A changing narrative DSOs may be a relatively new concept, but one that continues to grow in popularity among dental professionals looking to reduce the administrative and financial demands associated with running a multi-site practice. So, its easy to forget that they still make up only a small percentage of dental practices in the United States, and sometimes fall victim to misinformation. DSO leaders have worked hard to educate the public - from dentists, patients and policymakers to industry stakeholders - about their benefits. And, indeed, the narrative is steadily changing. In this issue, industry experts Mark Hahn, vice president and general counsel, Mortenson Dental Partners, and Lisa Steelman, vice president of government affairs, the Association of Dental Support Organizations (ADSO) share their expertise regarding the impact of regulatory issues on DSOs. Although certain states have taken regulatory measures, most of those measures have been aimed at clarifying existing laws rather than increasing scrutiny, says Hahn. However, any additional scrutiny stems from the fact that DSOs are a new way to think about dentistry, and anything new often receives heightened scrutiny. At the end of the day, the more DSOs can do to ensure their dental members stay current with regulations, the better dental professionals can attend to their clinical responsibilities. As we all know, the thousands of dentists who choose to practice in a DSO model maintain the same requirements and professional standards as dentists who perform administrative and business tasks themselves or with the assistance of multiple service vendors and consultants, Steelman points out. DSOs help enable dentists to be more attentive to patient care and allow knowledgeable business professionals to assist with the non-clinical administration of the practice. Hahn concurs: The clinicians responsibility is to provide outstanding patient care, while we pick up all of the administrative details, he says. That way, our affiliated clinicians can focus on what they do best: Practice dentistry. We invite readers to explore this and other topics featured in this issue, as we strive to support you in doing just that: Provide the best possible care to patients, efficiently and effectively. Laura Thill
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