Allowing You to Focus More on Dentistry
Inside Dentistry provides the latest in endodontics, implantology, periodontics, and more, with in-depth articles, expert videos, and top industry insights.
February 1, 2024
Volume 20, Issue 2, February 2024
Page(s): p. 13
Imagine being able to focus more on clinical dentistry while all of your due diligence in sourcing everything from laboratory and orthodontic partners to procurement software and liability insurance is done for you—at no cost. That is the proposition offered by Incisive Dental Purchasing, a service that supports all dentists, regardless of practice size, in reducing administrative burdens, improving the quality of goods and services, and lowering costs. "Essentially, there is no one else doing what we are doing," says Addison Freeman, Incisive's founder and CEO. "Group purchasing organizations tend to focus on price. Our primary goals are to help dentists achieve better clinical outcomes, expand their scope of practice, and then reduce costs—in that order."
Incisive is transparent about its process, and there is no cost to dental practices. "We do not lock you into a contract," Freeman says. "There are no commitments or obligations. Practices work with us because they believe in our process, trust our due diligence, and find value in our partners."
Incisive works with both groups and private practices. "Although we can obviously help private practices, we also help emerging DSOs scale with partners that can scale with them or established groups consolidate their vendors in a way that builds trust with their clinicians with a solid business case, too," Freeman says.
Part of Incisive Dental Purchasing's conviction is the belief that a great deal on an inferior product is not good enough—not only for clinical purposes but also for the bottom line. For example, the company analyzes the actual cost of remakes versus paying for better quality laboratory work, the long-term implications of sacrificing customer support for a better price on equipment, the impact of costly revisions on orthodontic cases, and more. Based on those analyses, specific criteria are created that are used to identify the best partners.
"Dental schools do not teach much about the business of dentistry," says Adam J. Freeman, DDS, owner of Westport Dental Associates in Westport, Connecticut. "And that's the most difficult piece of owning a successful dental practice. Understanding the entire landscape can take significant time. In that regard, having a company that is listening to feedback from dentists every day and applying a business-minded, solutions-based approach to it is so helpful."
Dr. Freeman was skeptical about switching to a new laboratory, but Incisive introduced him to a full-service laboratory with consistent quality and high-end, mid-range, and economy options, among other benefits. "The laboratory has done everything that they promised they would do," he says, "and they made my life significantly easier by providing a very consistent product to reduce my time spent on remakes and even just seating restorations."
Westport Dental Associates also utilizes Incisive for its orthodontic aligner partner and procurement software as well as for its various insurance needs (liability, property, etc). "The laboratory and orthodontic services made a significant impact, but Incisive has also found smaller niche areas in which to offer assistance, such as insurance," Dr. Freeman says. "Our insurance bill has always been fairly large, but it never seemed large enough to spend a lot of time on, so we usually just used whatever provider was recommended to us. Incisive connected us with a company that improved our coverage, consolidated our policies to a single carrier, and saved us approximately $5,000 a year. Although that amount by itself is not changing my world, those little niche opportunities add up and eventually lead to significant savings for us."
Other services that Incisive helps practices with include dental IT and learning management systems, and there are more to come in the future. According to Dr. Freeman, the benefits are far-reaching. "Incisive makes your work life easier," he says. "They help you make more money right now, and they increase the long-term value of your practice."
MANUFACTURER INFORMATION
Incisive Dental Purchasing
incisivepurchasing.com • 203-451-5825
