Keeping a Smile during the Pandemic

How private medical practices have adapted to operate during the pandemic

—By Alexander Ross

When the pandemic hit, we all focused our love and attention on the frontline medical workers. They were the ones protecting the mass population from getting sick, and they were rightly praised for their bravery. Once some restrictions were lifted and people started to get the urge to return to normalcy, our attention focused on supporting small businesses such as restaurants and cafes. 

There is, however, a branch of society that fell in between the frontline workers and small businesses. Medical practices that primarily focus on elective procedures were ordered to close along with other small businesses, and were left out of the overall conversation around community support for local business. Unfortunately, some may see local practices as extensions of larger care networks or as random medical centers not backed by a larger name. Without the brand recognition of a local hospital, sometimes people may not trust these practices. While some of these places may be opportunistic medical professionals who want to take advantage of insurance money, Dexter Dental Studio is a small business with dedicated employees that want to provide care to the community. 

Private practices in the community

“We are not a hospital that has emergency funds to draw from” says Dr. Sophia Cornish, owner of Dexter Dental Studio in Dexter, Michigan. “We are truly a small business and we cannot run if we cannot stay open.”  Dr. Cornish, a University of Michigan alum, has owned the practice since 2011, but she had some concerns at the beginning of the pandemic regarding the future of her practice. Her choice to purchase the practice came from her goal to become her own boss. The practice was up for sale and the opportunity to buy was thrown into her lap, but that does not mean the process was easy. There were both legal and financial implications involved in becoming a business owner. The biggest issue was trying to find somebody who would loan a recent college graduate the capital to start their own business. The risk has been worth it for her thus far, but the pandemic raised some questions for the practice as it did with other small businesses across the country.

One of her biggest concerns was how to navigate the situation with her employees. Hygenestists, receptionists, and other dentists are crucial to the success and daily operations of the practice. At the time, it was uncharted territory for everybody, but for dentists in particular there were many safety concerns involved with reopening. Working in the mouths of dozens of different patients per day during a pandemic, along with the absence of adequate research around the spread of the virus caused questions about reopening. The Department of Labor and the World Economic Forum stated that dental hygienists are more at risk to exposure than any other job, meaning that even when elective medical procedures were allowed to take place there could be too much risk involved in dental procedures. 

Giving back to the community.

The practice donated their stock of personal protective equipment to local frontline workers when they were first ordered to close. A small sacrifice, in their opinion, to make for the overall health and well-being for the greater community. With the doors short for an uncertain amount of time, they wanted to continue their service locally until they were able to resume business. Fortunately for Dexter Dental Studio, they were able to reopen once some restrictions were lifted after a few months. This has not been the case for some other private practices however. 

The American Hospital Association has reported that 12% of private medical practice owners have had to shut their doors due to the pandemic. They also report that 72% of staff at these establishments have seen a decline in pay. It is important to note that these practices do not just revolve around a few highly-trained professionals; they are plenty of other workers depending on them. Technicians, clerical workers, and janitorial staff are just some of the other positions that have been affected by this. With the practice being the number one source of income for all who work there, she wanted to make sure that everybody was receiving unemployment benefits as needed.“I wanted to first and foremost make sure that our employees were taken care of, both with unemployment and making sure that they felt safe once we resumed practice.”  While they are medical practices, they are also small businesses with employees that depend on the community to keep them going. Making sure her employees were taken care of was her first priority. 

Dr. Cornish has never forgotten this fact. “The backbone to any small business is community outreach.” Dexter Dental Studio has a partnership with the St. Louis Center in Chelsea, Michigan, an organization that provides housing to people with disabilities and special needs. The patients are primarily adult males, but they help anybody who needs it. These patients can often be turned away from other dental care providers because of issues with insurance companies, or because some dentists may not feel comfortable working with them. Dexter Dental Studio, however, has opened their doors to The St. Louis Center and Dr. Cornish says they love working with them, “often they are some of my favorite patients.” Dr. Cornish understands the importance of being a small business, and she wants the practice to be a pillar in the community.

Whether it be the community outreach or the friendly staff, Dexter Dental Studio will make you feel like you are part of the family. Some people may loathe their trip to the dentist, and it only makes things worse when you feel like the people working on you do not care about the person in the chair, but only their money instead. Since dental work is essential, it is easy for some dentists to act without care knowing their patients do not have much of an option. However, Dr. Cornish and her practice understand that they are a small business and that the community that supports them is just as important as they are. Private practices are in our communities to provide care, and they are small businesses just like your favorite local bar or coffee shop. 

Feature photo: Dexter Dental Studio on a cold morning; Photo by Alexander Ross