparation during the start-up phase.

“It becomes a living nightmare,” Dr Surace, who will often refer such businesses on to legal consultants, says. “We know of successfully run partnerships and associateships but to be hon-est they are few and far between. Things tend to begin breaking down after about five years. That’s when the honeymoon phase is well and truly over.”

In order to prepare properly for future business success, for growth and change and development, Dr Surace says it’s vital to have the relationships defined for the short, medium and long term from the outset and then have the right legal documents put into place.

“You could be a partnership, in which you’re equal partners of the same business, or separate businesses working under the same roof which is called an ‘associateship’,” she says. “No matter what you choose, you need some sort of legal document covering that.”

Rod Cunich, a commercial lawyer and national practice group leader at Slater & Gordon, agrees that proper planning and thoughtful legal preparation is absolutely essential when starting

a new business. “Relationships will change,” he says. “For exam-ple, discontent and ill will arises if one person starts generating more revenue through quick consultations whilst another, on equal take-home pay, sees fewer patients and generates far less revenue because they have longer consultations due to quality care or perhaps poor work practices. These variances and many other potential issues of contention can be foreshadowed and accommodated in partnership or associated agreements.”

Sorting out a proper legal structure, Cunich says, helps you figure out how the relationship might change or develop in the future. Built in flexibility and fairness that can accommodate

change often avoids relationship fractures that a rigid arrange-ment can’t. When one partner or associate exits—whether it’s because of retirement or a need to move away, or the partners simply dislike working together, or one becomes ill or dies—they need to have an agreed plan in place from the outset to address

Sparring partners

When dentists come together to start a new practice it’s vital that they realise there are several essential ingredients in the recipe for business success. By Chris Sheedy

“You could be a partnership, in which you’re equal partners or separate businesses working under the same roof which is called an ‘associateship’.”

Quote Dr Toni Surace, Momentum Management

YOUR bUSINESS

Sorting out a proper legal structure for your partnership or associateship will help you figure out possible changes in the future.

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how they will handle such situations. “If they don’t have a docu-mented plan it’s likely to end in a brawl that will cost a lot of money and cause a lot of stress,” Cunich says.

“Legally documenting a plan is a bit like paying for insurance; it’s always a grudge spend. People don’t tend to see the value of it. But after a few years in business that value becomes very clear. It’s vital that the partners document their relationship in terms of a partner-ship agreement or shareholders’ agreement. There are also several other agreements that must be in place from the first day including employment contracts, definition of the principals’ management roles and responsibilities, health and safety policies and a range of critical HR and inter-relationship documents that will help set the guidelines for how the business will develop.”

Many people spend more time planning a holiday than planning the future growth and direction of their business, Cunich says. As a result they end up getting lost. To have all necessary legal docu-ments put in place it will likely take around three full days of meet-ings and discussions with a lawyer and other professional advisers such as an accountant, financier, insurance expert and business development specialist. But these can be spread out into smaller meetings over several months.

Insurance mattersKeith Till, national broker manager at Zurich Financial Services, suggests it’s best to see an insurance broker to have your needs fully understood. “There are two ways to get insurance,” he says. “Go direct to an insurance company or go to a broker. But insur-

ance is complex and the experts, in this case the brokers, can work out what you need and who offers the best policy at the best price.”

“Dentists obviously need a good business insurance package to protect the contents of their surgeries from fire, storm etc and from burglary and theft. It is also vital that they have professional indemnity insurance in case the dentist is professionally negligent or gives bad advice.”

“Dentists need to have the usual property insurance but under some policies such as the Zurich Gold Policy, they can also have full accidental damage cover. So if they drop and break expensive equipment then it’s insured. Finally, they should also look to take out business interruption cover which provides income during the time a business is closed due to an event such as a fire.”

The partners in the business should take out life insurance on each other, our experts say. This means that if one dies, the other is able to afford to buy their late partner’s share of the business. Income protection insurance is also an important consideration.

Data is kingWithout reliable, efficient and future-proof IT systems, a new busi-ness stands little chance of survival. Nevin McClintock, managing director and consultant within dental-specialist IT consultancy iTme (www.it-me.com.au), says the partners must discuss and agree on an IT strategy.

“Data is king within any company. Without it you’re dead in the water,” he says. “You need to think of three things. Firstly consider the security of the data. In other words, don’t have the server sitting somewhere that it will be hit by a door. The next consideration is the anti-virus system. Make sure it exists and is regularly updated. A lot of this is common sense but you’d be amazed at the number

of people that don’t do it right. Finally and most importantly is backups. Set up nightly backups and ensure these are kept off-site but handy in case of an emergency. An encrypted online cloud backup can add another line of defence.”

Purchasing good quality equipment with a decent support con-tract will always pay off in the long run, McClintock says. And if you set up a regular maintenance process with an IT company then the life and reliability of your equipment will be improved.

For a final word of advice, Dr Surace says it is important for partners to sit down and discuss each other’s dental and business philosophies. If one wants to drill and fill and the other wants to do comprehensive cosmetic dentistry, there is going to be a problem.

“You often find that after a time, one partner wants to grow the business but the other wants to stay where they are because they’re comfortable,” Dr Surace says. “At this stage you can only hope the partners are prepared for such a situation when they first launched the business.”

YOUR bUSINESS

To have all necessary legal documents put in place it will likely take comprehensive meetings and discussions with a lawyer

“Dentists need the usual property insurance but under some policies they can also have full accidental cover.”

Quote Keith Till, national broker manager, Zurich Financial Services


33

Tools of the tradeThe best sutures ever, a very hi-res camera, a handpiece with enormous torque and more are in the spotlight this month

Acucam Concept IV intraoral cameraby Dr Fern White, Beacon Cove Dental, Port Melbourne, VIC

I’ve used a lot of intraoral cameras in the past and purchased this Acucam about two years ago. This one is fantastic because of the clarity of the images.

What’s good about itIt’s better than any of the other intraoral cameras I’ve used due to its higher resolution. We have a 36-inch LCD screen in front of the patient so we can show them exactly what’s going on in their mouth. It’s all about educating the patient.

I then give them the treatment options so they can make a decision. Needless to say, once they have seen their problem enlarged on a 36-inch screen, case acceptance is phenomenal. The camera also has an attached fibre-optic light that gives very realistic colouring. The images are all filed digitally and I give the patient photo paper copy to take home at the end of treatment. The Acucam allows me to hone in with clarity on one tooth at a time.

What’s not so goodI use a Mac computer with Mac Practice software. Like many other dental peripherals, there isn’t a direct Mac driver for this camera. I have to convert the video signal through a Mac video box to make it work on my computer. It’s all a bit complicated. I use a new sleeve with each patient for infection control and the sleeves are quite expensive. The device is also quite large due to the addition of the fibre-optic light. It doesn’t fit on the chair so I store it on the bench and wheel it over every time I use it.

Where did you get itHenry Schein Halas. (This item is no longer in production)

Morita TwinPower Turbine 45by Dr Tim Topalov, River Dental, Gympie, QLD

Sadly, I have been extracting teeth for 33 years—sadly because a dentist’s natural instinct is to prevent and preserve. However, when it’s time to go, I want to do the deed as quickly as possible with the least stress to the patient. When it was suggested that I trial the Morita handpiece by Adam from Hayes Handpiece Australia, I thought, ‘Why not give it a try?’

What’s good about itWhen extracting, say, a 46, I often slice the mesial and distal contacts to provide a little room for movement and reduce the risk of fracturing adjacent teeth and/or restorations. I then use a luxator and elevator followed by forceps to gain some initial movement, even if the root formation is not conducive to a straightforward extraction. When resistance is great, movement is little and the forceps-hand is fatigued, it is time to section the roots.

Using the Morita to slice the contacts has a nice feel to it. Using the same handpiece to section the crown feels smoother and is a less noisy experience. There was also much less aerosol produced compared with many other handpieces I have used.

The attributes of the Morita handpiece that I like are the enormous torque, the 45-degree smaller fibro-optic head and the air-brake. Most importantly, the design channels the exhaust through the head cap and the body of the handpiece rather than in the direction of the bur and into the working field.

What’s not so goodThe only downside is the cost. It’s an expensive piece of equipment.

Where did you get itHayes Handpiece Australia (www.hayeshandpiece.com.au).


34

Tools of the trade (continued from page 33)

Expasylby Dr Nick Teo, Tindale Dental Surgery, Penrith, NSW

I’ve always found retraction cord pretty fiddly to use. It needs to be dipped in hemostatic material and jammed into the gums to create a nice clear margin. However, no sooner would I tuck in one side than the other side would pop out. It always seemed far more difficult than it needed to be. When I started working at Tindale Dental, they used Expasyl, a fantastic substitute for retraction cord.

What’s good about itIt comes in a small dispensing gun with a little metal tip. When doing a crown prep, the Expasyl is simply squirted around the gumline. It’s left for two minutes then washed away to create a perfectly clear margin. It’s not uncomfortable for the patient because you’re not tucking something into their gum.

Along with crown preps, it can be used for fillings in awkward places or when taking a scan for a Cerec. In fact, it’s handy for a number of different situations.

I speak to a lot of colleagues and have many friends who are dentists and they haven’t heard of it. I don’t know why. It’s a great product that works far better than retraction cord.

What’s not so goodThe taste of Expasyl isn’t great so I put a piece of gauze over the tooth and the patient bites down on that. That way the tongue doesn’t keep touching it and the patient doesn’t have to sit there for two minutes tasting the stuff.

It’s made by Kerr who have recently released a new product called Hemostasyl for use with fillings. Unfortunately, I’ve found that this new product doesn’t work as well as Expasyl.

Where did you get itGunz Dental (www.gunz.com.au).

Dyloc suturesby Dr Karim Azmi, Lynwood Dental, Lynwood, WA

We were approached by a sales rep from Dynek who sent us samples of these sutures. I do a lot of surgery, and I can say these are fantastic—the best sutures I have ever used.

What’s good about itThe Dyloc sutures are monofilament polyether so the whole thing is only one string. For normal surgical procedures, I prefer 4/0 reverse cutting while for cosmetic procedures, implant surgery or anything at the front, I use 6/0 premium reverse cutting.

During healing it keeps everything very clean as food doesn’t get attached to it. Healing happens very fast as well. One of my patients had a suture left in for three weeks as they went away on holiday. When they returned, I couldn’t even see the suture as the tissue had grown all around it. I had to dig to remove it. I would say that 10 days would be ample time before removing them.

It locks very well and I rarely have any slippage. It’s a purple colour so I can see it in any situation, even if the wound is bleeding. The needle is extremely sharp and penetrates easily.

I love that it’s Aussie made and in my opinion, it beats anything else I’ve ever used. On top of that, they’re way cheaper than other brands.

What’s not so goodI can’t really find anything wrong with them. I’ve been using them for the past few months and I’ve been very impressed. Even their customer service is very good. Although they are Adelaide based, we placed an order and a day later it was here in Perth.

Where did you get itDynek sutures (www.dynek.com).

YOuR TOOLS NEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOuR buSiNESS YOuR LiFEpROduCT guidE

Ergonomics product guide

Bite magazine’s guide to the best ergonomic products and services for dentists on the

market today.

35


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Ergonomic design product guide

LED light adds new dimension to surgery ergonomicsA-dec has added a whole new dimension to dental unit ergonomics, with its revolutionary LED operatory lighting solution.

he A-dec LED op-eratory light takes a completely new approach to

surgery lighting, introducing operating theatre style light-ing into the dental surgery.

The multi-LED array creates a ‘stadium’ lighting effect aimed at eliminating shadows and providing even illumination of the oral cavity. It also features a unique ‘cure safe’ mode making it safe to work longer with light-cured composites without compromising visibility.

A-dec’s light emitting diode technology produces ‘daylight’ balanced light to reproduce natural colours of hard and soft tissues – espe-cially important in diagnosis and shade matching of veneers and composites.

Fluid positioning systemErgonomically, the unique fluid multi positioning system makes it simple to move the light into the ideal position to light from above or to the side of the patient without interfering with operatory staff.

The light integrates with A-dec 300 and A-dec 500 delivery systems to provide ‘auto on’ functionality during chair recline and and ‘auto off’ when raising the patient chair backrest.

The slim-line light body features large grab handles and easy to operate switch-es. It can also be controlled chair-side via the A-dec

touchpad to change light intensity or operation of the unique ‘cure safe’ mode.

The new LED operatory light can be ordered as an option with new A-dec deliv-ery systems or retrofitted to most existing A-dec dental units. Additional ceiling-mount, track-mount and cabinet-mounted options make the light suitable for use with any type of dental unit.

Ease of useA-dec product manager, Leni Vilivili said because a dental light was so central to the treatment environment,

A-dec emphasized simplic-ity to produce a light that is both sophisticated in tech-nology, but instantly familiar with intuitive controls.

“Our goal was to enhance and add assurance to everything about the treat-ment room experience — to help dentists and assistants focus on their work instead of the equipment. Feedback we have received from den-tists has been very positive and it is especially acces-sible to smaller and more petite dentists who some-times struggle with conven-tional style light units,” Mr Vilivili said.

AwardsThe revolutionary light re-ceived the 2012 Silver Inter-national Design Excellence Award (IDEA) for Medical & Scientific Products and was named the 2012 Best New Product for Women by the American Association of Women Dentists (AAWD).

For a FREE in-surgery demonstration or details of the A-dec LED operatory light, contact your local or A-dec dealer or A-dec Territory Manager in each state.

To find your local A-dec representative, phone A-dec toll-free on 1800 225 010 or visit: www.a-dec.com.au.

36

Upgrade to Brilliance It’s light years ahead!

Improve your performance. Add fluid maneuverability and see colours accurately for better tissue analysis. Compared to conventional halogen lights, A-dec LED delivers 25% more illuminance at one-fifth of the power consumption.

Upgrade at a special price!

If you already own an A-dec light, you may be eligible for special savings. For further details about an upgrade or to arrange an in surgery demonstration, contact your local A-dec Territory Manager.



© 2012 A-dec Inc. All rights reserved.AA729_Inkredible 1844-34

James RosboroughTerritory Manager

QLD 0409 705 811

Paul RiddelTerritory Manager

NSW & ACT0467 688 818

Brian GardinerTerritory Manager

QLD0411 189 380

Nigel DavisTerritory Manager

SA & NT0418 824 602

Bruce WilliamsTerritory Manager

VIC & TAS0417 766 544

Scott WilliamsTerritory Manager

VIC & TAS0407 816 390

Daniel BetTerritory Manager

NSW & ACT0400 391 241

Joe MinerviniTerritory Manager

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To learn how A-dec LED

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1844-34_AA_Upgrade to Brilliance Advert_2A.indd 1 20/08/12 1:09 PM

Upgrade to Brilliance It’s light years ahead!

Improve your performance. Add fluid maneuverability and see colours accurately for better tissue analysis. Compared to conventional halogen lights, A-dec LED delivers 25% more illuminance at one-fifth of the power consumption.

Upgrade at a special price!

If you already own an A-dec light, you may be eligible for special savings. For further details about an upgrade or to arrange an in surgery demonstration, contact your local A-dec Territory Manager.



© 2012 A-dec Inc. All rights reserved.AA729_Inkredible 1844-34

James RosboroughTerritory Manager

QLD 0409 705 811

Paul RiddelTerritory Manager

NSW & ACT0467 688 818

Brian GardinerTerritory Manager

QLD0411 189 380

Nigel DavisTerritory Manager

SA & NT0418 824 602

Bruce WilliamsTerritory Manager

VIC & TAS0417 766 544

Scott WilliamsTerritory Manager

VIC & TAS0407 816 390

Daniel BetTerritory Manager

NSW & ACT0400 391 241

Joe MinerviniTerritory Manager

WA0400 001 954

To learn how A-dec LED

gives you exceptional

performance and unparalleled

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1844-34_AA_Upgrade to Brilliance Advert_2A.indd 1 20/08/12 1:09 PM


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The Salli Saddle Stool-improve your posture and general well-beingFrom an ergonomic point of view the operatory stool is possibly the most important piece of equipment in the surgery.

It is no secret that back (and related) issues are a major problem for dentists. It is also no

secret that saddle sitting is very beneficial to dentist’s and assistant’s wellbeing.

Main disadvantages of traditional sitting The back is rounded in bad posture and shoulders droop forward, which causes tension in the upper back muscles and shoulders. Microcirculation in the lower back weakens and deterioration of the vertebrae begins. Lumbar vertebrae are in the wrong angle, ligaments stretch, and the deep back muscles weaken. Bad posture causes poor breathing, which leads to a lack of oxygen and tiredness. Moving around with the chair and reaching from it is clumsy, since the feet are in front of the center of gravity. Sharp angles in knees and hips affect the joints. When sitting in a poor posture, the abdominal cavity and the intestines are pressed between the ribcage and the pelvis, disturbing the intestinal functions. Pelvic area tissues and internal organs, in addition to the genitalia, are com-pressed and the blood flow into these areas is reduced Continuous sitting with bad posture causes distur-bance in the vertebrae of the

spine, and that can cause reflect ailments in other parts of the body.

Effects of quality riding-like sittingRiding-like sitting differs greatly from the traditional way of sitting. The change affects the whole body: all large tissue groups and all body parts. In almost all cases a riding-like sitting position is a change for the better as it disturbs the metabolism to a much lesser extent than traditional sitting. The aim of ergonomics is to disturb the natural vital functions of the human body as little as possible, and to reduce health risks.

The main positive effects are to the spine, starting from the lower back and ending in the neck verte-brae. The sitting position affects posture, circulation in the lower limbs and joints, genital area, pelvic muscles, and intestines. Circulation in the head also increases, positively affecting the activ-ity level of the brain and the eyes.

Riding-like sitting enables you to easily roll around on the chair, move and reach, and to tilt the seat. Sit-ting becomes active, and the effectiveness in work increases.

When you start to improve your sitting, it makes you aware of your circulation, muscle tension, back, pos-ture, metabolism and

sitting position.When sitting on a saddle

chair the spine is almost in the same position as when standing. There is a small curve in the lower back and the vertebrae is not pressing the discs. This position is natural and therefore easy to maintain. Sitting on a saddle chair reduces tension in the back and sciatic-type pains, enhances circulation, makes breathing deeper, keeps the hip joint in the optimal 135 degree angle and makes it easy to move around.

The two-part seat does not press the genital area, which is beneficial to genital health. On a two-part chair, men can also comfortably tilt the pelvis forward to create the curve in the lower back that enables good posture.

A Salli saddle stool used in conjunction with a quality set of loupes may just change your life and extend your career.

For more information con-tact Fairway Dental on 1300 229 706 or visit www.fairwaydental.com.au.

38

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40


It’s self-evident that the way people work in your practice will determine its productivity. Easy access to equipment in

the surgery, or to storage areas and bench tops, all have an impact on how easy it is to perform your job. By contrast, if your equipment and storage areas are thrown together with little or no thought or plan-ning, it will be much more difficult for you and your staff to perform at your best.

The key is hiring a designer who understands ergonomics. Ergonom-ics is the study of the relationship between work and the environ-ment. The principles behind it are that movements necessary to carry out a task should be kept to a minimum, increasing efficiency and ensuring that the stresses on the body and mind remain at an acceptable and safe level. In sur-gery design, ergonomics considers movements from a dental unit to cabinetry, equipment, wash basins and so on. In the sterilisation room and reception, ergonomics consid-ers movements from one specific task to the next.

It’s why Dr Wael Assaf of Cane-land Dental in Mackay, Queensland, decided to partner with Elite Fitout Solutions. “We’re so happy with Elite’s design skills,” says Dr Assaf. “Their experience in the dental and medical fields really stood out. It enabled them to create a working environment that’s both ergonomi-cally sound and appealing.”

For over 30 years Elite has refined a unique and trusted four phase process that ensures the successful creation of your dream practice environment. The layout of the practice is planned during overall concept planning to ensure the required number of rooms fit in the space you have and provide for the preferred operating style as

well as patient and staff amenities. Workflow is also considered at the concept stage to plan the preferred movement of patients and staff from reception to waiting area and through to treatment rooms and amenities and return to reception. It also considers the movements of practitioners and assistants between treatment rooms and to the sterilisation room and other facilities, with particular consider-ation given to safety when carrying contaminated materials or sharps.

Within the surgery, for example, the practitioner requires easy ac-cess to instruments, handpieces and operating light (these will often be incorporated into the chair unit accessories). Also easy visual access to the computer screen (to view x-rays) as well as operating access to the computer equipment and space for the patients records, a hand basin and waste bin.

There are also physical aspects of the design that need ergonomic consideration. When it comes to bench and storage heights that minimise bending over and stretch-ing. Thought also has to be given

to the location and direction of cabinet doors, the positioning and height of inbuilt supply boxes, computer keyboard tray and auto-matic door-closers. These aspects all need to be managed within the constraints of the building structure and coordinated with the delivery of essential services to each room.

“Elite’s experience enabled them to recognise issues such as the difficult placement of our treatment chairs before they became a real problem and delivered workable so-lutions,” says Dr Andrew Koranski, of Quintessential Dental in Jimboomba.

Ergonomics, workflow, access standards, health and safety regulations, infection control and aesthetics are just some of the components in the planning and design of your practice. Whether you are moving to new premises or want to re-invigorate your existing space, it all starts with understand-ing your dream and what you want to achieve. For more information, call 1300 765 344, or go online to www.elitefitout.com.au.

The foundations of an efficient practiceA well-designed practice is one that has ergonomics at its core. That’s what Elite offers.

Main Beach Dental, Gold Coast For over 30 years Elite has refined a unique and trusted four phase processthat ensures the successful creation of your dream practice environment.

HEAD OFFICEPO Box 312 Buddina Qld 4575

T 1300 765 344F 07 5413 5656

elitefitout.com.au

CONSULT.PLAN.DESIGN.CONSTRUCT.

E [email protected]

Elite Fitout Solutions Pty Ltd ABN 69 114 663 222 BSA 1076691

From the first consultation Elite understood the brief immediately and their creative design solutions have improved our workflow – adding real value to the project. Elite seamlessly melded what Dr Pat wanted from a technical point of view, and what I needed for the day-to-day functionality of the new space, with our vision for the overall look. Karen Brodbeck, Practice Manager, Ocean Orthodontics, Sunshine Coast.

You can create your dream practice environment by contacting Elite today 1300 765 344.

Expertise improves workflow

See all our dental projects online at elitefitout.com.au

With a team that’s focussed on creating practice environments that delight, you will get exactly what you want when you use Elite...

a practice environment that:✔ Fulfils your expectations of your own brand image;

✔ Provides an efficient space for you and your team to work in; and

✔ Represents a value for money investment in your business.

Ocean Orthodontics, Sunshine Coast

Caneland Dental, Mackay


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42


A staggering 86 per cent of Dental professionals

have experienced pain in their lower back, neck or shoulders. Dentistry involves working with extreme precision, as a result the body remains rigid and often unsupported. This tension can eventually lead to posture related musculoskeletal problems.

Dentists often spend a large sum of money on dental equipment ensuring their patients comfort whilst forgetting their biggest asset of all… themselves!!!

With a Bambach you can protect your investment and prevent risk of injury or worse still early retirement.

Why the Bambach?The Bambach is the original Saddle Seat shape, designed and patented from extensive research. It has been tested to Australian standards and recommended by health professionals worldwide. It is the only Saddle Seat available in four seat top sizes to suit your height, body shape and gender and in a wide variety of colours.

All seats have a five year warranty and are Australian made.

How the Bambach Saddle Seat helps dentistsUsing a Bambach Saddle Seat not only maintains optimal spinal function, it can improve your productivity at work by:

Promoting shoulder stability and correct posture, improving dexterity, precision and decreasing

fatigue. Due to the unique

patented design of the Bambach Saddle Seat, your pelvis is supported in its natural position even when leaning forward

The Bambach seated position allows you close access to your patients with minimal bending.

Your working life can be

prolonged by sustaining a healthy spine.

Over 50,000 Bambach Saddle Seats are used by Dental professionals worldwide.

To find out more see us at ADAC Melbourne April 3rd-6th 2013 stand 455 or contact us now on 02 8966 4800. Visit www.bambach.com.au.

Bambach Saddle Seat—the best choice for Dental Practitioners

The Bambach seated position allows you close access to your patients with minimal bending.

One of our happy dentists Dr Semaan of Clear Smile Orthodontics.

•Assistsinmaintainingnaturalspinalcurves•Helpspreventmuscularskeletaldisorders•Helpsreduceneck,shoulderandbackpain•Encouragesanuprightposture•DesignedandmadeinAustralia

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44


With the ongoing enhancement of the premium treatment units U 1500, U 5000 S and U 5000 F, dental manufacturer ULTRADENT has

created a modern class of unit that provides the highest possible quality in the compact treatment unit segment. ULTRADENT’s special modular design makes it possible to equip units in line with dentists’ individual requirements and specifications. Extremely high standards are also set in terms of design, construction and quality of workmanship.

The 2012 models have some interesting new features. The 19-inch flat screen monitor and the completely reworked spittoons are particularly striking. The assistant’s control console now has a new holder, making it even more ergonomic. The design of the dental assistant’s unit and tray table have been adapted to fit in with the overall concept even more optimally.

In terms of positioning, programming and information, the dental unit fulfills every possible requirement and supports treatment with numerous exclusive instruments and all possible options. The central unit can be used to control everything – from the tartar remover and autoclavable micro motors with torque control and wide speed range to the intraoral camera, the electro surgery unit and an integral saline pump. There are six holders that can be individually fitted with instruments. The simple, symbol-controlled programming covers all instruments and chair positions, and can be stored for four dentists. In all versions, the tray rack can be adjusted independently of the unit and can therefore be precisely positioned. Naturally, this workstation can also be fitted or pre-configured with the ULTRADENT-VISION multimedia system.

Various details, such as the new touch-screen display, an optional wireless foot control, replaceable control valves, and a non-drip filter system, make treatment easier and promote dental practice hygiene. The super soft chair upholstery, which is available in 12 colors and includes an individual headrest system with magnetic supports, ensures comfort. Movable armrests make it easier to get into the chair. The exclusive comfort padding with air conditioning or massage function is another feature developed by ULTRADENT. Here, six silent ventilators in the backrest and seat provide pleasant fresh air, or special electric motors provide a gentle massage which calmly relaxes the patient. This option is especially advantageous for long treatments, for both dentist and patient.

The ULTRADENT Premium class realizes many technical visions, while its overall design creates the kind of fascination and customer satisfaction that is only possible in the top-of-the-range segment. Almost every wish can be catered for here. Treat yourself to perfection and gain inspiration for your practice.

See a live demonstration of these new models at ADX12. You will find the Premium class at the William Green stand 70. We look forward to welcoming you.

Premium class with new designThe dental treatment workstation has been redefined:

U 5000 F

U 1500

For more information contact us on02 8865 0300 | www.williamgreen.info

Premium Class U 5000

Compact Class U 1301LR

Spectacular design

Modern technology and comfort

Innovative and ergonomic

Functional and reliable

YOUR LIFENEWS & EVENTS COVER STORY YOUR BUSINESS YOUR TOOLS

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ew: K

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For love of countryDr Andrew Langton-Joy of Canterbury Family Dental, Canterbury, VIC, plays guitar, banjo and mandolin in The Original Snakeskins

The Original Snakeskins have been go-ing for 12 years now. We have four core members and a floating fifth member

but essentially we’ve had the same line-up during all that time. Different members of the band like different styles of music but we’re all into country, especially Hank Williams and Johnny Cash, a bit of bluegrass, and a bit of gospel. We’ve steered clear of slick country pop and gone for a more traditional country sound.

“We write all our own material and have recorded four CDs. Our most recent album, Along For The Ride, was a finalist in the 2012 Victorian and National Country Music Awards.

“We play at a lot of festivals; there’s a lot going on in Victoria but we all enjoy playing interstate. We’ve appeared at the Northern Beaches Music Festival in NSW and also at the Kangaroo Valley Folk Festival.

“We had a fantastic gig at the Apollo Bay Music Festival in Victoria where we performed in front of 1000 people. Mind you, the small gigs can be just as satisfying. Just recently we did a pub gig in a little corner bar and the place was packed to the rafters on a cold, wintry Melbourne night. Everyone was into it and it was great to play to such an ap-preciative crowd.

“All the members of the band are serious about the music but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. I think we have the balance right which would ac-count for us being together for so long. We’re able to come together, play our music and have a really good time but we all have lives outside the Snakeskins.

“There’s a picture on my surgery wall of The Original Snakeskins playing at the Harrietville Blue-grass Festival [in Victoria] a few years ago. Patients sometimes do a bit of a double-take when they see their dentist in the picture. I always keep a guitar at work. If there’s a cancellation or a no-show or I need to have a little time out, I can pull out the guitar and have a bit of a play.

“Occasionally, the band rehearses in the waiting room here at work. After hours, we can make a lot of noise when there’s no-one around. There are always a few pub gigs or festival appearances coming up which can be checked on our website [www.reverbnation.com/theoriginalsnakeskins].

YOUR LIFE

Home loans | Car finance | Transactional banking and overdrafts | Savings and deposits | Credit cards | Foreign exchange | Goodwill and practice purchase loans Commercial and industrial property finance | Equipment and fit-out finance | SMSF lending and deposits | Income protection and life insurance

Issued by Investec Bank (Australia) Limited ABN 55 071 292 594, AFSL 234975, Australian Credit Licence 234975. The information contained in this document is general in nature and does not take into account your personal financial or investment needs or circumstances. Terms and conditions, fees and charges apply. Insurance products are offered by Experien Insurance Services (Representative No. 320626), the preferred supplier of insurance products to Investec Bank.

O u t o f t h e O rd i n a r y™

You’re not mainstreamNor are we

Have you ever wondered why the mainstream banks seem to ignore the fact that dentists are a special breed? All you get is stock standard product, one size fits all. Yet you have highly individual and distinctive needs – at Investec, we never lose sight of that.

Investec is a leading Australian specialist bank offering a full range of financial services to the dental sector. Our team knows the idiosyncrasies of your profession inside out, so you won’t have to deal with people who have no idea about your world. Nor will you have to put up with off-the-rack solutions – our financial products and services are designed by the dentists, for the dentists.

Take a look at investec.com.au/medical or call one of our financial specialists on 1300 131 141 to find out how we can help.

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