# Elite Anesthesia — full site text > Board-certified mobile anesthesia for medical and dental offices. We bring hospital-grade sedation to your practice so your patients get the care they need, comfortably. Index: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/llms.txt · MCP: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/mcp --- # Elite Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/ Section: Company Treat more patients. Complete more dentistry. Grow your practice. Elite brings the providers, clearance process, scheduling support, and team training that help dental and medical practices offer in-office anesthesia with confidence. Your patients want to say yes. Fear won't let them. For many patients, the barrier is not the diagnosis, the cost, or the need for care — it's fear. Elite helps your team offer a clear, supported anesthesia option so patients can move forward comfortably and more care can stay in your practice. We don't just bring anesthesia. We help your team use it confidently. Elite supports the full process: helping your team identify candidates, present anesthesia confidently, coordinate clearance and scheduling, and deliver safe in-office anesthesia care. On average, Elite partner practices grow anesthesia usage 125% over three years. One partner for every part of in-office anesthesia Elite supports the people, process, and care that make anesthesia easier to offer, schedule, and repeat inside your practice. • We train your team: We help your office identify good candidates, introduce anesthesia with confidence, and build it into the treatment planning conversation. • Coordinate the process: Scheduling, patient clearances, compliance, and billing — so cases run smoothly without adding load to your front office. • Provide the care: Credentialed anesthesia providers administer and monitor care in your office, helping patients complete treatment where they already trust the team. --- # About Us URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about-us Section: Company Anesthesia care built around your practice. Elite Anesthesia brings hospital-grade anesthesia into medical and dental offices — the providers, the clearance process, the scheduling support, and the team training that make in-office anesthesia safe, calm, and repeatable. Behind every case is a clinical team that treats your practice like their own: board-certified providers, clear protocols, and standards shaped by the people who deliver this care every day. --- # How It Works URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/how-it-works Section: Company One partner for every part of in-office anesthesia Elite supports the people, process, and care that make anesthesia easier to offer, schedule, and repeat inside your practice. • We train your team: We help your office identify good candidates, introduce anesthesia with confidence, and build it into the treatment planning conversation. • Coordinate the process: Scheduling, patient clearances, compliance, and billing — so cases run smoothly without adding load to your front office. • Provide the care: Credentialed anesthesia providers administer and monitor care in your office, helping patients complete treatment where they already trust the team. --- # Mobile Dental Anesthesia for Safer, More Predictable Dentistry URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/dental-anesthesia Section: Services Mobile Dental Anesthesia for Safer, More Predictable Dentistry Give anxious or complex patients the care they need — right in your office. Why Dental Anesthesia Matters • Reduce patient avoidance: Most adults avoid or postpone dental treatment due to anxiety. Offering anesthesia helps patients move forward with the care they need. • Increase case acceptance: When anxiety is removed, patients are more willing to accept recommended treatment plans and complete them sooner. • Safer, more predictable procedures: A relaxed, still patient allows for greater access and accuracy, leading to safer, more predictable procedures. • Keep complex cases in-house: Anesthesia enables you to treat complex or high-anxiety patients in your own office instead of referring them out. When to Consider Dental Anesthesia • Severe Dental Anxiety: Anesthesia helps highly anxious patients relax, making it easier for them to receive needed treatment without fear or delay. • Long or Complex Procedures: A still, comfortable patient allows for better access, improved accuracy, and fewer intra-procedure interruptions. • Patients With Special Needs: Anesthesia supports patients who may have difficulty remaining still or tolerating treatment, ensuring a safer, calmer experience. • Improved Safety & Airway Control: A dedicated provider manages airway and vitals throughout the procedure, enhancing safety and reducing clinical stress. How Mobile Dental Anesthesia Works From pre-op assessments to recovery, our anesthesia team handles every step. We manage screening, setup, IV anesthesia, continuous monitoring, and post-procedure documentation — ensuring a smooth, predictable experience for patients and providers. Our Anesthesia Safety Standards Safety is the foundation of everything we do. Our care is delivered by board-certified anesthesiologists and CRNAs using hospital-grade monitoring and medications. We follow strict national guidelines for office-based anesthesia and maintain full BLS, ACLS, and PALS certification for every case. --- # Mobile Medical Anesthesia for In-Office Procedures URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia Section: Services Mobile Medical Anesthesia for In-Office Procedures Hospital-grade anesthesia support for medical, surgical, and procedural practices — without OR dependency. Why Medical Anesthesia Matters • Patient comfort and stability: Certain procedures demand deeper sedation to ensure patient immobility, comfort, and physiologic stability. • Dedicated airway focus: Dedicated anesthesia allows providers to focus entirely on the procedure — without managing pain, movement, or vitals. • Continuous monitoring: Continuous monitoring and airway management reduce variability and improve procedural consistency. • Office-based efficiency: Office-based anesthesia expands procedural capability while minimizing hospital scheduling delays and costs. When to Consider Medical Anesthesia • Procedural Sedation Requirements: Procedures that exceed the limits of local anesthesia or minimal sedation benefit from dedicated anesthesia support. • Extended Procedure Duration: Longer cases require stable sedation and physiologic monitoring to maintain safety and efficiency throughout. • Patients Requiring Close Monitoring: Patients with comorbidities, low tolerance, or special considerations benefit from continuous anesthesia oversight. • Airway & Physiologic Control: A dedicated anesthesia provider manages airway, oxygenation, and hemodynamics in real time. How Mobile Medical Anesthesia Works Our anesthesia team integrates directly into your practice. We conduct pre-procedure assessments, provide all monitoring and medications, administer IV anesthesia, manage airway and vitals throughout the case, and oversee controlled recovery — while maintaining complete clinical documentation. Our Anesthesia Safety Standards All anesthesia services are delivered by board-certified anesthesiologists and CRNAs using hospital-grade equipment and medications. We adhere to national office-based anesthesia guidelines and maintain full emergency preparedness, including BLS, ACLS, and PALS certification for every case. --- # Plastic Surgery Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/plastic-surgery Section: Services Plastic Surgery Anesthesia Office-based anesthesia for cosmetic and reconstructive procedures — so elective cases run in your own accredited suite, on your schedule, without an outside facility. Office-based anesthesia for cosmetic and reconstructive procedures — so elective cases run in your own accredited suite, on your schedule, without an outside facility. Why Anesthesia Matters in Plastic Surgery • Accreditation-ready care: Board-certified providers and hospital-grade monitoring help your suite meet the standards elective surgery requires. • Unhurried, predictable cases: A dedicated provider manages sedation and recovery so longer aesthetic procedures stay calm and on time. • A better patient experience: Patients recover in a familiar setting instead of a hospital — often the detail that earns the referral. • Your suite, your calendar: Run elective cases when it suits your practice, without competing for hospital or surgery-center time. Plastic Surgery Procedures We Support • Facelifts & Rhinoplasty: Longer facial cases completed comfortably under monitored sedation. • Breast Augmentation & Reduction: Elective procedures managed safely in your accredited operatory. • Liposuction & Body Contouring: Sedation tailored to the length and depth each contouring case requires. • Reconstructive Procedures: Complex reconstructive work supported by continuous monitoring. --- # Gastroenterology Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/gastroenterology Section: Services Gastroenterology Anesthesia Dedicated sedation for endoscopy and related procedures — so your GI suite can run full, high-volume days without depending on hospital anesthesia time. Dedicated sedation for endoscopy and related procedures — so your GI suite can run full, high-volume days without depending on hospital anesthesia time. Why Anesthesia Matters in Gastroenterology • Efficient procedure turnover: A dedicated provider keeps sedation and recovery moving, so a full endoscopy schedule stays on time. • Deep sedation, managed safely: Propofol-based sedation delivered and monitored by a provider whose only focus is the patient. • You focus on the scope: Airway, vitals, and comfort are handled independently, so your attention stays on the procedure. • Volume without the OR: Add sedation capacity to your own suite instead of routing patients through a hospital. GI Procedures We Support • Colonoscopy: Screening and diagnostic colonoscopy with smooth, monitored sedation. • Upper Endoscopy (EGD): Comfortable sedation for diagnostic and therapeutic upper endoscopy. • ERCP & Advanced Endoscopy: Deeper sedation for longer, more complex therapeutic cases. • Capsule & Motility Studies: Support for procedures that benefit from a relaxed, cooperative patient. --- # Vascular & Pain Services Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/vascular-pain-services Section: Services Vascular & Pain Services Anesthesia Anesthesia support for vascular and interventional pain procedures — so image-guided cases can be completed comfortably in your own office. Anesthesia support for vascular and interventional pain procedures — so image-guided cases can be completed comfortably in your own office. Why Anesthesia Matters in Vascular & Pain Care • Stillness when it counts: Sedation keeps patients relaxed and motionless for precise, image-guided work. • Comfort through longer cases: A dedicated provider manages sedation so extended interventions stay tolerable start to finish. • Complex patients, supported: Continuous monitoring adds a margin of safety for patients with cardiovascular or pain comorbidities. • In-office, on your terms: Deliver interventional care in your own suite rather than referring to an outside facility. Vascular & Pain Procedures We Support • Venous Ablation & Sclerotherapy: Vein procedures completed comfortably under monitored sedation. • Epidural & Nerve Blocks: Interventional pain injections for patients who can't tolerate them awake. • Spinal Cord Stimulator Trials: Longer interventional cases supported by continuous monitoring. • Port & Catheter Placement: Vascular access procedures handled safely in-office. --- # OB/GYN Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/ob-gyn Section: Services OB/GYN Anesthesia Office-based anesthesia for gynecologic procedures — so patients can complete sensitive care comfortably, without a hospital referral. Office-based anesthesia for gynecologic procedures — so patients can complete sensitive care comfortably, without a hospital referral. Why Anesthesia Matters in OB/GYN • Comfort for sensitive care: Sedation lets patients move through personal procedures calmly and with dignity. • Focus on the procedure: A dedicated provider manages comfort and vitals while you concentrate on the clinical work. • Fewer delays for patients: Complete treatment in your office instead of waiting on hospital or surgery-center time. • Monitored, reassuring safety: Continuous monitoring by a board-certified provider throughout every case. Gynecologic Procedures We Support • Hysteroscopy & D&C: Uterine procedures completed comfortably with monitored sedation. • LEEP & IUD Placement: Sedation for patients who find in-office procedures difficult to tolerate. • Endometrial Ablation: Longer procedures supported by a dedicated anesthesia provider. • Egg Retrieval: Fertility procedures managed calmly and safely in-office. --- # Ears, Nose & Throat Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/ear-nose-throat Section: Services Ears, Nose & Throat Anesthesia Dedicated anesthesia for ENT procedures — so airway-sensitive cases can be managed safely in your office, on your schedule. Dedicated anesthesia for ENT procedures — so airway-sensitive cases can be managed safely in your office, on your schedule. Why Anesthesia Matters in ENT • Airway expertise, always present: A board-certified provider manages the shared airway that makes ENT sedation demanding. • You operate, we monitor: Sedation and vitals are handled independently, so your focus stays on the field. • Comfort for delicate work: Patients stay still and relaxed through precise, sensitive procedures. • In-office capability: Take on cases you'd otherwise refer, without hospital scheduling. ENT Procedures We Support • Sinus Surgery: Endoscopic sinus procedures completed comfortably under monitored sedation. • Tonsillectomy & Adenoidectomy: Airway-focused sedation for pediatric and adult patients. • Ear Tube Placement: Quick procedures made calm for young or anxious patients. • Nasal & Septal Procedures: Sensitive work supported by continuous monitoring. --- # Orthopedics Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/orthopedics Section: Services Orthopedics Anesthesia Anesthesia support for office-based orthopedic and hand procedures — so more of your surgical work can stay out of the hospital. Anesthesia support for office-based orthopedic and hand procedures — so more of your surgical work can stay out of the hospital. Why Anesthesia Matters in Orthopedics • Surgical-grade safety in-office: Board-certified providers and full monitoring bring OR standards to your procedure suite. • Efficient surgical days: A dedicated provider keeps sedation and recovery moving, so your block time stays productive. • Uninterrupted operating: Patient comfort and vitals are managed while you focus on the procedure. • Keep cases in-house: Complete minor surgical work in your own suite instead of referring out. Orthopedic Procedures We Support • Carpal Tunnel Release: Hand procedures completed comfortably under monitored sedation. • Hardware Removal: Straightforward surgical cases handled efficiently in-office. • Trigger Finger & Tendon Repairs: Precise hand work supported by a relaxed, still patient. • Joint Injections & Aspirations: Comfortable sedation for patients who need it. --- # Podiatry Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/medical-anesthesia/podiatry Section: Services Podiatry Anesthesia Office-based anesthesia for foot and ankle surgery — so podiatric procedures can be completed comfortably in your own suite. Office-based anesthesia for foot and ankle surgery — so podiatric procedures can be completed comfortably in your own suite. Why Anesthesia Matters in Podiatry • Comfort for anxious patients: Sedation lets patients complete foot surgery they might otherwise keep putting off. • Focus on the surgery: A dedicated provider manages comfort and vitals while you work. • Streamlined surgical days: Sedation and recovery kept moving, so your schedule stays efficient. • In-office, no facility needed: Deliver surgical care in your practice rather than a hospital or surgery center. Podiatric Procedures We Support • Bunionectomy: Corrective foot surgery completed comfortably under sedation. • Hammertoe Correction: Multiple-digit procedures managed calmly in one visit. • Ingrown & Nail Procedures: Sedation for patients who can't tolerate treatment awake. • Soft-Tissue & Cyst Removal: Minor surgical cases supported by continuous monitoring. --- # General Dentistry Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/dental-anesthesia/general-dentistry Section: Services General Dentistry Anesthesia Help anxious and complex patients complete restorative and cosmetic dentistry comfortably — fillings, crowns, extractions, root canals, veneers, and full-mouth rehabilitation, all in your office. Mobile anesthesia for general dentistry — fillings, crowns, extractions, root canals, veneers, and full-mouth rehabilitation. Board-certified sedation in your practice. Why Anesthesia Matters in General Dentistry • Win back anxious patients: Give the fearful patients who avoid your chair a way to finally complete the care they need. • Higher case acceptance: Patients say yes to fuller treatment plans when the visit no longer feels daunting. • More dentistry per visit: Complete restorative work in fewer, longer appointments instead of spreading it across months. • One trusted practice: Keep comprehensive care with the team your patients already know and trust. General Dentistry Procedures We Support • Fillings & Crowns: Keep nervous patients calm and still for restorative work, so treatment finishes in fewer visits. • Extractions: Simple and complex extractions completed comfortably with sedation and full monitoring. • Root Canals: Endodontic therapy for anxious patients who would otherwise avoid or delay treatment. • Veneers & Cosmetic Dentistry: Longer cosmetic cases completed in one relaxed, productive visit. • Full-Mouth Rehabilitation: Comprehensive reconstruction made tolerable and efficient with in-office anesthesia. --- # Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/dental-anesthesia/oral-surgery Section: Services Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Anesthesia Dedicated anesthesia for surgical dentistry — wisdom teeth, dental implants, All-on-Four, bone grafting, and full-mouth extractions — delivered safely in your practice. Mobile anesthesia for oral & maxillofacial surgery — wisdom teeth, dental implants, All-on-Four, bone grafting, and full-mouth extractions. Board-certified sedation in your office. Why Anesthesia Matters in Oral Surgery • Surgical safety, in-office: Board-certified providers and full monitoring bring hospital standards to your surgical suite. • Airway managed independently: A dedicated provider owns sedation and airway, so you focus entirely on the surgery. • Complex patients, supported: Take on higher-acuity cases with the monitoring and expertise they require. • Keep surgical cases in-house: Complete implant and extraction cases you'd otherwise refer to a hospital. Oral Surgery Procedures We Support • Wisdom Teeth Removal: Third-molar extractions with deep sedation and continuous airway management. • Dental Implants: Single and multi-implant placement completed comfortably in-office. • All-on-Four & Full-Arch: Full-arch implant cases supported by a dedicated anesthesia provider. • Bone Grafting & Pre-Prosthetic Surgery: Longer surgical cases kept stable and predictable from start to finish. • Full-Mouth Extractions: Complex extraction cases handled safely for anxious or medically complex patients. --- # Pediatric Dentistry Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/dental-anesthesia/pediatric-dentistry Section: Services Pediatric Dentistry Anesthesia Safe, gentle anesthesia for young and special-needs patients — so children can receive the dental care they need without fear or trauma. Mobile anesthesia for pediatric dentistry — restorative care, extractions, and special-needs dentistry for children. Board-certified providers with PALS-certified monitoring. Why Anesthesia Matters in Pediatric Dentistry • Care without trauma: Children complete treatment calmly, without the fear that shapes a lifetime of dental avoidance. • Pediatric-trained monitoring: PALS-certified providers with child-sized equipment and age-appropriate dosing. • Support for special needs: A safe path to care for children who can't tolerate treatment awake. • One calm visit: Complete multiple restorations in a single appointment instead of many stressful ones. Pediatric Procedures We Support • Restorative Treatment for Children: Fillings, crowns, and multiple restorations completed in a single calm visit. • Pediatric Extractions: Extractions handled comfortably for young patients who can't tolerate treatment awake. • Special-Needs Dentistry: Anesthesia support for patients who have difficulty remaining still or cooperating. • Minor Oral Surgery: Frenectomies and minor surgical care performed safely with pediatric-appropriate monitoring. --- # Periodontics & Endodontics Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/dental-anesthesia/periodontics-endodontics Section: Services Periodontics & Endodontics Anesthesia Comfortable, predictable anesthesia for gum and root treatments — periodontal surgery, dental implants, root canals, and apicoectomies — right in your office. Mobile anesthesia for periodontics & endodontics — periodontal surgery, dental implants, root canals, and apicoectomies. Board-certified sedation in your practice. Why Anesthesia Matters in Periodontics & Endodontics • Stillness for precise work: A relaxed, motionless patient makes microsurgical and root treatment more predictable. • Comfort through long cases: Sedation makes lengthy grafting and endodontic treatment tolerable from start to finish. • Fewer deferred treatments: Anxious patients stop postponing the surgical care they need. • Advanced care, in your office: Deliver periodontal surgery and surgical endodontics without referring out. Periodontal & Endodontic Procedures We Support • Periodontal Surgery: Gum grafts, pocket reduction, and flap surgery completed with the patient relaxed and still. • Dental Implants: Implant placement supported by dedicated sedation and continuous monitoring. • Root Canal Therapy: Endodontic treatment for anxious patients and difficult, time-consuming cases. • Apicoectomy & Surgical Endodontics: Root-end surgery performed comfortably and predictably in-office. --- # Locations URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations Section: Locations Phoenix, Arizona — 602.566.9421 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/phoenix Denver, Colorado — 720.262.9659 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/denver Seattle, Washington — 206.895.3109 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/seattle Salt Lake City, Utah — 385.832.7232 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/salt-lake-city Oklahoma City, Oklahoma — 405.725.2236 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/oklahoma-city Tulsa, Oklahoma — 405.725.2236 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/tulsa Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas — 214.441.6388 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/dallas Austin, Texas — 737.277.7467 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/austin Houston, Texas — 346.615.5590 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/houston San Antonio, Texas — 737.277.7467 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/san-antonio Chicago, Illinois — 708.887.2667 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/chicago Detroit, Michigan — 385.832.7232 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/detroit Minneapolis, Minnesota — 952.234.6464 — https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/minneapolis --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Phoenix URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/phoenix Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Phoenix, Arizona Local phone: 602.566.9421 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Denver URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/denver Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Denver, Colorado Local phone: 720.262.9659 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Seattle URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/seattle Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Seattle, Washington Local phone: 206.895.3109 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Salt Lake City URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/salt-lake-city Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Salt Lake City, Utah Local phone: 385.832.7232 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Oklahoma City URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/oklahoma-city Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Local phone: 405.725.2236 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Tulsa URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/tulsa Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Tulsa, Oklahoma Local phone: 405.725.2236 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Dallas–Fort Worth URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/dallas Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas Local phone: 214.441.6388 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Austin URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/austin Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Austin, Texas Local phone: 737.277.7467 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Houston URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/houston Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Houston, Texas Local phone: 346.615.5590 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in San Antonio URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/san-antonio Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in San Antonio, Texas Local phone: 737.277.7467 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Chicago URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/chicago Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Chicago, Illinois Local phone: 708.887.2667 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Detroit URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/detroit Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Detroit Elite brings board-certified anesthesia providers directly to dental and medical practices across Detroit — so your patients can get the care they need, comfortably, in your own office. Local phone: 385.832.7232 --- # Mobile Anesthesia in Minneapolis URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/locations/minneapolis Section: Locations Mobile Anesthesia in Minneapolis, Minnesota Local phone: 952.234.6464 --- # Careers URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/careers Section: Careers Anesthesiology, without giving the hospital your entire life. Join a clinical model that respects your expertise, protects your time, and gives you the operational support to focus on excellent patient care. https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/careers/anesthesiologists Do the clinical work you love, and still make it home for dinner. Join a team that trusts your experience, supports your work, and offers a more predictable alternative to traditional hospital schedules. https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/careers/crnas --- # Careers for anesthesiologists URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/careers/anesthesiologists Section: Careers Anesthesiology, without giving the hospital your entire life. Join a clinical model that respects your expertise, protects your time, and gives you the operational support to focus on excellent patient care. --- # Careers for CRNAs URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/careers/crnas Section: Careers Do the clinical work you love, and still make it home for dinner. Join a team that trusts your experience, supports your work, and offers a more predictable alternative to traditional hospital schedules. --- # Frequently Asked Questions URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/faqs Section: FAQs Q: Is office-based anesthesia safe? A: While there are risks associated with every anesthetic administered anywhere we have done our best to mitigate those risks. All of our anesthesia providers carry emergency airway and rescue equipment/drugs and are BLS, ACLS, and PALS certified. If you have any specific questions or fears about the anesthesia PLEASE CALL and we will be happy to answer your questions. Q: What do you do to treat pain? A: We use a balanced anesthesia approach that combines short-acting sedatives, analgesics, and local anesthesia administered by your practice. Patients consistently report minimal post-procedure pain, and we provide aftercare instructions for every case. Q: What are your hours? A: Our providers typically work with practices during standard business hours, with flexibility for surgery days and special events. Scheduling is confirmed during your consultation and adjusted to match your office's rhythm. Q: How much does it cost? A: Anesthesia fees are billed separately from the procedure. Actual costs depend on case length and complexity; we're transparent about pricing up front and provide a full estimate at your consultation. Q: Do you bring everything with you? A: Yes. Our providers bring all monitoring equipment, medications, airway devices, and emergency supplies needed for hospital-grade anesthesia. Your practice doesn't need to invest in specialty equipment. Q: What payment methods do you accept? A: We accept most major credit cards, HSA/FSA cards, and offer financing options through CareCredit for qualifying patients. Many cases may also be eligible for insurance coverage depending on procedure type and medical necessity. Q: I have a patient with a complex medical history — is it safe to have anesthesia in the office? A: Every patient is pre-screened before the day of the procedure. If a patient's medical history includes conditions that warrant a hospital setting, we'll let you know. For most patients with managed comorbidities, office-based anesthesia is both safe and appropriate. Q: Is anesthesia safe for patients under 3 years old? A: Pediatric anesthesia for very young children requires specialized consideration. Our providers are PALS-certified and carry pediatric-sized equipment, but we always recommend a pre-op conversation to determine whether an office setting or pediatric hospital is most appropriate for the patient. Q: There is a chance I am pregnant, can I still have anesthesia? A: If there is any chance you may be pregnant, please let us know before your appointment. For most elective procedures we recommend delaying anesthesia until after pregnancy. If the procedure is medically necessary, we coordinate carefully with your OB provider. Q: What is the difference between IV anesthesia and general anesthesia? A: IV anesthesia delivers sedation medication through a vein and typically keeps patients breathing on their own while deeply relaxed. General anesthesia is deeper and usually requires a breathing tube. Most office-based cases use IV anesthesia, which is why patients recover and go home the same day. --- # Why the Fastest-Growing Dental Practices Are Already Offering General Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/fastest-growing-practices-general-anesthesia Section: Blog Why the Fastest-Growing Dental Practices Are Already Offering General Anesthesia Published 2026-06-02 · Practice Growth Modern dentistry is changing fast. The practices growing the quickest today aren't just offering better dentistry — they're offering a dramatically better patient experience. And one of the biggest growth drivers separating high-production practices from everyone else is general anesthesia and sedation dentistry. Across the country, dental offices are transforming the way they operate by integrating anesthesia services directly into their comfort suites. The result? Higher production, bigger cases, increased case acceptance, happier patients, less stress for providers, and explosive practice growth. The question is no longer "Should we offer general anesthesia?" The real question is: how much longer can your practice afford not to? The Practices Winning Right Now Are Making Dentistry Easier for Patients Today's patients want convenience, comfort, and efficiency. They don't want: • Multiple long appointments • Anxiety-filled visits • Painful dental experiences • Half-completed treatment plans spread across months They want to come in, go to sleep, wake up, and have their dentistry done. The offices that understand this are growing rapidly because they're removing the biggest obstacle in dentistry: fear. When patients know they can sleep comfortably through treatment, something changes immediately: • More patients move forward with care • Bigger treatment plans get accepted • Patients stop delaying dentistry • More dentistry gets completed in fewer visits That's why sedation dentistry has become one of the fastest-growing implementation strategies in modern dental practices. Offices Across the Country Are Seeing Massive Growth This isn't theory anymore. Dental practices nationwide are already using anesthesia services to scale production and expand patient care in ways that simply weren't possible before. One office we've worked with, White Ridge Dental, has increased overall office production by approximately 50% year-over-year since implementing sedation dentistry with Elite Anesthesia. That kind of growth doesn't happen by accident. It happens because sedation changes the economics and efficiency of a dental office. When patients are asleep: • Case times decrease • Procedures flow smoother • Multiple procedures can be completed in one sitting • Treatment plans become larger • Scheduling becomes more efficient • Production increases dramatically Instead of spreading treatment across four or five stressful visits, doctors can complete comprehensive dentistry in a single appointment. That changes everything. Dentists Are Realizing They Can Do More — With Less Stress One of the most overlooked benefits of general anesthesia is how much easier it makes the clinical day for the doctor. Imagine performing complex restorative or surgical dentistry without: • Constant interruptions • Nervous patient movement • Anxiety-driven pauses • Gag reflex issues • Patient fatigue • Repeated reassurance throughout the procedure Now imagine focusing entirely on your dentistry while a dedicated anesthesia provider manages the patient's vitals and comfort. That's why so many dentists say sedation days become some of the smoothest and most productive days in the office. Less stress. Better workflow. More production. It's one of the few systems in dentistry that improves both quality of life and revenue simultaneously. Patients Are Specifically Looking for Sedation Dentistry This is another shift many practices underestimate. Patients today are actively searching for dentists who offer sedation options. For anxious patients, sedation isn't a "nice bonus" anymore — it's often the deciding factor in whether they schedule treatment at all. If your competitors are offering sleep dentistry, comfort suites, full-mouth treatment under anesthesia, and sedation for anxious patients — and you're not — there's a good chance patients are choosing another office before they ever call yours. Practices that implement anesthesia services position themselves differently in the market. They instantly become more attractive to: • High-anxiety patients • Busy professionals • Parents • Surgical cases • Full-mouth reconstruction patients • Special needs patients • Patients with extensive treatment needs In many communities, sedation dentistry has become a major competitive advantage. More Access to Care Means More Growth At its core, sedation dentistry isn't just about production. It's about access to care. There are thousands of patients who avoid dentistry entirely because fear, anxiety, or past traumatic experiences have kept them away for years. General anesthesia gives those patients a path forward. And practices that provide that experience don't just grow financially — they become known as the office that can truly help people who thought dentistry wasn't possible for them. That reputation spreads quickly. The Industry Has Already Started Moving The biggest mistake many practices make is assuming sedation dentistry is still a "future trend." It's not. The shift is already happening. Forward-thinking dental practices across the country are already implementing anesthesia services because they understand what it unlocks: • Higher production • Faster growth • Better patient experiences • Increased case acceptance • Larger treatment plans • Stronger referrals • More efficient schedules • Reduced stress for doctors and staff Meanwhile, practices waiting to adopt it risk falling behind offices that are already creating a more modern, patient-centered experience. The Bottom Line General anesthesia is no longer just an added service. For growth-focused practices, it's becoming one of the most powerful tools in modern dentistry. The offices implementing it today are increasing production, attracting more patients, completing bigger cases, and creating experiences patients genuinely rave about. And the longer a practice waits to implement it, the further ahead their competitors move. At Elite Anesthesia, we help dental practices integrate safe, professional anesthesia services that elevate patient care while accelerating growth. If your office is ready to increase production, reduce stress, improve case acceptance, and create a true comfort-suite experience for your patients, now is the time to start. Because the practices already doing it aren't slowing down. --- # The Dental Practices Growing the Fastest All Have One Thing in Common URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/growing-practices-one-thing-in-common Section: Blog The Dental Practices Growing the Fastest All Have One Thing in Common Published 2026-06-09 · Practice Growth The most successful dental practices today are not just better at dentistry. They're better at creating an experience patients actually say "yes" to. And across the country, one of the biggest growth accelerators in modern dentistry is the implementation of general anesthesia and sedation dentistry. The practices embracing it are seeing: • Higher production • Larger treatment plans • Increased case acceptance • More efficient schedules • Better patient retention • Less stress for doctors and staff Meanwhile, offices that still aren't offering sedation are increasingly being left behind by competitors who already understand what this unlocks. At Elite Anesthesia, we've seen firsthand how dramatically anesthesia services can transform dental practices — not just clinically, but financially. The Revenue Growth Most Practices Are Missing One of the clearest examples comes from White Ridge Dental. Since implementing sedation dentistry with Elite Anesthesia, the practice has increased overall office production by approximately 50% year-over-year. That kind of growth gets attention. And it's not happening because they suddenly started working longer hours. It's happening because sedation fundamentally changes: • How much dentistry can be completed • How efficiently appointments run • How many patients accept treatment • How large treatment plans become • How many high-value cases stay in-house For many practices, general anesthesia becomes one of the fastest ways to increase production without adding operatories, expanding office space, or overloading the schedule. Why Sedation Dentistry Increases Revenue So Quickly The formula is actually simple. When patients are asleep: • Procedures move faster • There's less interruption • Patients don't fatigue • Complex dentistry becomes easier to complete • Multiple procedures can be completed in one sitting Instead of splitting dentistry across four or five stressful appointments, practices can complete comprehensive treatment plans in a single visit. That creates massive gains in schedule efficiency and production. Industry data consistently shows sedation dentistry improves case acceptance and operational efficiency because patients are more willing to move forward with larger treatment plans when anxiety is removed. Practices implementing sedation services also report increased treatment values, improved schedule utilization, and substantial profitability growth. Patients Are Saying "Yes" to Bigger Cases This is one of the biggest financial advantages of offering general anesthesia. Many patients delay treatment for years because of fear or anxiety. But once patients learn they can sleep through their dentistry, something changes: • They stop postponing treatment • They accept larger treatment plans • They move forward with full-mouth cases • They commit to comprehensive care Research on sedation dentistry consistently shows that reducing anxiety directly improves treatment acceptance and treatment completion rates. And that matters because comprehensive cases are what drive practice growth. Many larger treatment plans traditionally face lower acceptance rates due to fear, stress, and treatment fatigue. Sedation removes those barriers. Instead of patients asking "How many appointments will this take?" they start asking "Can I just get everything done at once?" That shift alone can completely change a practice's production trajectory. More Efficiency = More Daily Production Time is money in dentistry. And sedation dentistry creates a more productive clinical environment for nearly everyone involved. When patients are fully asleep: • There's less movement • Fewer interruptions • Reduced gag reflex issues • Better workflow continuity • Faster completion of complex procedures The result is smoother, more efficient dentistry. Studies and industry reports on IV sedation consistently highlight the ability to complete more treatment in a single appointment while improving chair utilization and production efficiency. For many practices, sedation days quickly become some of the highest-producing days on the calendar. Less Stress for the Dentist — Better Dentistry Overall One of the most overlooked business advantages of working with a dedicated anesthesia provider is how much mental load it removes from the dentist. Instead of constantly managing patient anxiety, movement, fear responses, comfort concerns, and vitals monitoring, the dentist can focus entirely on dentistry while the anesthesia provider manages the patient. This separation creates: • Better workflow • Lower stress • Improved focus • Smoother procedures • Greater clinical efficiency Case studies involving CRNA-supported sedation programs also show that dentists perform more efficiently when anesthesia teams manage patient monitoring and sedation responsibilities independently. For many doctors, it completely changes the energy of the workday. The Competitive Advantage Is Growing Fast Patients today are actively searching for sedation dentistry. And the practices offering it are positioning themselves as more advanced, more modern, more patient-focused, more convenient, and more comfortable. That reputation matters — especially when anxious patients are specifically choosing offices where they can sleep through treatment. Practices that implement anesthesia services often gain a significant competitive advantage because they can treat patients many traditional offices struggle to convert. In many markets, sedation dentistry is no longer a niche offering. It's becoming an expectation. The Practices Growing Tomorrow Are Implementing It Today The dental industry is shifting quickly toward comfort-focused, efficiency-driven care. And the practices moving first are gaining momentum fast. They're increasing production. They're attracting larger cases. They're improving patient experiences. They're reducing stress. And they're building practices that scale faster than traditional models. The biggest risk today may not be implementing sedation dentistry. It may be waiting too long while competitors continue building around it. At Elite Anesthesia, we help dental practices integrate professional anesthesia services that improve patient care while unlocking substantial growth opportunities. If your goal is to increase production, improve efficiency, attract larger cases, and build a modern comfort-suite experience that patients actively seek out, there has never been a better time to start. --- # The Dental Offices Quietly Exploding in Revenue All Started Doing This URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/offices-exploding-in-revenue Section: Blog The Dental Offices Quietly Exploding in Revenue All Started Doing This Published 2026-06-16 · Practice Growth There's a reason some dental practices are suddenly scaling faster than everyone else. It's not luck. It's not more ads. And it's not because they somehow found more hours in the day. They implemented general anesthesia and sedation dentistry. While many offices are still running traditional appointment models, growth-focused practices across the country are increasing production by allowing patients to sleep through treatment — and the numbers are hard to ignore. One office partnered with Elite Anesthesia, White Ridge Dental, has increased overall production by approximately 50% year-over-year since implementing sedation dentistry. Why? Because sedation changes everything about how a dental office operates. Patients accept larger treatment plans because they can complete multiple procedures in one sitting instead of dragging treatment across months. Dentists complete cases faster because patients are asleep, comfortable, and not moving. Schedules become more efficient. Production increases. Stress decreases. Instead of spending half the appointment managing anxiety, movement, gag reflexes, or nervous patients, the dentist can focus entirely on dentistry while the anesthesia provider monitors the patient. And patients are actively looking for this. Modern patients want convenience and comfort. They want to come in, go to sleep, wake up, and have their dentistry finished. The offices offering that experience are pulling ahead fast. The reality is this: sedation dentistry is no longer a "bonus service." It's becoming one of the biggest growth advantages in modern dentistry. The practices implementing it now are building bigger cases, higher production days, and stronger patient loyalty while many competitors are still operating the same way they did 10 years ago. If your practice is focused on growth, this isn't something to "maybe" look into later. It's something the fastest-growing offices are already doing now. --- # Why More Patients Are Choosing Dental Offices That Offer General Anesthesia URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/why-patients-choose-anesthesia-offices Section: Blog Why More Patients Are Choosing Dental Offices That Offer General Anesthesia Published 2026-06-23 · Patient Experience For many people, going to the dentist is stressful. Some patients experience mild anxiety. Others avoid treatment for years because of fear, past traumatic experiences, sensitive gag reflexes, difficulty getting numb, or simply the overwhelming thought of sitting through long procedures awake. That's why more dental practices are offering general anesthesia and sedation dentistry — because it completely changes the patient experience. Instead of enduring hours of stress and discomfort, patients can sleep comfortably through their treatment and wake up with their dental work completed. For many people, it's life-changing. Anxiety-Free Dentistry Dental anxiety is one of the biggest reasons patients postpone treatment. Even patients who know they need dental work often delay care because they're nervous about: • Pain • Sounds and smells • Injections • Long appointments • Loss of control • Previous bad experiences General anesthesia removes that fear entirely. Patients are fully asleep during treatment, allowing them to avoid the stress and emotional exhaustion that often comes with major dental procedures. For anxious patients, this can finally make dental care feel possible again. Complete More Treatment in Fewer Visits One of the biggest benefits for patients is convenience. Without anesthesia, extensive treatment often has to be spread across multiple appointments. That can mean more time off work, more childcare arrangements, more injections, more recovery periods, and more stress before every visit. With general anesthesia, dentists can often complete multiple procedures during a single appointment while the patient sleeps comfortably. Patients can wake up with: • Multiple fillings completed • Crowns finished • Extractions done • Implants placed • Full treatment plans significantly reduced or completed Fewer visits mean less disruption to life and less overall stress. A More Comfortable Experience Many patients worry about discomfort during dental procedures. Under general anesthesia, patients are asleep throughout treatment and unaware of the procedure itself. That means: • No sitting through long procedures awake • No hearing dental instruments • No discomfort during treatment • No anxiety about what's happening during the procedure For many patients, it transforms dentistry from something they fear into something manageable. Ideal for Patients With Strong Gag Reflexes Some patients struggle to tolerate dental treatment because of severe gag reflexes. Even simple procedures can become uncomfortable or difficult. General anesthesia helps eliminate this issue by allowing treatment to be completed while the patient is fully asleep and relaxed. This can make dentistry possible for patients who previously struggled to complete treatment comfortably. Better for Patients With Special Needs General anesthesia can also create a safer, calmer experience for: • Pediatric patients • Patients with special healthcare needs • Patients with sensory sensitivities • Patients with severe dental anxiety • Patients who struggle sitting through long appointments Instead of multiple stressful visits, treatment can often be completed efficiently in a controlled and comfortable environment. For many families, this creates an enormous sense of relief. Reduced Emotional Stress One of the most overlooked benefits of sedation dentistry is emotional comfort. Many patients feel embarrassed about how long they've avoided the dentist or how much treatment they need. General anesthesia helps remove the fear and emotional burden that can prevent people from seeking care. Patients often say the hardest part was simply making the appointment — and afterward, they wish they had done it sooner. Helping Patients Finally Get the Care They Need Too many people live with dental pain, broken teeth, difficulty chewing, chronic infections, and low confidence in their smile — not because they don't care, but because fear has kept them away. General anesthesia helps bridge that gap. It gives patients an opportunity to receive the care they need in a way that feels safe, comfortable, and manageable. And for many patients, that changes far more than just their smile. At Elite Anesthesia, our goal is to help create a calm, comfortable experience that allows patients to receive high-quality dental care with confidence and peace of mind. --- # Your Hardest Dental Days Become Your Smoothest Once You Start Doing This URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/hardest-days-become-smoothest Section: Blog Your Hardest Dental Days Become Your Smoothest Once You Start Doing This Published 2026-06-30 · Practice Growth Most dentists originally think about anesthesia as a patient benefit. But once they start working with a dedicated anesthesia provider in-office, they quickly realize something else: it completely changes the experience for the doctor and the team, too. Across modern dentistry, practices are discovering that having an anesthesia provider manage sedation and patient monitoring creates a smoother, more efficient, less stressful clinical environment — while also increasing production and helping teams operate at a higher level. For many offices, it becomes one of the best operational decisions they've made. The Dentist Can Finally Focus Fully on Dentistry Dentistry already requires intense concentration. Managing complex procedures while simultaneously monitoring patient anxiety, movement, comfort, and vitals creates enormous mental load throughout the day. When an anesthesia provider is present, that burden shifts. Instead of splitting attention between dentistry and sedation responsibilities, the dentist can focus entirely on: • Clinical precision • Workflow • Efficiency • Treatment quality • Procedure execution Meanwhile, the anesthesia provider is dedicated solely to monitoring the patient's airway, oxygenation, heart rate, blood pressure, sedation level, and overall safety and comfort. That separation of responsibilities changes the entire energy of the procedure. Less Stress During Complex Cases Long restorative cases, surgical procedures, full-mouth rehabs, extractions, and implant cases can become mentally exhausting when patients are awake and anxious. Dentists constantly have to manage nervous movement, frequent breaks, anxiety interruptions, gag reflexes, fatigue, and reassurance throughout the procedure. With general anesthesia, the clinical environment becomes dramatically calmer. The patient is asleep. The procedure flows smoother. The team works more efficiently. Many dentists say sedation days become some of the least stressful and most productive days in the office. Improved Workflow for the Entire Staff It's not just the doctor who benefits. Having a dedicated anesthesia provider often improves the workflow of the entire clinical team. Assistants and staff spend less time managing anxious patients, pausing procedures, handling emotional stress, repeating instructions, and managing difficult case flow. Instead, the environment becomes more organized, predictable, and procedure-focused. That creates better team communication, more efficient appointments, reduced tension during complex procedures, and smoother clinical days overall. For many offices, the difference in team morale becomes noticeable very quickly. More Efficient Procedures When patients are asleep and still, dentistry becomes more efficient. Without interruptions from movement, anxiety, talking, fatigue, discomfort, or frequent repositioning, procedures often move significantly faster. That allows dentists to: • Complete more treatment in one sitting • Maintain better procedural flow • Reduce appointment fragmentation • Increase daily productivity In many offices, this leads to dramatically more efficient scheduling and better use of chair time. Reduced Mental Burnout Burnout in dentistry is real. One of the biggest contributors is the constant mental strain of managing both high-level clinical work and patient stress simultaneously. An anesthesia provider helps reduce that cognitive overload. Dentists often report feeling more focused, less mentally exhausted, more in control during procedures, and less emotionally drained at the end of the day. That improvement in daily stress can have a major impact on long-term career satisfaction. Better Team Confidence During Larger Cases Complex cases can create anxiety for staff as well as patients. When a trained anesthesia provider is present managing sedation and monitoring, teams often feel more confident and supported during full-mouth restorations, surgical procedures, pediatric cases, extensive treatment plans, and long appointments. That added layer of clinical support creates a more stable and confident environment for everyone involved. A More Modern Practice Environment Today's leading dental practices are increasingly building systems designed around efficiency, comfort, team sustainability, and high-level clinical workflow. Bringing anesthesia services in-house is becoming a major part of that evolution. It allows dentists and their teams to work in a calmer, more controlled environment while increasing operational efficiency and reducing unnecessary stress throughout the day. And once many offices experience the difference, they often wonder how they ever operated without it. At Elite Anesthesia, we partner with dental practices to provide professional anesthesia services that support not only patient care, but also the doctors and teams delivering it every day. --- # The Biggest Reason Patients Avoid the Dentist Finally Has a Solution URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/biggest-reason-patients-avoid-solution Section: Blog The Biggest Reason Patients Avoid the Dentist Finally Has a Solution Published 2026-07-07 · Patient Experience For decades, dental anxiety has been one of the biggest barriers preventing patients from getting the care they need. And the numbers are staggering. Research shows that anywhere from 50–80% of adults experience some level of dental anxiety, while up to 15% avoid dental care altogether because of fear. That means millions of people are living with: • Tooth pain • Broken teeth • Infections • Embarrassment • Declining oral health …not because they don't care, but because fear has kept them away from the dental chair. For years, there wasn't a true solution for patients with severe dental anxiety. Until now. With in-office anesthesia providers and modern sedation dentistry, patients can finally sleep comfortably through their dental treatment. No sitting through hours of stress. No panic during procedures. No overwhelming anxiety before appointments. Patients come in, fall asleep safely under the care of a dedicated anesthesia provider, and wake up with their dentistry completed. For many people, it completely changes their relationship with dental care. This is especially important because studies show dental anxiety directly contributes to missed appointments, treatment avoidance, and worsening oral health over time. And the problem is more common than many people realize. Recent research estimates that roughly 36% of people experience dental anxiety, with around 12% suffering from severe dental phobia. That's why more modern dental practices are partnering with anesthesia providers — not just to improve comfort, but to finally make dentistry accessible for patients who previously felt like they couldn't do it. For patients who have spent years avoiding treatment because of fear, sedation dentistry isn't just a convenience. It's the first real solution they've ever had. --- # Why Dr. Patel Brought Elite Into the Room — and Never Looked Back URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/blog/why-dr-patel-partnered-with-elite Section: Blog Why Dr. Patel Brought Elite Into the Room — and Never Looked Back Published 2026-07-14 · Partner Stories When Dr. Patel first considered adding anesthesia to the practice, the hesitation wasn't about whether patients needed it. It was about everything around it — clearance, scheduling, paperwork, and whether the team could support it without slowing the whole office down. "I knew anesthesia would help my patients," Dr. Patel says. "What I didn't know was how to actually make it work operationally. That's the part nobody prepares you for." The turning point The change came when the practice stopped trying to build the anesthesia program alone. Instead of piecing together coverage and hoping the logistics held, Elite took on the parts that had always been the bottleneck. • Identifying the right candidates during treatment planning • Coordinating medical clearance and pre-op paperwork • Scheduling anesthesia days that fit the practice's existing flow • Bringing credentialed providers who handle and monitor care in-office "It stopped feeling like a side project and started feeling like part of how we practice," Dr. Patel says. What actually changed The first thing the team noticed was calmer, more predictable days. The larger, more complex cases that used to create stress became some of the smoothest appointments on the calendar. Patients felt it too. Treatment that had been delayed for months — sometimes years — because of fear finally moved forward. Case acceptance improved, more care stayed in the practice, and the patients who had avoided the dentist entirely started coming back. "Having an anesthesia expert in the room lets me focus entirely on dentistry," Dr. Patel says. "For these larger cases, it's unparalleled." Advice for other practices Dr. Patel's advice to practices weighing the same decision is simple: don't measure it by the equipment or the provider alone. Measure it by what your team is expected to carry. "The reason it works is that we're not doing it by ourselves," Dr. Patel says. "Elite handles the process. We get to focus on the patient in front of us. That's the whole point." Interested in what an anesthesia partnership could look like for your practice? Request availability and our team will walk through it with you. --- # This Dentist Explains Why Anesthesia Changed His Implant Practice Forever | Dr. Shawn Keller URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/podcast/dr-sean-keller-implant-anesthesia Section: Podcast Episode 1: This Dentist Explains Why Anesthesia Changed His Implant Practice Forever | Dr. Shawn Keller Guest: Dr. Shawn Keller Published 2025-12-03 · 45 min Dr. Shawn Keller of Smiles by Design on his transition from oral sedation to full anesthesia support and how it transformed his implant dentistry practice — surgical precision, patient safety, neuromuscular dentistry, and advanced techniques like zirconia implants and full-arch reconstruction. Welcome back to the Roots podcast presented by Elite Anesthesia. Today we've got Dr. Shawn Keller from Smiles by Design with us. Welcome, Dr. Keller. We're excited to chat with you. Oh, glad glad to be here, Sean. We've also got James Prince with us. He's our chief here uh in Seattle. Yeah, man. This is great. We uh this is meant to happen right here. So, I'm excited about this podcast. Dr. Keller, how long have you been working with Elite? Um it's been two three years now. Two years. Three years. Almost two years. Yeah. Yeah. Almost two years. Two years going on three. Yeah. Nice. Time flies. Yeah. Yeah. Changes the game for me. I love working with James and the rest of the crew there. Yeah, man. Um it's just so much easier of a day when when we use Elite. dude. And it's literally some of my most fun days, man. Like everything from the moment I First of all, his energy matches mine, man. Like he shows up, he's pumped, man. Like he's got that huge smile. walks in looking like Wolverine. You know what I'm saying? And like, yeah, we feel like we should do this podcast standing up. I know, right? Like he he his music out. Dude, we we were jamming out Michael Jackson the other day. I've been known to cut a little rug. Yeah. No, we have we have a lot of fun in there and I feel like I super loosen up when I have um the patients under anesthesia and I'm not responsible for it. for many many years um I would use um houseion benadryil and or hion and um nitrous oral sedation and um I mean for all fullmouth implant and um I mean for all fullmouth implant procedures it's um the only reason to do it is because you're trying to be cheap and I think it costs you a lot more in the long run. Yeah. Like the the little bit that Elite charges for that is more than worth it for the quality of care that you can give um how much less stressful it is. I mean, I do flat out do a way better job and I'm going to have less problems with the case later if the patient's not moving and I'm not sitting there trying to wash the vitals and it's safer, better care, and ultimately it's cheaper because I'm not paying to redo an implant later or redo a suture or I mean it and I go and I'm more productive because I finish so much faster. Every now and then there's a case that I do where um for some reason it's you know it's a little bit less cost on the case. I'm like, "Oh man, you know, I don't know if I can afford to add this." and the patient's financing it and this is the most they can get. So, I'm doing it for that and I'm thinking maybe I maybe I won't use a lead on this one. And I almost always regret it. I can tell you on those days I'm not singing and dancing during the case then because and dancing during the case then because I'm, you know, dealing with dealing with the disadvantage of um oral sedation. Yeah. Yeah. Could you uh well we want to talk to you about your practice, but could you while we're on the while we're on the topic, could you get into a little bit of the economics maybe of I mean what does that mean if you uh have a patient that maybe has to come back a few times like how how does that affect the patient economically and maybe from like a perception standpoint? What what is an what does it when you charge a patient for a big case like this like what does an allex chart cost? Is it is it 15 in arch, 20 in arch? 25 in arch, 30 in arch, 35 in arch. I've seen it all over the place, right? seen it all over the place, right? Um and we I usually tell my patients implants have a 98% success rate for life. If you do if you don't load them and it's a single implant and you do it and it's a single implant and you do it perfectly, um when you start immediately loading them, that's going to drop to 95% if you do it perfectly. That's one out of 20 is going to fail. If you're doing a six on six case, that's almost every other patient's going to have a failed implant on that. Now, what's going to happen if that person's um coughing and moving around and and starting towards the Hion works for an hour and a half, two hours before they're starting to get to that agitated state. And if you give them another one, it makes it worse. So, um and I know a double arch takes a lot longer than that if you're doing it Yeah. Um, and th those people are you're going to not be as good and that failure rate is going to go from every other patient to almost every patient. And sometimes, you know, if you did four to six implants, if one of them fails, it doesn't mean the whole case failed, but that's a whole another day where you have to do that. And these people are they're traumatized. They've already had probably one set of dentistry fail in their mouth before and this is their last shot. Like their teeth have failed them. They've probably had crowns fail them. and they've had root canals failed, they probably had an implant fail and now they're getting this and if you have one of these fail, it's really traumatic for them. Persons, they're less likely to refer another case. I mean, you do this right for somebody, when we do it right and we take great care of somebody and it just goes care of somebody and it just goes perfectly. Um, they're going to send you everyone they know that needs this, Like birds of a feather flock together, And and they they have people that friends that need this and if you take great care of them, they'll take great care of you back. Yeah. No, it's super good insight. I reason I ask I I feel like dentistry uh in general is kind of in this transition period where a lot of our general dentist population is moving into the surgical world and anesthesia is a hot topic because it's expensive and you do have some options to be able to do it on your own. Um, I think that a lot of dentists are just kind of stuck in the middle trying to decide how to economically make it work and is it worth it. Um, I think those who are using us would say that it is. So, it's it's good to hear your feedback on that. It's worth it. And and when you when you have it's I mean sometimes when you guys just have the patient pay for it separately, they they kind of get it. You know, and for and for smaller procedures, it's less like it's an hourly thing and it's not that much. I mean, to me, it's I mean, it's and it's less than it used to be, too. Yeah. It's it's it's less expensive and to me it's worth it. You finish faster and it's done. And the peace of mind like I can walk in there, do it, and I walk out and the whole rest of the day I'm productive. I can do my consults. I'm fresh and I can do my consults and exams and more than make up for the cost that I spent on it because I'm not stressed out and wiped out. And I feel like I can I mean, I can work a lot longer in the week because I'm not wiped out from dealing with everything. Um, interestingly on that same topic, so oral surgeons is a a whole another category of of discussion we don't need to get into, but um, in Utah, we originally, so we've been in business for since 2020. Um, a little bit of push back from the oral surgeon community um, having us come in and work with them because they do the same thing. They do their own anesthesia and you understand it well. Oh yeah. And uh you know fast forward a couple years later and we actually have the entire board of oral surgeons in Utah works with us in some capacity right and that's the reoccurring theme right and that's the reoccurring theme is you know for somebody super well trained in anesthesia like an oral surgeon they they do that often and so there are some cases that don't stress them out but you know even in the routine stuff the patient population is getting sicker it's getting heavier. getting more difficult to deal with, smoking more weed, you name it. There are a lot of reasons why patients are getting harder to why patients are getting harder to sedate and just interestingly, you know, 3 years down the road where we're working literally with everyone, every oral surgeon on the board in Utah. Oh, I mean I mean I mean James and I did a case um couple three weeks ago and um the patient's health history, she didn't tell us some of the recreational drugs that she'd been taking. Turns out later there was um fentanyl I think we found out meth too and some other things that they weren't telling us and um when he had the So that's the thing people don't realize too is like this is a true chronic condition right like if these people could tell you the truth they would but they can't. So, they've kind of, you know, had to do whatever they had to do to support their condition. And, um, often it involves lying. And it's crazy. As as much as I want them to be honest with me because I'm giving them anesthesia, they still can't be. And, uh, often they're using a lot more than they realize. And, man, when she showed up, I mean, I don't know. He's I don't know. Have you ever seen me sweat before? Like, just getting the IV in. I mean, I could say uh cool and calm under pressure. It was it was tough and and then at some point like her vein didn't do everything we hoped it would and and I'm halfway done with the procedure, but it was nice knowing I had you there to just handle that and you did like a rockstar, so I could focus on the teeth and I had an implant to do. It was, you know, porcelain case, but um we took great care of her, but I think that could have gone the other way without you there. Absolutely. And you don't need as a general dentist um we're held to the same standard as um oral surgeons and perodonists for implant work that we do. And you don't need to have a case, you know, one or two cases go the wrong way and and you won't be doing those big cases anymore. right. And that's and you need to be dialed in and focused on the dentistry that you're doing and not worried about this stuff. this stuff. Absolutely. The vitals and the anesthesia and and everything else. So I can worry about the teeth and you can worry about keeping them alive. And Dr. Keller does everything. Like I mean I think what's really cool about his practice is he's called us in for some of these big implant like big cases but he's also called us in for some general dentistry cases. He kind of sees everything from beginning to end and we've worked together um just on some really complex cases, some really complex patients, man. And um you know on that crazy case that that he just spoke of, uh dude, he stayed there the entire time. He stayed there during the entire recovery. Um, I knew it was gonna take us a long time to wake her up because she had such drove her to the put her down, man. And he was there for an hour and a half, like just with me, sitting at her bedside recovering her. We were talking to her, making sure she was comfortable, like it took her a while to come out of anesthesia, but I think it says something about the care that he has for the patients. Um, knowing they're complex that he kind of sees it all the way through the end. Yeah. I mean, it's it's awesome work and I feel the care from you, too. like you're not you're you won't stay until you're comfortable that they're ready to go. Yeah. I the the kind of I mean how I evolved to given the kind of care that we do I like I like to think we're known as um when the person's told they don't have any bone and this case can't be done for any bone and this case can't be done for them. Um like that's my my favorite ones is where they're they've been seeing multiple um implant surgeons and they just say nope. And we're like no we can do this. you know, with my um orca training in in Guatemala and the um learning with Rick Klein and Alex Sebashinko down in Australia and um Apparisho in Barcelona, these residences we've done. We we can do the quad zygoma, the transnasal, the vulmer, the the terragoids. Yeah, we did the other day. Yeah. And it's um You're here for the hard stuff. Yeah. like, you know, I it's awesome when somebody walks in and they just have a mile of bone and you can put four implants spread really wide, but most my ones are little eggshell bone and you're trying to find remote anchorage in places and um and you don't want to be um putting an implant right here or two of them right here on each side with that person moving at each side with that person moving at all. all. Yeah. Like precise and that's Yeah. You just want it to be perfect and precise and you need to have elite anesthesia to do that. And and to be honest, even when I get one of these simple cases, I don't want it to turn into one of those cases 101 15 years from now. And so even my simple cases, I'm trying to overengineer it so that it's just done one time and done one time, right? And that's why it's nice to have elite for that. Yeah, that's amazing feedback. We It's It's hard for us to and not everyone understands, you know, it's I think the economic piece is a is a big part of it and trying to get through that. I mean the patient it's they w they healing is better when they haven't been hacking and coughing and moving and stressed out. They're going to heal better too. They're not going to have as much bruising. It's going to be um even if they don't remember it from the houseion. It's like their subconscious does. We talk about a lot actually with nerve We talk about a lot actually with nerve blocks. Oh yeah. Yeah. We call it a a ramp up where if your sympathetic nervous system or any pain response is is mitigated from the beginning, you're actually able to control that easier for a longer period of time. Um so just keeping that at bay from the start is is uh is actually yeah really really helpful. really helpful. Yeah. Did you have another anesthesia group that you were using and then you switched to oral sedation? Like how did that happen? Um I I I had a anesthesia guy that I worked with um a couple times. He was the um awesome guy, brother anesthesiologist. Okay. anesthesiologist. Okay. Um it was really expensive though. I mean it was and I mean it was it he's actually anesthesiologist. It was um awesome to work with him, but it was awesome to work with him, but it was just it was like seven grand or more or eight or nine every time I used it. And when you're you're trying to save the patient every dollar you can. I mean, I would say it was still worth it for the ones I did it on, but at the end of that, that's just a lot of cost. And um you know, with more and more dentists doing these procedures and them playing, I don't I want to be known as more the Nordstrom's that does this like I don't want to be using the um cheapest implant. I don't be known as the guy that's using the cheapest implant that's out there. Like why is it the cheapest? Like why are there are there better ones out there? Absolutely there are. Right. There's ones that actually gain if you use the Morse taper connection, it'll actually gain a little bit of bone over over time instead of slowly losing it. Um, so to me, this is kind of like your um don't buy the cheapest parachute that you can find, you can find, right? All right. Like this is your this is your last shot at your teeth and and and you want quality. I want somebody I want the patient to hold still and and I'd rather um if there's a place that does anesthesia as well as you guys do and to me it's a it's a good cost then I can spend the extra money on better parts and and and doing it the right way. You know better better final teeth, better implants, you know, all the parts that I use. I'm not trying to use the cheapest stuff that's out there. I want to use the best. Yeah, I love that. And it leaves me the room to do that when I'm not dropping nine grand on when I'm not dropping nine grand on anesthesia. Got to be competitive. So, let's get into your practice a little bit and let's kind of start from the beginning. Where where did you grow up? So, I grew I was um born in um Seattle and grew up in Kirkland to start. Right here, man. Yeah. Like literally the the house I was born in is um literally a block from my house right now. I didn't even know that. Yeah. I didn't even know that till my um sister Michelle was showing her the practice. Like, look at the building I got. Like, it's going to be meant to be the the implant center. Upstairs is going to be the lab. downstairs will be the clinic. And she's like, "You know the house we were born?" And we walked around and it was like right there. The house is gone, but same yard. I recognize the the tree a little bigger recognize the the tree a little bigger now. Um you can see where the rope used to be for the tire swing. Shut up. That's good. Um and then but then um we kind of outgrew it. My um went to um Holy Family Catholic School, which is right up on the hill there by um Lake Washington the hill there by um Lake Washington Tech. Was that like a secondary school or a high school? Cathol grade school. Yeah. And then uh sixth grade um I think my parents had their six kid then and so we were just kind of outgrowing the house there. So my dad um had this beach cabin up on Kameo Island. So we um move up there and it's um man tiny little room and they had uh three more kids up there. So we had um at one point we had like triple bunk beds in one room. It was like Yeah. All of us up there. Where where are you at? Uh number two. Second oldest. Four boy uh four boys, five girls. Sheesh. Our next door neighbor is um Dr. Bolander. He was the head of the prostidonic department at Udub. prostidonic department at Udub. Oh. And um I'd say we didn't make a good impression on him. Uh some of the stuff that we pulled out there just with four boys, the the battles that we'd have that would spill out into the yard and out onto the beach. Dude, you'd be so proud now. I dressed up as um Santa Claus one year and came out and we told all the kids to look outside. So, I'm running across his roof so they could see it out there. And I slipped and fell and um land on his wood pile and came out and I thought I broke my back. And I'm out there screaming and I and the kids are crying cuz they're like, "Santa Claus just died. We saw him fall." And I come in later. Oh god. Can you take me can you take me to the hospital? So yeah, there was a hospital trip about once a week with that many many kids there. Um but anyway, it was fun growing up with the brothers and then um went up to Western for undergrad. Um I was a carpenter in Belle. Uh Bellingham. Bellingham. Okay. We're in Belleview. Yeah. Way way up north almost by the border of Canada. A nephew that went there. Um yeah, it's a good school. My older sister went there, too. And then um got into dental school. I was uh probably a carpenter for about 10 years. Like all growing up from all through high school and through uh going to Western. Yeah. So went to uh then I uh went to dental school. I remember Dr. Bolander coming out and um I I was he was telling me from what he knew about us and how rambunctious we were. I was like, "Yeah, I think I want to get into dental school." And he was like, "Have a backup plan. Aim lower. Don't tarnish my profession." And I was like, "Oh man." So like, but that, you know, kind of like uh drove me to study a little harder. So got into UDub, went went to dental school there. um graduated and um man right when I got out of school that's when um I I worked I didn't have any dentists in the family so I signed up for a tech agency and um was doing like random jobs it was uh you wake up and they say okay you're driving to Pullman today there's a dentist went down there so you're going to go work there so for like three months I just kind of drove around the state yeah some sometimes I do hygiene jobs there whatever it took to meet people and and get busy um and then Uh what happened? I I wound up working for Gentle Dental in Everett for a little bit and great people up there and um kind of let me know that I didn't want to do general dentistry. You know, when when you work in the corporate world, I that they had like these numbers they had to meet and everything was insurance based. So, you know, I know how to do these beautiful crowns and oh, you know, that your insurance plan will cover a silver filling. So, that's what you're doing today. And you have to use this type of amalgam. And I'm just like I just like being told what to do and how to do it was really tough for me. was really tough for me. Yeah. Yeah. And so I wanted to buy my own practice. And then um 9/11 happened. Yeah. And I remember, you know, remember that morning waking up sitting there on the couch and you're if you guys Oh yeah. I think everybody remembers. I was in grade school, but I do Oh yeah. You're young, dude. I was in Oh yeah. You're young, dude. I was in college. Remember we first we first my brother my brother Bo um also dentist. Yeah. And then um my other brother Andy is also a dentist. Like all younger ones um Yeah, they're here. And then my other brother, yeah, they all had them all on together. He was still in dental school. Yeah. So I'm I'm he's getting ready to get in the dental school and I and um he's my roommate. The three of us live together. Um and we're just watching the news and we see the the first plane hits it. Like I wake up and it's already happened and they're just like, "It's an accident. What a random accident." And we're watching news live and then the second one hits and we're just like that's not an accident. And that's before they cut it too and you were seeing people fall. Yeah. I was nuts seeing that. So um but um you know economic effect is So um but um you know economic effect is um all these dentists that were about to sell their practices because they thought they could retire weren't anymore. Yeah. So nothing was for sale. There was like one practice that was any worth looking at that was for sale and it was um Smiles by Design in Redmond Town Center and um most practices you see there I mean that one was insanely expensive. It was over a million dollars which back in 2001 is 25 years ago. Yeah, that's most of them were selling for two or three and I just looked at it and I was like, "Wow." Like there's it's the only one for sale, but um I remember seeing it had like um blue neon lights in the sterilization room and I walked in there and it was just the most posh coolest place I'd ever seen and the Dr. Rossi and Dr. Olsen were two um instructors at the um Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies. And it was just big cosmetic practice, all veneers and neuromuscular dentistry like that. The facial changes on people after you do their teeth was insane to me cuz all I done silver fillings and PFM crowns before. Oh, interesting. You know, kind of what they taught at UDub and you know, root canals and um it was uh insane to see this practice like that. And I I looked at it and they were like, "You got to come in and like just come. I'll pay you a week to work here just to see what it's like." And I was like, "All right, I'll you know, I got nothing to lose. they'll try it out. And I fell in love with the place and um eventually I was able to get a loan for it and buy it was in to me it was insane. My dad was against it. My accountant was against it. Um but went against division. Yeah. And um and I got to admit even after I got it, I found it hard to believe some of the things that they were saying. Like the whole idea with neuromuscular dentistry, like the idea that you could put a computer on somebody and measure their muscles and relax them and have the jaw position change and then the way that you build the veneers and the and the teeth to get rid of headaches and migraines. That was insane to me that that would work. And I I honestly didn't believe it. I said, "Can out of here and I'll do just some veneers and the occasional um implant, maybe the crown." I couldn't wait to get their equipment out of there after I bought it. But I they stuck around for another year and kind of taught me how to do it. And then I started going to LVI and lived it, breathed it, saw it, and it works. I I believe it. And so that got me into just doing these um kind of bigger comprehensive cases where you look at a lot more than just the teeth. And it was um I went I I attended LVI. I went through the whole program twice because it was just fascinating to me. Yeah. Oh, that's cool. Yeah. Yeah. And it cost me 10 times what dental school did going to it. And then my um my brother um graduated and joined me. So kind of doing that together. And that was fun. together. And that was fun. Um so he joined you at Smiles by Design. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. And that was fun working with them for a while. Eventually he he kind of thought like, you know, I don't want to work with big brother. I got to do my own thing. So kind of do and it's it's been fun, too. Yeah. So um we all got the little want to do our own thing in us a little bit. Yep. Um, and then my other brother Andy graduated and and he's doing it now, too. And Brett is um like a master lab technician, so he knows how to do he actually does the work that we install. So, it's kind of cool having him do Some full family practice. Yeah. Yeah. So, I realized with these big porcelain um big reconstructive cases, if people have had this bad bite and things are hitting the wrong way for long enough, um they start losing teeth. And sometimes a bridge is appropriate, but sometimes you can't. And so I kind of got into implants, but with this um holistic approach that we do, the um titanium implants weren't weren't always weren't always the best choice. And I've been hearing about these uh non-metal implants like the zirconia implants coming out of Spain and Switzerland. And so I um the internet I think the internet was just coming out around then too. Like I remember downloading like too. Like I remember downloading like 2002. Yeah. getting an email about this ceramic implant and I'm sitting there waiting for it to download like as the picture's going the whole thing's white I think. Is it going to be gray at the bottom? And the whole thing's white. Wow. It's sacodia. Like I was like yes. Like we white white implants. We don't have to have that gray metal in there. But I remember the email downloading so slow. Was that Yeah. Early internet Windows 98. Yeah. It was Yeah. It was Yeah. dialup, man. Yeah. So the yeah the the email came in and then I uh emailed the guy back and he's like yeah well I said can you send me some? And it's like I mean obviously you can't use them. They're not FDA approved yet but you can play with them a little bit. So got a few of them and um as soon as they got FDA approved I was um I had I had the first shipment coming in and so um started placing these um white zirconia implants and um they're freaking awesome man. like to me to me um I usually don't use them for the big crazy full arch cases cuz that remote anchorage stuff they can't make them long enough to go back there but if you're missing a single tooth they're you're missing a single tooth they're awesome so kind of got into the implant world who makes those um there's now there's a few of them back then it was um Sarah but now there's um uh uh Strawman bought the noble they have the noble pearl one they call them but they were called Z system before that um um sounds familiar yeah there there's like four of them now there's even one trying to do it where they um do a CAT scan of the of a moler and then they get an STL file from that. So it's actually shaped exactly like the tooth and they mill that and you pull the tooth and then you tap one that's already shaped like that into the spot right in there like it's shaped exactly like the tooth like it's shaped exactly like the tooth was. Yeah. So that that they're doing those in um Switzerland right now called bioimplant. They want me to donate money so they can get FDA approved. Apparently getting FDA approved um isn't it's more about just getting a million bucks Just pay for it. Pay you just buy it. So they just try we gota we just got to get enough money to go approved. Oh so you you bought Smiles by Design and didn't inherit you bought this practice went to Las Vegas Institute. Is that right? Yeah. And it's it's kind of um it was known as like uh one of the there weren't a lot of cosmetic schools out there like it back then like now veneers you can watch a YouTube video you know everybody's got a video or school on it but back then um veneers weren't really that popular or a thing. And so um that was that there was maybe them and Panky and the Hornbrook Institute a couple of them around the country but that to me that was um the best one like actually had an institute. It wasn't some guy's um practice with a room on the side. Right. Um and so and it and it was Vegas, too. Vegas, too. Yeah. Um so, uh who doesn't want to go there for, you know, weekend? Maybe that's why I had to take the school twice because you're only there half the time. No, it was it I mean, it was um buying Smiles by Design and um and being able to hang out with two of the instructors there, Dr. Rossi and Dr. Olsen, was um life-changing for me. I I would have not believed some of the stuff that they were doing there. like the um some of the pictures they had on their wall as you walk through the practice of the facial changes like somebody with um like a receded chin and a weak chin and it looked like they had like a class three jaw surgery to fix it. But um I went and looked at them all they had was the um back teeth redone in porcelain to bring it in the right spot. As your as your teeth wear down and you and then it kind of pushes your jaw back and then your jaw muscles bulge out and the diagastric gets overworked. when you um tense the jaw and put the EMGs on there and read it and get it in the right spot. We do it with an orthotic first and then once it's there then we build it up with porcelain and um I mean it was just watching them do it again and again and again and again and then seeing um seven eight years of patients who had been through this and hearing their story like I was getting migraines and neck pain and um breaking teeth all the time and these guys put in the orthotic and restored me and I've been good for you know seven eight years. Just the testimonial I was like wow I gota I got to figure this out. M and so that you know started doing it and built my way up and um now I the practice was doing that and then you were you guys replacing implants as well and then did it have a general dentistry component also or was it like purely component also or was it like purely cosmetic? I mean I get to me it was um that it to me that is general dentistry now. I guess like when somebody comes in and they've got um a bunch of plastic fillings everywhere I can't help but look at everything else you see going on. like if like if you know if they get one cavity I guess the less you know the more normal your patients appear appear and so if they you know I almost everybody I no it's almost nobody has a perfect bite and the way things fit so if somebody I don't generally people don't come to me because they have a don't come to me because they have a cavity they usually come I'm getting headaches migraines or I'm missing teeth and you know and I hurt you and know my goal is not to just slam one if if the if you're missing a tooth and and the tooth on each side has collapsed into it and the top tooth has come down. Um just placing an implant in there is not going to fix that. Like now the whole jaw has shifted from that and you're going to need an implant every two three years the rest of your life or a root canal or you're going to lose bone and cause paradonal disease from the way the bite is. So I'm looking at yes maybe you do need an implant there but we got to get your jaw in the right spot and build everything the right way it was. when you start when you start knowing more and asking more, you know, you know, I notice that you're missing a tooth right there, but I look at your um cone beam scan and that joint is impacted and and and it's clicking. Do you get headaches very often or migraines? Yeah. You know, now I think about it, more of like a sinus headache like this. Hm. Does the lateral terragoid attach to the back of your senoid bone which could cause a sinus headache there? And do you get pain coming down right here? Yeah. Are these fingers a little numb? Yeah. So, let's um before we do that, while this implant's healing, why don't we just throw an orthotic in there and put that joint in the right spot and see if some of that gets better, you know? And so, that that kind of led to that. And as I met more and more complex cases that needed more and more implants, um then it started then this all on X thing started to come out because I'd meet people that needed, you know, there were enough bad teeth that they either needed a denture or an implant retain denture. Mhm. And so, but I still didn't really use anesthesia that much yet. anesthesia that much yet. Yeah. You know, for for like a fullmouth and but it was not I would say there were hard days. Yeah. The days where I was What what years were these uh like 2000, you know, as I as I I kind of watched them and helped them and did the more general type stuff in 2001 through three and four. But as I started, you know, my veneer cases got bigger and turned into fullmouth cases and um started placing implants. It was like 2002 did the implants, but it's usually just one or two. So I I try to just survive off the oral sedation then. But by about 200 seven or eight is when I started getting into the more complex ones and that's when I started using the anesthesiologist, but it was just so expensive. That was a big hangup for me And there's only one of them. Yeah. There's like not many. Yeah, that's why you can charge so much, right? When Yeah. I mean, yeah, I mean, and and the Yeah, it was it was insanely expensive then, but I mean, it was like it was nice to not have to think about it, but um you're always trying to provide the best possible experience and safety for your patient. And how can you argue that it's not a better experience and safer for the patient to have somebody else taking care of the vitals and doing that? Like, it's like these complex cases, Like, it's like these complex cases, they're they're hard. They're real surgeries. Yeah. It's a it's not like yeah you're you're flopping there's nerves there's bone there's sinuses there's it's a human right there and and and having more people that know what they're doing a part of that you know when when you look at like a cardiac surgery there what eight people around surgery there what eight people around there doing that and and we're working on you know these all x cases you're you've got their face open we we've said it a few times that these oral surgery cases all x cases are some of the craziest surgeries that I've ever been a part of you know are four to six, even eight hours long. There's a lot of blood, there's a lot of teeth, there's a lot of bone, there's a lot of I mean, when you're doing like a femur replacement, they use general for that. Oh, yeah. And you don't there's not right there. The brain's far away from it. There's not an airway right there. Um, you don't see what it looks like afterwards. With this, you're going to see it, you know, and then there's um you're not packing sugar around it and seeing how that acts. But this, you know, the next day they're going to be, you know, drinking sugary things and that's going to affect infection rates. You know, so it's it feels like as dentistry moves, we kind of talked about it earlier, but as as dentistry moves and is transitioning into more of a surgical world than it's been in the past, anesthesia is just an absolutely necessary part of that. And there's some drag and, you know, everyone being able to adopt it or being willing to adopt it. There's also not been a lot of availability of the anesthesia itself. I mean, we we've been around for five years as a company. We've been here for little less than two. little less than two. Yep. I mean, we we're adding providers at a rapid rate right now trying to keep up with demand. So, it's just interesting to see dentistry as a whole evolving into that world. And I I think it's created a lot of trauma throughout the years of patients who are probably should have been sedated but didn't have the opportunity to be and uh yeah and a lot of surgeries that could have had better outcomes if the patient was better outcomes if the patient was asleep. Couldn't agree more, Sean. And and not not to bring up uh um when things do go wrong, but I' I've um I've heard stories about um dentists having um losing their license over that one case that goes bad. Yeah. And this is a pretty major surgery. And and I can guarantee you when when that does happen to somebody, the chances of happening are a lot less when you when you have somebody else taking care of this part. Somebody who's trained, dialed in, and that's all they're looking at. And um I've worked with you on a ton of cases. And um I mean I' I'd trust you with my life from what I've seen. from what I've seen. Absolutely. You like if I knew I had to go under, I'd feel totally comfortable with you looking at my vitals for whatever I had looking at my vitals for whatever I had done. Absolutely. And I mean, I think that's the that's the biggest thing, man. Ketamine in there. Ketamine in there. Yeah. You know, start with that joking. What we fail to realize is that the experience does matter. Like everything from the moment we walk in um how we return, all that stuff matters, man. And um I think one of the biggest reasons why dental anxiety is what it is is because there was a time before anesthesia and then there's now. And then like I mean I one of the biggest reasons why I went in anesthesia is cuz I got my wisdom teeth out under local. And I remember asking him like what's the anesthe uh what's the anesthetic plan? And he was like we're just going to numb you up and hold you down. And I was like wait that's the plan? Like that's legit the plan? And they were like yeah we'll just I'll just be as fast as I can. And I remember feeling everything and I and I heard the drill and I felt like the pressure and I you know I saw him he had the hammer and he was like cracking my tooth and and and and when I left it it it changed me like I was immediately more fearful and the result of that shows the pathway of why people have fullblown mouth implants because I got a cavity um I don't know maybe maybe a year later and I didn't tell my mom and I started having all this cold sensitivity ity and I didn't say anything and I didn't say anything cuz I didn't want to go back to the dentist and I was like maybe I'll just go away. I'm going just take some Tylenol like you know and then it turned into a root canal and when I went back to my general uh dentist she was like why didn't you say anything and I was like dude I was so fearful like I just I thought that was going to happen again and she was like oh my gosh I'm so sorry. So like it one thing can lead to a next the the next and uh and and you can see where anesthesia can come in and really play a pivotal role as far as just making the experience more palatable. I think one of the cool parts about your practice is you've created this tool belt and I think when people when all they have is the all-on four solution then that's what they offer because that's what they have. But you kind of have this holistic approach where you can look and treat in many different directions and you'll offer that accordingly, man. And I I I love that. Like that's that's the type of practice that I'd want to send my mom I can't tell you how many people I've got a lady right now that just came in and she said, "I'm I'm done with my teeth, right? Like they've um betrayed me and I want them out and um I'm ready for this. I'm all on four, all on X, whatever it is." And um I've convinced her that that's not she's got a bite problem and that's what's wrecking the teeth. and I think we can do three implants in the back and restore it with porcelain and keep her teeth. It's what I would do in my mouth. And I believe well she goes, "Well, what if I spend all this money on this and um then I need this in 10 years anyway." I'm like, I'll give you the the guarantee on this as long as I'm practicing, you know, I'm going to I'm going to manage this this I believe that strongly in this, right? That that this is going to last for you that the problem is you shouldn't, you know, there is a time when there when people do need the implants. Yeah. Um and and and if there's four or five teeth left and they're in really bad shape, yeah, don't try to hang on to, you know, a lonely island out there in the middle. Um but but there's a lot of this I think this procedure is done too often. I think I think many times it's a bite issue and an implant here, an implant there, and and build up the back teeth in a strong way. There's um we have some really cool ways to get the jaw in the right spot. And um I think you'll get 10, 20, 30 more years out of your teeth the way you could with very little problems. And who knows what technology we'll have in two decades. To me, it's like and so a lot of these um all on four cases um the way they hit it's going to slowly cause a little bit of a forward head posture and um possibly even the digastric. I I mean I've had I'm I'm aiming for optimum facial changes as we do this and um I noticed that when I put EMGs on the muscles if I leave it high in the preolar area the massitors bulge in the preolar area the massitors bulge out and even the diagastric is kind of tensing right here and that's where the double chin look can come from is that muscle but as soon as I get hitting them I'm on first and second mer these muscles relax and start to thin out your jawline and cheekbone over the ear will start to look more prominent and this will suck up as you're hitting on your mers all on forest can't hit there. Is that a problem? Yes. But in some people, can they have implants back that far? That big sinus and there's no bone, the nerve is close on the bottom. It's it's hard to say. Um, you know, with the advent of um new materials in sinus lifting or the terragoid implant or sometimes if there's a molar there, we can get one in the palar root. I'm doing everything I can to get those back implants. I want to overengineer every case. I'm not just trying to get four implants in a set of 12 teeth in there. I want the back as solid as I can so I can get the jaw in the right spot, open the airway, support the face, support the joints, and um straighten their spine up. spine up. Um it's it's interesting. Um being in the TMJ world, we we know that if um if the jaw goes off, that throws the neck out. That'll throw your shoulder girdle out and your hip girdle and um this can affect the whole body. And so I Yeah. Just hearing you describe that, I mean, it's it's pretty intricate surgery in and of itself. And to hear the implications of making sure that that procedure is done well uh is pretty extensive all the way down back up about it now. Yeah, dude. I love that. Yeah. And I I mean to bring this back full circle, but I just I can't even imagine trying to do something that precise on a moving target. Oh, absolutely. And the and the more um I mean I'm I I saw a couple of gray hairs in my beard. um couple weeks ago and uh either I'm getting older or I'm a and uh either I'm getting older or I'm a wizard and I know I'm not getting any older. So uh so uh as I get older um I the energy to to to to do one of these cases when they're not sedated, it's not good for your heart. It's not good for your back. Like I want to get in there on a I would say on a on a upper lower six on six implant case if I'm trying to do oral on that. That's going to be six plus hours no matter what. With um elite anesthesia um and the actual it's going to be 90 minutes for the top and probably 60 for the bottom. Yeah. Wow. Almost cut in half. Almost cut in half. Yeah, dude. And it's cool too, man. I think one of the things I actually love working with is like providers that have been there kind of since the beginning. Like this dude, he's one of the first in Seattle to start doing implants. Like everybody kind of knows Dr. Keller. So, he's kind of seen just the change. And I remember one day I left my power cord uh for my monitor um in his surgical room and he had just started using Elite Anesthesia, so he wasn't fully using us yet. And I I stopped back the next day and he was doing a procedure and I walked in and he was like, "Thank God you're here." And I was like, "Oh no, I'm just here to pick up my power cord." And he was like, "Oh my god, we need you so much." Like like something something like you know. And he immediately had that appreciation, man. Like, dude, I actually and his staff is the same way. They're like, "Dude, we love when you're here." And I was like, "Dude, I love being here." And he's like, "All right, we're gonna start calling you more often." And we've been working with him even more and more ever since. But it's kind of cool to have that juxtaposition where you've literally seen both sides of it. And um that appreciation's there, man. It's great working with you. And they always are able to handle themselves well cuz they're they've been working on moving patients for so long that when they get a steel patient, man, they're able to do some really precise work and work super fast. And I remember he was able to do a consult one day and he's like, I've never been able to do a consult on a surgical day. A surgical day. I mean, I my general way that I used to do it, I can't remember one of these um practice management places to teach you how to take, you know, run a good business and take better care of your patients. and he says, you know, get your um work done in the morning and then, you know, put on your tie and your nice um nice outfit for the afternoon to meet people and and you can get in that emotional state. But when I if I do one of those cases in the morning and I got a consult or two in the afternoon, I'm a different man. If like your chances of connecting with somebody who's about to have their teeth taken out, Yeah. How's that going to go when you're How's that going to go when you're wiped? You're not going to you're not going to be able to connect with them and have them feel comfortable with you. But somebody who used Elite comes in there fresh, they can sit there and and connect with this patient, actually have a chance to help them understand to get the care that they need. They need if they're in there, they need this. And if you're not at the top of your game, then you're not going to be able to um you're going to miss something or you're going to blow some they might say something that was hard on them and you're not going to be able to help them feel better about that if you're wiped out. you're wiped out. Yeah. Makes a huge difference. Makes a huge difference. Yeah. It's awesome guys more. It's awesome guys more. Yeah. I love I I was I was laughing thinking about um some of the cases of when um back I've had associates over the years um and some of the and using oral um and some of the and using oral sedation. Oh, it's Yeah, it's it's um you never know how um with with oral how it's going to act. Sometimes it doesn't seem to do anything. You know, you give them two pills and it's been an hour and a half. All right, can I give him another one? All right, it's been an hour and a half. Let's let's do one more. Yeah. Beauty IV, what are you doing in the meantime? what are you doing in the meantime? Um, like while you're waiting for it to kick in, are you just kind of like kind of burning the candle? I I I usually like I'm just kind of sitting in there in the room like you know, you got you got to keep an eye on them during that. So, like I'll be sitting in there like just kind of looking at the vitals and um doing notes, looking at the case. But, you know, after an hour and a half, like then you want to it's time to start. The part they're going to remember the most is probably the numbing, you know, and so we use the wand and a lot of topical and the want, you know, and I'll use some endo ice to kind of cool the area before I numb it. But, um, sometimes they'll still remember that part. Like, it's, you know, it's not there's there's times when I've done oral and you ask them, I say, "Hey, how much do you remember from yesterday?" Everything. Oh wow. That and and is that person gonna send you everyone they know after even you can do the most amazing job, the most amazing veneers that just look so natural. You know, I spent top dollar on the lab and I spent a lot of times on the provisionals making sure they're perfect and you can do everything perfect, but if their memory is that that was tough, um that they're not going to want to send. It's not a good experience for them. Yeah. And and if you're going to do complete dentistry, that's not a half hour billing. Yeah, you know, it's a long time to sit in a chair and and I'm reminded every time I have to sit in the chair, I remember if I have to get like a um my back was really tight to hear what you say. No, I took my tooth the other day and I called you and I was like, "Oh man, what was I doing?" "Oh man, I bit down onto the fork and like I had already knocked it out a little bit from like mountain biking and I bit down." I was like, "Dr. Keller," I was like, "Dude, I chipped my tooth." And he was like, "Yeah." And he was like, "All right, man. Like, I'm out of town this weekend or something something." I was like, "Oh, man." And like and and immediately I was like, man, is this going to hurt? Like I was kind of already thinking about like, you know, man, do I need sedation? Should I call my buddy? Yeah. Like, should I call my buddy? Yeah. Like I remember saying that. Chip probably looks good. You're a good-looking guy. Chip probably looks good. Like you probably look tougher. You told me I I probably look tougher, man. Like watch the kids will listen to you now. Like just leave it. I've been through some stuff. I've been through some stuff. Forks. As my wife, I was like, "Do I look tougher?" She's like, "You look like an idiot." And I was like, "Okay, never mind. Yeah, he I got in a fight and he caught me with his Super Bowl ring. Right. Right there. Well, uh, Dr. Keller, it's been awesome. Great conversation. James Prince. --- # Kristy Maguire: Building a people first practice at Bell Medical URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/podcast/kristy-maguire-bell-medical Section: Podcast Episode 2: Kristy Maguire: Building a people first practice at Bell Medical Guest: Kristy Maguire Published 2025-11-03 · 35 min Kristy Maguire, Office Manager at Bell Medical in Bountiful, Utah, on her transformation from patient to practice leader — culture-building, patient-centered values, compassionate leadership, and how office-based anesthesia enhances the patient experience. Welcome to the Roots podcast presented by Elite Anesthesia. Today we have Kristy Maguire with us. Kristy, welcome. We're so excited to have you. Kristy is the office manager at Bell Medical in Medical in Bountiful. Bountiful. That's right. Thanks, Kristy. We're excited to talk. I'm so glad to be here. Thanks for being here. Thanks for being here. Yeah. How long have you been at Bell? So, I started as a patient um five years ago. It wasn't until last year that the opportunity came up for me to be a treatment coordinator in Bountiful. We've really loved it. Yeah. That's awesome. So, you've been there for a couple years. You as a treatment coordinator slashoff You as a treatment coordinator slashoff manager. manager. Mhm. Like what do you know or understand about running a medical practice that like the doctor or owner doesn't understand? Because you haven't been in this for a long time. I think it's probably more fresh and apparent to you than somebody who's been buried in like 30 years of having like preconceived notions of having like preconceived notions of things. What I have found to really be a value to me in my role is my people skills. You don't get this personality from being the head cheerleader or something like I grew up a plus-sized kid. A big family of 11. Um if you wanted mom and dad to remember your name, I mean, you had to be, you know, forward facing and outgoing and loud. So, yeah. But I've actually been a photographer for 15 years. Oh wow. But just being able to work with people and listen to them and understand them their needs and things like that and capture those memories for them really helped me in this role because I have different people coming into my office every day from all different backgrounds, all different needs of, you know, how they feel uncomfortable in their skin and just having those their skin and just having those conversations. And where I feel it to be very vital in any um job industry is to be able to not only sit and talk to people, but really listen and hear them, hear what they're saying, whether it is plastic surgery or you know what you do or a cookie shop, what have you. Just listening and hearing people out and then doing something with that. I I just feel like that plays a huge part in your day-to-day business comes from the top. you know how how management then treats the staff, treats patients. For example, I just want to bring up so our values at Bell are our core values are compassion, vision, building trust, achieving potential. those are the things we hit in on. I'm like that is awesome. I love that. our uh weekly sales meetings. So, my role treatment coordinators, we get on this group call with um corporate um every week and have these conversations and I feel like I'm on some type of TED talk or you know some something. It's just uplifting and never have I felt less than uplifted and just have I felt less than uplifted and just supported. Yeah. So that's how I knew coming into this role that it's like it doesn't matter what it is. I can talk to the people and I have the support of my co-workers and upper management. So there was no way I could fail. It's hard to ask for more than that. It's hard to ask for more than that. Honestly, I am I am spoiled. Uh not knowing Belle's like core values. Uh and even I couldn't read them back to you, but like all of them resonate. I feel like I've had interactions with your guys' corporate team as well as you as well as patients and surgeons and doctors and I feel like that's that is kind of top down. I've I've never felt contrary to work with strong yeah our culture but that's why we connected so well with elite cuz I feel like you guys are just an extension of us. I was telling Kristy this your your Utah scheduler is my best friend cuz she's a Kristy too. She's been fantastic. But everyone that comes into our office from your team, everyone. It just I almost hate to like tell this out loud. I want to gatekeep so that you know no one else takes you away. But we're not going anywhere. We're committed to you guys. Yeah. It's uh but it just feels like you're just part of the part of the team cuz it seems like your values and just cuz it seems like your values and just your um culture just aligns with ours so much. Well, just hearing you talk about the way that you feel your ability to interact and communicate with patients and people uh impacts like how successful you are at Bell like really rings true to me. I just feel I I didn't set out to to build this business. I feel like I kind of fell into it. it was something that was needed and there was a big hole in this office space based anesthesia space and kind of felt like it was my duty or whatever to like fill that hole, fill that need. Um, and I've just always felt like if it's not good for the people that we're doing it with, like I just don't have any interest in doing it. Mhm. And being able to connect with people based on what they actually need uh is like means everything to me. And I hope that that resonates and goes top down from for us. [clears throat] But I think, you know, working with our providers and people that we hire and I I know that they kind of feel the same Oh, 100%. I mean, we get patients that I was just looking over our calendar uh with your scheduler before I came and one of the patient like I can see the notes in there from the other offices notes in there from the other offices and one of them was like is requesting the same you know team member or whatever. I think it was Marky Mark but um wants to make sure they have the same one and they see you guys as part of us. They don't even realize that it's two separate entities companies. Yeah. Yeah. It's just and that's another thing that we try to do or believe in is just being absolutely integrated with the offices that we work with whether it's medical or dental or whatever it is. Like we want you to feel that way. We want you to feel like you can call Kristy at any time and get what exactly what you need and that whether it's Mark or somebody else comes in like it's going to feel the same. And if it doesn't like we we want to know that. Well, cuz you don't find that in every business. You might a lot of times you'll go places be like, "Oh, you got to see this guy or you got to see that one because that's the one cool one there." But it's like no matter who we've had from you guys, it's just been a good time. The worst part about you guys is like you put the patients to sleep. So like when I go to sleep for my procedure, I'm like, I can't sit here and hang out and talk with you or I can't like I want to go into the procedures and just hang out and talk procedures and just hang out and talk and Well, we think that's the best part of what we do. Yeah. [laughter] No, it's great. I just we just love having you guys in the office and the worst part is when you have to leave. So yeah. What do you feel like the goals of Belle are like what are you guys trying to do in the next say year to 5 years? We're not looking to grow to be some drive-thru in every state everywhere. We um are just solidifying what we have and just trying to always do better, be better for our patients and create an environment where people just want to come in and have those vulnerable conversations. Um, one of my big goals as a, you know, office manager, whatever my role is, is to create an environment where, whether it's patients, employees, or anyone that comes in the office to feel comfortable enough to speak up, whether it's something, you know, they have an issue with or just to see something, say something, whether it's a compliment, good things, or just I want everyone just able to feel okay to to speak up. And um so we're just each day, each of those meetings we have every week, it's just making goals and just trying to better our um offices, our communities. I think of how I can better my employees, my patients walk any if they're coming in for a consult and they're never going to book. I don't care. I just want to make sure that when they walk out, they feel better than when they've walked in. The world, they're going to go out into the world, the world's going to do enough damage to them, negative, all that. But if at Bell I can make sure that employee or patient as soon as they walk out those doors has felt better whether it was 5 minutes with us or you know an 8 hour workday. Then I know that that they take that And so what can that do? That's just my personal I absolutely love that. I feel like you know management or the business has their objectives and you overlook the people that are in them and the people that are giving the majority of their time and their life to you kind of taking advantage of that and I think you know looking at somebody like that like you're you're putting your time here in this workplace with me trying to trying to meet objectives that we have and do something awesome together but you're putting your time with me and I'm not going and uh I'm not going to take advantage of that. Like I appreciate you being here and if you got some something to say, you should you should say it. I care about it. I care about what you think. I think as a manager, um sometimes I wish everyone understood that as as a manager, you can't listen to everyone's ideas and implement them. You have to do what's better for the whole group. Um so it's kind of your job to filter those things. But but that doesn't mean that doesn't but that doesn't mean that doesn't matter. listening to that matter key. [clears throat] Yeah. Letting them feel heard so they want to come up with I love innovation. I love you know my ADD gives me lots of ideas but I want but they're not all good. They're not all [laughter] good. Some of them are better than others. You mentioned that um one of the most important things that you can do as an office manager or one of your goals as the office manager with Bell is to create an environment where patients and employees or whoever walks into the office including us at Elite feels comfortable enough to be vulnerable. Can you expound on that a little bit and maybe talk about that means and how you invite that uh into your office? Yeah, absolutely. So, something I'm always telling them like in consults, you have questions, whatever, you're never bothering me. That's a a phrase we use a lot. You're never bothering us. Whether you've just had a procedure and you're worried about this little tiny question, do I ask? We are big texters. So, we make people feel like nothing is annoying to us. even even if it's sound even if it is something that might be emotionally draining, you know, and we we can vent that to each other, but we never let anyone feel like they're an annoyance. Yeah. Never. Because everyone interprets interprets their procedures, what they've gone through differently. So whether it's a consult coming in and they have a lot of questions more so than others or, you know, I'm sorry I you're never bothering me. I love to do you're not a burden. You're you're here for a reason. We're here for you. So then that as well for for employees like I mean I have a lot of unique health scenarios or or home life scenarios and I um I don't ask them to tell me details but I want to know how I can help them. So I know each of their individual scenarios and you know I'll I'll cater that way whether it's coming in a little later doing some hours from home or I know you have you know see your mom doing this. So knowing that I'm their cheerleader, their supporter, helps them even more feel comfortable and not be like, "Oh, she's going to get mad if I say this or or what have you." Or or patients who come in and have to bring their kids. That's real life, you know, for us moms. We don't always have that. So I have things in my office that I'll go grab or blow up balloons or whatever I have to do that they are never inconveniencing me. Your kids screaming, making a mess, throwing my implants all over the floor. I don't care. You can't break them. like just never feeling like like anything's a burden like I'm just happy you're here. And so that's what I think is also key for any office too is like for so employees or patients or I'm I'm late or this I'm just happy you're I'm so glad you're here. Um so I think that's kind of our been our whole vibe and that just everyone's caught on to Yeah. So we can discuss things amongst ourselves like how do I handle this situation or this feels really hard to me great let's talk through it together as a team but nothing is a burden or annoying this is what we do that is uh very apparent just in our conversation like it is it's got to be an absolute honor to work for you uh maybe maybe we'd like to work for you maybe maybe we'd like to work for you someday or at least work with you may Yeah. [laughter] Well, then you see our group text and that's how we get all of it out and and it's so it's so funny. We are a fun Well, so I told you our values, but we have these defining attributes, too, for Belle. attributes, too, for Belle. Mhm. And I love these because they're so us. They're so I mean, you're sweet and you're complimenting me, but this is this is Belle. I just happen to just click right in. Um, so the defining attributes are authentic, accessible, positive, credible, comforting, but my favorite is good humor. So you can still but you can laugh with them and at them. So um but just those are all me like it just made sense and that's just what makes sets the stage for that type of Good humor is good because underlying it you really care about them. That's what makes it all fun. You have to be able to laugh. You have to be able to laugh and I that is you know something that is very important to me. I am my body may be 42 years old but my brain capped at about 17. So we [laughter] have to have humor in the office for me to want to be there every day. So it's important and our patients enjoy it because it can be even just coming in for posttops or things like that. It's a medical, you know, like that. It's a medical, you know, like I don't want people to dread coming in. I want them to look forward to it even if it's a posttop. I think that's one of the coolest things about this turn from hospital traditional surgery surgery center work to office-based work is you're able to infuse the office dynamics into the surgery and the whole process. It's not like why don't you come to our office and get to know me and get to know my staff and get to feel the attributes and the um the values of Bell Medical and then I'm going to ship you off to some surgery center where you get to feel like super awkward and nervous and you don't know anybody there. Yeah. You get to take care of all of that inside of your office. I think that's the best part about this shift that we're seeing from hospital uh hospital and surgery centerbased surgery back to the office. And we couldn't do that without you guys, right? Like we've got to be there to help. I mean, I feel like it's my home away from home. People tease me because when you come into my office for a consult, you'll know I have one of those desks that raises up and I have a treadmill under it. And so oftent times I'll be at work on my treadmill or in my slippers. Why not? Yeah. I think it's awesome. When I was given directions on how to find you, she's like, "Oh, it's you'll see the ping pong table." That's how you know. That's how you know. We play more ping pong than most in this And like in my office, I'm not ashamed of it at all. In my closet when you walk in is my rollerblades. So, you may find me going through the We have great floors for rollerblading. Um, what I am very pro mental health, so whatever it takes to make your day happy and fun, but it's just like I said, we have a lot of vulnerable conversations in there. And even with our employees just sitting there having because we're so close now, I have to force those girls to go home. I have they come in on their birthdays. They come in on on things and it's just such a huge I mean, it's it's a compliment, but it's really humbling to me that they want to be there because I want to be there. And I think that, you know, that might be part of where that comes from. But I just think as management just being bought into your own company. It really resonates just and just showing that we can get our jobs done and do a great job of it and be happy while we're here. I mean, you can't ask for more than that. Yeah, these and we recently had an ad out for um for an opening that we had and like I mean my inbox it was 100 a day of of people applying just to work with us and several of them were like we're patients or things like that cuz I don't blame them. I mean you come in people comment like you guys have a fun time and that that is my goal then we're doing it right. What about so talking about employees and patients and people that you work with every day. What about from you uh or the office manager and up? You've talked a little bit about um the culture and the way that management works with you. What do you on the other side of that wish that they knew or understood from your perspective as as an office manager, treatment coordinator that maybe they they sometimes don't see as well as they could? Well, what's hard about that is for them to not understand something. It would be hard for them not to understand us because they are checking in so often. Yeah. Um I was telling someone the other day the So those calls that I'm talking about, you know, you're on a a Zoom and there's all the little heads and there's not a single head on there. I'm like that guy. It's like every one of them like, "Oh my gosh, I love her." Or, "I love this." Like it it's just and we're I know that's not normal and can't expect that from every company when you have a mix of personalities and backgrounds and you're in different states, but I am really spoiled. So if there's anything that I can literally just text my boss right now anything I'm thinking like, "Hey, this is going on." And they'll they'll do something immediately to at least hear me out or at least give me better input like, "Okay, I see your point, but a lot of times it's this. It's like, I see your point, but we've tried this and this in the past, and here's why. I'm like, oh, okay. You know, like, I'm new, but I have ideas, but and sometimes they're great, and they're like, yes, implement that whatever you want for your clinic. Like, they just supportive. Yeah. They're almost like really hands off to where I'm like, am I doing everything right? like, you know, it's just so supportive that it's just they just give me that freedom to and trust to know that I'm going to see my team and and know what they need or, you know, as that role, like you said, it's your job to kind of filter out what you implement, what you don't. yeah, I think it's good to hear. I mean, the people that I think the majority of our listeners are dentists and business our listeners are dentists and business owners. Um, I think it's good to hear. They all have office managers. They all have people that work for them. And I think what I'm hearing you say is like that culture means everything for you to be able to have the freedom to push things forward and whether they're implemented or not really isn't the point. It's that you're being heard on the things that you the ideas that you have for sure. and that trust. Well, and and just there's different roles that you can see as like being not more important than others, but I think it's important for managers or or higher up to hear all the voices or find a way to hear all the voices. Reiterate that every voice matters. We want to hear from you how we just want to do better and be better. And like I said, creating that environment where you can just speak up or like I'll be like, I'm just venting or I just need to, you know, put this out there or sometimes it's real things that we'll we'll talk through. just I just think creating that environment just think creating that environment first. first. Yeah. Then help that flourish, you know, from Yeah. I think I've seen that often. I think back to what you said earlier, like it's really just giving people the ability to talk and then, you know, communication whether you are actually going to follow through and implement something or not doesn't doesn't really matter. It's just the fact that you're heard and that you feel like uh the company or your your leadership is here to support you and and make this better. No matter what that means, whether it's it's my ideas or your ideas, doesn't really matter. It affects turnover for sure. So, if you're in an office where you have a lot of turnover, I think it's time to look of turnover, I think it's time to look inward. inward. Yeah. Because I remember my earlier years doing different job, you know, retail and things like that and just my brain just functions in a way that or doesn't function. the only way it does function is like creativity. That is the one side of my brain that works really well. And I had immediately start a job and already have ideas like okay, you could be more efficient at this or this could be more um efficient and just knowing that what I say doesn't matter. It's not going to get to anyone. Nothing's going to change. So, I just won't say anything. And then you just that eats at anything. And then you just that eats at you that you have nowhere to speak. I say it but it doesn't go anywhere, It stays and it you notice it every day like man I'm doing these five extra steps. It could be easier done this way but you know I have no say it's not going to get anywhere. It's funny that you mentioned creativity. I feel like as a business owner, office manager, somebody that's in charge of something and people, I've never felt more creative than I do right never felt more creative than I do right now where you can come up with an idea and do it. it's kind of a it's kind of a fun place to be. I think it's important for all of us to It is really fun I have to have people keep me in check, though, too, cuz it's like, you know, squirrel every day. It's like coming up. But that's just my brain. I'll come home from work and my husband will tell me something and I'll try and immediately like give a solution and he's like, "I was just telling you something." But my brain all day is just like problem solve, problem solve, innovation, problem solve, creativity. And so I'm like, "Oh, okay. I'll shut up." You [laughter] know, I'll just listen. I can imagine that the people at Bell, there's nothing they want more. Um I I feel the same way. So, but I do that because I feel like I can, right? Something will happen from it. You don't feel suppressed. Feel like You don't feel suppressed. Feel like they're uh open to hearing what you have to say. Yeah, it's important. Tell me about how long has Elite been working with Belle? I mean, it's been at least a year. Yeah, I think I won't say it's about a Well, because we added So, we started um doing lipo and fat transfers and we specialized in that. We um that was our thing and then they added the GLP1s, the injection, similuters, epatide stuff. And we get started getting patients in that were like, I've lost 100 pounds. I've got all this skin and lipo didn't make sense for them. And so we just started adding on these surgical options. And then it just again because of that culture, our patients that come to us for lipo and for the GLP ones and just were in the family and we started adding these surgical procedures, they just naturally were just on board with us. They were they were in. And so we boomed a lot faster than we expected. And so you have to hurry up and figure things out. Like anesthesia is not easy to find. I don't know if you know this that you guys are like nationwide. But it's u it's something that's hard to find for how we're looking for it, right? Yeah. Office space based anesthesia specifically is is very hard to find. And then finding people that are cool, that's a whole other story. Plus that. Yeah. So we Yeah. So we started just booming with surgeries in our our big office in Draper and then that even got too busy. So I was like, "Hey, could I get some surgeons up here?" And B and they trusted me enough to to add that in our office, too. and we have our other states that do it too. And so, um, it was just so great to already have a team in place that was just so easy to work with. I was just given the details. So, when I came on as the, uh, office manager and so we're adding these surgeries and they're like, "All right, call Elite. Call it. Here's what you do." And it was so easy. I learned the hard way how good we have it with Elite. So, don't get me wrong, I already knew you guys were amazing. Knew it. Okay. So, we got into this moment in life where our big clinic was getting really busy with surgeries and we were kind of hogging that office was kind of hogging your availability, your providers. Okay. So, then here's Bountiful up here. I'm trying to get crumbs wherever I can get it. And I knew we had certain dates to do surgery, all these certain dates. And I'm like, "Okay, [sighs and gasps] and and your scheduler was like, I can do this far out, you know, because she's giving the other offices their time to reserve." And I'm like, I had this weird window of time where I wasn't assured, but I had surgeons ready to do surgery. So, I'm like, "Okay, okay, I'm going to have to call someone else. I'm going to have to find a backup So, I find this other company to have them come on. So, I start reaching out to them and quickly realize that because I'm just trying to communicate with them in a way that I've been used to working with you guys. Just so easy. Just so easy. Yeah. Like, no big deal. So easy to work with. texting just so easy like I said like you guys were someone in the office like hey what about this or hey what about this and then um so I try and do that with them and then I quickly and then some little change happened in the calendar and so then they call me and I get this whole sap so story and this like guilt that I'm doing all these things horribly wrong and I'm like whoa you know I oh they they made me feel you feel oh they they made me feel you feel guilty yes I felt guilty and here's how this is how it needs to be done and it's because of this and our and we just don't have enough providers to make this, this, and this. And and I'm like, whoa, I'm so sorry. I just thought this is how you did the anesthesia, right? New to being a medical. Yeah. I'm just trying to get this patient asleep. And um so I'm like, okay, okay, I understand. I get it. And so I was like, I'll just figure you out if I need you again. Well, there was this one date on the calendar that I'd kind of already had you guys booked, but long story short, I just had to utilize them. I had utilize them to to utilize them. I had utilize them to to just brush it off, get it over with. Yeah. Cut ties. But I had committed to a day and it had to be so many hours and it had to be so it just they put a minimum on the number of hours that you had to do. They would not cut. It had to be this many hours. So I put an employee on that day. Yeah. So I'm like fine. Okay. We'll just make this work. So the one patient I had scheduled that day, I hadn't even thought about it. She had treated with us before. She was coming to do another procedure. So she hears from the other company the night before to check in like you guys do too. And she calls me. She's like, "Who the heck is this company?" And I'm like, "What?" She's like, "Where's my, you know, my boys at?" Yeah. Kyle or something. She was like, "Where? I wanted Kyle." And I'm like, "Oh, about that. This is my fault." You know, I just kind of told her, "I dug this hole. I, you know, you're going to be okay. You're still going to be in good hands." Assured her, hoping at the same time. All was well. So, they come and the anesthesiologist was super great. But the boss comes too because it's a first time with us. So the boss comes and I'm not in as early as when they have procedure days. I'm not in as early as those girls are. not in as early as those girls are. Yeah. And so my one girl is texting with me and long story short, the owner had come in and was so kind, but he got her in and was so kind, but he got her number. He gets her number and she was trying to give him our office number. give him our office number. Yeah. And she's like, "Oh, they're they're saying we need to get these for anesthesia and that we should have these." And oh, by the way, he's so nice and helpful. He offered me his number for And I'm like, "I bet he did, Brooke. I bet he offered you his number. She's like, "Oh, no. He just wanted to help." I tried giving him Belle's number, but he just said that it should be. So, I saw I saw the text. Yes. [clears throat and snorts] So, I'm like, "What is happening?" [laughter] So, the ancesiologist later that day, like when the cases were over, I just told him I appreciate him. He was really great. And he's like, "Well, I'm just filling in right there." And I said, "Oh, you're looking for a job, call Elite. [laughter] Go to Elite. You want a great company to work for? Call a great company to work for? Call Elite." and he kind of was like caught off guard, but he was he was a nice guy. So, I hope he calls you, but he hasn't called us yet, but he may be embarrassed by his boss. So, then I hear back from them, you know, so I don't say anything. Just let it go. It's done. You know, patients happy. Good surgery is fine. Brush it off. Well, they write me back like a week later and they're like, "Oh, we're just checking in to see, you know, if you had any other procedures you're wanting for us or how everything went." I'm like, "Thank you. we won't be needing you guys anymore after your boss got my employees anymore after your boss got my employees number. That's it. [laughter] And then like and so that was like before I came into work, I would responded on on our phone. From my phone. And then next thing I know, he's calling the office. The said boss is calling the office. Oh. And he did not sound happy. And my assistant was like, "Yeah, she's not in yet." And he's like, "Can I get her personal number?" I'm like, "This is the problem we had in the first place. You're not getting my no more. You don't ask for women's personal numbers." And uh she's like, "No, you can call back." Whatever. He's like, "I will whatever." So, he calls a few times, but and I wasn't accusing anyone of anything. That's just not cool. That's just not cool or professional. Elite would never. Meanwhile, I'm personally texting with your scheduleuler cuz we're best friends. But anyways, so I learned the hard way not to do that again. So, never. Tell me like like the scheduling process like what like what is it that makes it good? like what is it that working with elite makes even just so I'm on the phone with your scheduler here on the way here and she's just confirming some dates with me just whether it's patient pay office pay and it's just that it's just hey what about this what about this or I'll just text in what about this date because for me just I have to I feel like I'm hurting blind and deaf cats because I'm dealing the hardest cats to hurt yeah anything I I'm dealing with multiple surgeons multiple schedules preferences is patient needs, different offices, all that. I can't schedule them without anesthesia. without anesthesia. Mhm. But you guys need us scheduled, you know, in order to book to make your schedule go smoothly. So, um, but she'll always give us whatever we need. I'll tell her in advance, you know, here's some days that I'm looking at, like I have a surgeon available. And I always get the time I need to like get those figured out or she'll call and check in. Did you fill this? Did you not? Or I might last minute be like, oh my gosh, something came up. Do you have anything available? Yeah, sure. We got someone for this or just these hours. Great. I'll just book this the surgery between those hours. Like just so easy to where when I tried it with that other company, they're like, "What are you doing?" You know, like what is this? Too much flexibility. I'm like, "Sorry." Like I thought this was normal. I thought you were cool. But um but I still I understand that for you guys like I'm trying to be respectful of your schedules. But then we have patients that change things or they don't get the right, you know, approval for their So, I'm constantly changing on my end, but I've never ever been met with like seriously, you know, like never has been a vibe where I've been an inconvenience. It's always like, what can I do for you? that's how I've always been responded I think we've always viewed this or understood. I mean, I think it made a big difference that like for the first years of this of this company, like me and our co-founder Mike, like we were in the office with you. We understood what that meant to have this schedule that varied. We did the schedule ourselves. And so now to I guess teach other people that and hire other schedulers and have them understand what the dynamic is in an office like yours. It's just a unique place. Like it's so variable. Yeah. And for us to be able to to meet that I think is what makes Elite unique. Plus the people are good. Well, absolutely. Well, I even try and do that too. Uh similar in our office like when people have to cancel a consult or something comes up with their surgery. It it is never met with like seriously or like that's going to be a certain things do have fees but like for a consultation our consultations are free. Yeah. If you need to cancel, no big deal. like this is real life. I get it. I'm not going to like fight you to come in. When you want to come in, you'll come in. So anyways, on on my side, I mean, I we understand real life and I feel like patients really appreciate that and and they've returned for it as because would you want to go back to a place that's like, oh, you know, you couldn't make it in because you had this happen at work. Well, we're going to charge you a $150 fee. Yeah. And then um yeah, you're going to call back and reschedule. No, you're not. So, I feel like you guys are the same. You I feel like you guys are the same. You just just got to take care of people. just got to take care of people. Yeah, I think that's the difference. Just do the best you can. You know, life's going to happen. So, life's going to happen. So, yeah. yeah. Um, if I remember, right, I you guys didn't used to do anesthesia in the office. Like you were doing procedures but not or maybe you're doing them under like some basic moderate sedation or Just biting the stick. Yeah. Biting the stick. Yeah. Um, no. Well, like I said, we we started doing all lipo and we did awake lipo and people handed it fine. But I I love that we have the option now, which we're utilizing a lot more having the anesthesia option for lipo for those patients who just who just You know, absolutely we can do it awake, but we have a lot of patients that just want it and it's great. just rather sleep. But patients come in and they feel confident that we have not only do we have a lot of options procedure wise like whether it's less invasive to more surgically related to then have more options for um pain management whether they go to sleep through anesthesia or we have different types of medications we we just we hear them out some people be like oh I don't like this medication it makes me sick or I don't want to do this medication same thing with when you guys come in for the surgeries the from personal experience experience too. I'm a very nauseous person. My body just loves I could breathe wrong and it just I'll get nauseous and so that's something we talked about before my my surgery and so then they were able to put something in there that helped me with that. So just little things like that. It wasn't just like oh I'm going to put you to sleep. um and just educating me even, you know, working in the environment I work in to to feel educated and comfortable that that they know what they're doing and they just want me to be comfortable and and patients come in. I mean, I think for dental as well, no matter what it is, it's high anxiety. Like it's it can be stressful no matter how big or small. One thing like I think you're we're traditionally used to getting anesthesia and surgery in a hospital or in a surgery center and more and more practices like Bell are starting to move procedures into the are starting to move procedures into the office and so it's just kind of a I think we're in a place right now um where patients aren't used to it and so having that option for them is just something new to get used to. But overall to do it without anesthesia also feels weird. Right. Yeah. They they love that they have the option and we talk through that and what that what the you know would look like for their procedure um day and how that would look. And I just I just it makes me more confident in what I do giving them that option rather than trying to talk them through. Okay, we're going to have to do it awake which is great too. People do all the time but I just love having the options for them. You are obviously doing a really good job of it. I can tell just by talking to you. I've been in Bell. I've talked to our providers like I've talked to Kristy about it. Um it's a it's a really cool culture and company that you guys are building and it's been an absolute pleasure working with you guys. And I hope we get to keep doing it for a long long long time. Can't wait till we have our our office for you. Your own your own office. Yeah. And we should do this again soon. We should [clears throat] do this again in like a year and talk about what the change has been. Where are you now? How it started? Where it's going. Yeah. Thanks so much for coming in. It's been awesome to chat [clears throat] with you. with you. Anytime. --- # From Alaska to All-on-X: Dr. Barron on Dentistry, Sedation, and the Human Side of Smiles URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/podcast/dr-barron-alaska-to-all-on-x Section: Podcast Episode 3: From Alaska to All-on-X: Dr. Barron on Dentistry, Sedation, and the Human Side of Smiles Guest: Dr. Barron Published 2025-10-07 · 50 min Dr. Barron of Brilliant Smiles recounts his journey from a remote Alaskan dental practice to leading advanced implant and sedation care in Seattle — burnout, technology's role, and the emotional impact of restorative dentistry. Welcome back to the Roots podcast presented by Lead Anesthesia. We have Dr. Baron with us today from Brill Brilliant Smiles and uh we're super excited to have him and excited. One of my favorite offices, too. Yeah, man. Yeah, we we'll keep it. I don't know what I don't know how much to bring into this conversation yet. So, bring as much into it as you want. Shoot. Bring it all. You don't want all of it. Dr. Baron, how long have you been working with Elite Anesthesia? I don't know. Probably almost three. Two years for sure. Yeah, two years, man. Yeah. You were one of the originals, I was going to Yeah, I know. It didn't count for much, but how long have you guys been here? Just about two years. About the same. Just about two years. About the same. Yeah. I remember the day you walked in my I remember the day you walked in my office. office. Oh, yeah. Like real real sheepish looking. It's not the way you walk in now. Your shoulders are chest is puffed out. I'm raising your chest is puffed out. I'm raising your feet. No, you walked in. You're like, "Hey, you know, could you give us a chance? We're here in town and and I, you know, thought this poor fella. I'm I I'm going to try and help. Yeah. I'm going to give him a shot and look out. The best decision of your life. That's what you're reflecting on now. You're like, man, it's the best decision I ever made. I'm moderately beneficial. That's I don't know. Best decision describes it. But yeah, your staff says so. Your staff's like, dude, he's like a changed man. Ever since he's been working with you, your leadership and his life has been That's true. finally has a a true north to follow. It's been quite the influence role It's been quite the influence role model. That's awesome. Oh, that's great. And how long you been in Seattle? That's You're not from Seattle. From Alabama. No, I think I've been here for Are you from Alabama? I am. Heck yeah. Oh, dude. I didn't even know that. I know. It makes you a little uneasy, doesn't it? It does. I know. Yeah. It's okay, though. I grew up in New Jersey first, so Okay. So, yeah. So, I'm very, very diverse. Very, very cultured. New Jersey and Alabama. So yeah, here I think 16 or Yeah, 16 17 years now. Roll Tide. Well, I mean I went to Alabama for dental school, but I went to Auburn for my undergrad. So I'm war eagle. war eagle. Yeah. Is that a thing? Do they let people do Is that a thing? Do they let people do that? Uh yeah, only for dental though. Did you go to Auburn for dental school? No, Auburn doesn't have a dental school. So I did a um I did an engineering degree at Auburn and then went on to Alabama to get my doctorate. So, So, you wait, you went to dental school at Alabama. But it's different. So, Alabama has like the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and that's like the cool place. And then there's the University of Alabama at Birmingham which is in the city of Birmingham and that's where all the medical dental everything is and that is the uncool place. So, it's not nearly as fun as Tuscaloosa would have been. So, it's not like I Football is not in Birmingham. No. No. No. Yeah. I got it. So, okay. So, then graduated dental school. Did you do a fellowship or did you go No, you know what I did? I I took a job on the telephone. Uh it was like um it was this like March of my last year dental school and I'm like I don't know what I'm going to do. And I don't know where I saw the back of like a we have this um journal American Dental Association Jada Magazine. There's like a ad in the back of it. It was like looking in the back of a boy's life or something. There's a little ad for like to work in Alaska and and so I was like okay. So, I called it and um I called this guy and he sounded pretty cool. He asked me for my driver's license and my social security number, which I thought was weird. And you gave it to him. I gave it to him. I didn't care at that. It was a different world back then. More trust. And he called me back um he called me back in about 4 hours later and he's like, "Well," he's like, "You don't have a criminal background. Um and there are no felonies on your record perform." He's like, "So, you're a candidate to work in normal, Alaska." And so I I told him I said, "Look, man, I don't know what it's like there, but I want to do something different, so I'll come for a year." And I promised him a year. And I ended up staying for like six. Oh, snap. You were there for six years. Six years. Yeah. Yeah. So you got some cool stories. Nah, really baseline stuff like Yeah. Bear stuff, moose stuff, fishing stuff. Baseline Alaska stuff, airplane stuff. You fly? No. No. Well, I flew for I flew No, I I I I wouldn't say I fly, but we um flew around these tiny airplanes and um landed in these native villages and made these these like bush clinics and stayed for 9 days straight and like that was the weird part. Like there's sometimes the plumbing would freeze for like 3 months of the year. months of the year. Oh. So you're like crapping in a bucket for 9 days. Like that's your bathroom. Oh man, it was really wild. And and it's a burnout thing though. Um I just one really cool place and there's these two islands in the bearing straight. There's big dime little dimede and the ice freezes between them and um so you uh you land the airplanes on the ice there and uh that was one of my villages and there weren't that many people there so I felt like I could control it. Yeah. man, I went out there one year and I was like, work work. And I was like, man, all these kids, pull them out of school and do all their work and everything and they got no cavities and I'm like, man, when I come back next year, it's like I'm going to go crabbing and this and that and that. And I came back the next year and it was like I was never even year and it was like I was never even there. Oh, snap. Yeah. So, it was really it was just not taking care of themselves at Well, I mean, it's a deeper conversation, but what did it um was it Reagan who said like the scariest thing you could ever hear is uh I'm from the government. I'm here to help. So, yeah, they their their contribution to um yeah, it's it's it's not been great up there. So, Anyway, but yeah, so it's cool. So, yeah, from from there and I kind of got bored of the work. I was just doing a lot of simple stuff and decided I wanted to come out and start working on my career and that's when I came out started training did my IV certification actually in uh New Jersey again. There's some charity hospital in West Patterson and so did my implant training in in Utah actually in Heber Heber City. I did a lot of my implant training there. Who with white caps? Yeah. Did you work with I think Mitch Duckworth was doing sedation with them at that time. I might have cuz I've gone there and I've done like uh we were required to do like a um an every threeear brushup and I think I went Yeah. Was he the guy at I think I went Yeah. Was he the guy at Alominda? Yeah, he was pretty good. Yeah. Um yeah, he runs a good program. There's two He's a dental anesthesiologist. There's a couple of them. I was I was pretty impressed with that guy. I thought he ran a good program. He was the guy who um taught me how to bag someone and gave me confidence that I could bag a patient. It was Yeah, it was pretty good. But but yeah, and so then I just kind of left Alaska, went to South Florida cuz I wanted to fish and didn't love South Florida, so came to West Coast and and here I am. So did uh did you buy a practice here? Did you start one? I did. No, I I um I bought a it's a smaller four chair practice and it was actually over here on 112 and um I just got to the end of that lease and it was too small. I just grew out of it so I built out a space. Um and in that practice were you doing what were you offering? Were you doing general practice and uh all No, no, just I was placing implants and doing uh my own sedation and just a lot of cosmetic work and stuff. Um it's it's really interesting right now and I haven't quite figured it out. It's like all of these people just sort of jump into all X like these these guys just straight out of dental school. I'm like you it's just maybe it's the right way to do it. I don't know. I I sort of organically placed hundreds and hundreds and maybe thousands of implants before I did an all-inx case. And when I did my first allex cases, I was freehanding And so and and now with the, you know, the digital workflow, everything is kind the digital workflow, everything is kind of guided. Everything's guided. Everything's a little bit easier. And I think that's how guys jump right into it. But well, I had sort of the old school introduction. I I placed before I did my first full arch, I probably have done one or 2,000 implants. And so yeah, good good foundation. good good foundation. Yeah. Awesome. And what kind of practice do you run? It's kind of everything. Yeah. When I met you guys or before you, I was doing all my own sedation. And um I feel like I have a very appropriate view of like what I should be doing when I sedate people, you know? I So I'm permitted, right? What is it? the permit's called uh um parental um conscious sedation like key word being conscious right and so I I think people overdo that a lot and um but it gave me a good basis and so um so I think police the like when you're in for instance I'm always watching your back making sure you're doing everything right on the up and up you know I don't want you I don't want you supervision yeah yeah it was sometimes a little mentorship too Yeah. Yeah. Things in life. Yeah. Things in life. Yeah. Whichever one's more relevant. But yeah, but it's it's kind of funny cuz early on I started doing all of my own and the most frustrating of times, right? Cuz you're you're kind of even slower when you're I mean, the more you do this, the the faster you get, the less stress you have cuz you've done something a hundred times, thousand times, like it gets easier. Um, but yeah, it's a huge handful to go in and take on the burden of, you know, taking responsibility for the medical history, getting them sedated, getting them properly sedated where they're not too deep, but they're sedated enough to be comfortable, and then managing your procedure and maintaining that sedation level. It's just like, yeah, it's madness. So, yeah, it you guys are a godsend as like elite anesthesia. And sometimes I wish you were around for the deliveries. Yeah. like the end thing. Um because it's it's quite satisfying in the respect that for me and um dentistry has its problems. It's it's kind of a high stress and it's it's there's a lot of hats to wear and things, right? And it's it's sometimes not the funnest career, but now you have this opportunity to give back to somebody what they no longer have. And you know, as as it becomes a problem as we age and as we age, um social settings, family dinners, um those kind of things become very important to you. And if you have to do it with a denture with no teeth, it's it certainly dims the light, right? it's it certainly dims the light, right? Yeah. Yeah. So, well, and you get that stigma placed on you immediately, too. Of course. 100%. Oh, you know, difficult place to be. the guys I've had who've come in and who struggled to pay for the surgery, but then they come back and oh man, I got a better job or or oh man, you know, I when I go out and I bid things. There was a cool story out of Utah where a guy was talking about he was just grateful to be to have somebody agree to work with him to where he had that intervention done, you know, got basically a functional smile back and like you said, the stigma's gone and um he's sort of bidding jobs for what he's really worth at that point. And so it just plays into this whole self-esteem. And so if you guys are around and like I always want you guys to see the final product cuz it's just freaking stunning. And and you see how hard I work. Yeah, for sure. Right. Imagine me trying to manage that Right. Imagine me trying to manage that sedation. How long would I be there, dude? I know. I' I'd be there. It it it'd be I' I'd be there. It it it'd be impossible. You know what's crazy? Uh, I remember this study came out about Ozimpic and it was talking about like how much Ompic would um increase people's salary just because they would be more valued as somebody that wasn't as obese. They would be looked upon differently and so on and so forth. and they they rolled out this case study and it was like man the the numbers were astronomical like uh just across the board and you've got to believe it's kind of the same concept for people's dentition even yeah probably more I maybe I'm just biased but yeah I think for sure more I mean I don't know it it my heart really goes out to the people yeah who need that and and so it's really cool and and I keep talking about I keep saying you guys access to care and like um there's lots of us who couldn't do what we do unless we had somebody in there managing that sedation and then coming back into like my opinions on everything and I never really hide them like if it's not me and really hide them like if it's not me and you. Then it's going to be this teamed effort between Oh man, this is I'm getting into dirty stuff here. like it's this team effort between like a prostadonist and oral surgeon, which how it was traditionally done a long time ago. And um it just gets it gets harder and you got one guy planning the implant placement and then another guy trying to manage the prosthetic rebuild. when if one guy's planning the implant placement and doing the prosthetic rebuild if an implant need the idea that an implant needs to be tweaked goes in be before the implant ends up in a bone instead of looking at it after and you're like oh what do I do with this and what do I do with this and um yeah but without you guys you're saying that one person doing it brings a lot more cohesiveness to the I think so I think so a lot of people would agree with me a lot of people would say I don't even have the right to do what I do and that's fine I'll I'll fight them I think that's an old way of thinking. Yeah. But it's prevalent. I mean, but hasn't gone away, but it's Yeah. Yeah. You don't want to get me going. I think sticking to the point of is is you guys make it possible like for me to do what I do for these people and what I'm doing with these people, I think, is is meaningful and and that's what I that's what I really like. Yeah. But going back to it, I'd be selling bait on the end of a pier somewhere. If if I had to just like do crowns and fillings, I'd just be like, "Okay, that's enough of this." You know, it's interesting, man. Uh we talk about you know um what it takes away and removes from somebody when they don't have the confidence of their dentistician. And it always makes me reflect. I mean the best stories and the best laughs, the best memories I have in my life are always around the kitchen table. Like they're always around some aspect of food and drinks and holidays and so on and so forth, man. And it's crazy when we talk to these patients, that's what's been removed from their life the most. They've been sheltered away from that. And often that's what makes it so emotional. Like when when they wake up and you show them their new smile, like those tears, I don't even see the final delivery all the time, but I see that initial reaction and it's powerful, right? Because like I can't imagine not having those memories. Well, and it's just um you don't even have to see their reaction like like some some of the pe it's d it's dramatic. Yeah. Some people show up with with a pretty pretty terrible condition and then by the end of our day, you know, when we look at what we get there and it's just Yeah, it's awesome. And it is really wild if you really connected the dots on all of this. Um a lot of what you guys do wouldn't even be possible without sort of digital workflows. you know, and because digital workflows have sort of when everything was analog, the the um it was so much more cumbersome. Just to get people to the range of provider that can do it. Yeah. They're like, well, it's just uh it's it wasn't even the range of a provider, too. Uh Sam Almanfrey did a really cool thing. He was doing a podcast and and I try and remember this all the time because things can be super frustrating, but he talks about a lot of super smart people who are not successful and and he talks and he goes on to talk about on to talk about um one of the you know one of sort sort of the key performance indicators on whether you're going to be success or not is your tolerance for stress, your tolerance to overcome adversity. A lot of people are really smart and start and they hit the first wall and it stops them, right? They're the guys who will climb that wall and climb the next, climb the next. Doing this in a in sort of an analog standpoint was like like stying a lot of really smart people and and so now you have digital workflow and so now a lot of people it's just much more predictable and controllable and I mean but even at that there's still a lot of crap. I've never thought about that, but I, you know, I've always just attributed kind of our growth over time. I mean, outside of us opening in new locations inside of the our own areas that we're in, um, the expansion that we see, um, just to more more dentists doing the procedures, more dentists doing surgery in general, but I actually haven't thought about the workflows behind what actually contributes to that being possible. Well, it's it kind of blows your mind too because going back to the technology like you said and then the technology like you said and then what you know what what was sort of the the pre to a lot of this you know what photoggramometry like you know I it I don't know for sure but I know it's the same kind of uh trigonometry that the GPS systems use right and so um having like global positioning systems and like and like algorithms and software out of that be applied to you angular photographs and it's it's just it's just really wild how we landed where we were but just a good point. How old are you? old are you? 35. Yeah. Maybe you know it or maybe you don't know it but the corporate these corporate entities that perform these cases they're new. You know they're 20 years old. You know tops and we work with we work with them. Yeah. That's why I hate them just a little bit. That's why I hate you just a little But I don't know why you do that to people, but you know, you're contributing. You know, we talk about contributions and if that's what you want to do, then Well, it's it's what got us started into it, honestly. And my my opinions about have changed over time. It's not grew into the hand that feeds you, man. Don't don't knock that pinky off, man. You're the hand that feeds us now. Yeah, for sure. We've we've been down that road before, but I Yeah. Whole different discussion. Yeah. And that's a like kind of for you guys like what I know you do primarily all on like that's probably got to be the main stay, but what other kind of stuff do you get called? Every once in a while I'll call you for like a wisdom toothcase or something, but um to be honest with you, it's this is the most surprising part about this journey that we've been on. You know, we started I started doing dental in 2018, so it's been sevenish years. Elite was founded in 2020. Um we were very All onx f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f f focused for the first couple of years um in that corporate allx world. Uh and as we've expanded and gotten more into the general dentist office, the range of of cases that we sedate people for has expanded dramatically. Really? Yeah. I mean, you'd be shocked at the number of cleanings we put to sleep, amount of root canals, the number of single implants. I mean, absolutely anything. And I think just the, like you've mentioned, the expansion of care has kind of opened eyes to being able to deliver procedures in the way that the patient wants. If they don't want to be awake for cases, they don't have to be. Yeah. Yeah. I've done it. It's a bad Yeah. Yeah. I've done it. It's a bad idea, you know. I think I think just the fact that it's an option has changed everything. I remember growing up, man, like it's interesting how basketball has changed today. Um, everybody says basketball is now kind of like this rich man sport where like you have to get training and there's these camps and there's these clubs and you know all these things you go to and you have to learn. Um, and in my day there was just a black top, right? Like there was one option, man. If you want to get better, you go outside and you and that was it. And I think dentistry was kind of the same way. Like, you know, I told my mom, I was like, "Man, if everybody was tough as you, I I wouldn't have a job." And it was just because she grew up in that day and age where like she didn't have a choice. Like she had to get her mind right. That no matter what the case was, whether it was root canal, a crown, a filling, tin feelings, like she was going to get local and that was it. And she's she conditioned herself to that. And and that's and that's what it is. But I think now that we have more options, it's cool that people can choose and we're getting into general dentistry more. I I think that's probably one of the largest sectors of of our growth now is people saying, "Oh, man." I remember I flew into Utah and it blew my mind. It was a 18-year-old that was like, "Put me to sleep for a deep cleaning." And I was like, "What? That's crazy." I thought it was crazy, too. But for him, he said, "Dude, I'm I just don't like it." like like and he had like tattoos so like I was like oh snap but for this it was a fear factor and he was like why wouldn't I choose it if it's available and I was like you know what I guess you're right you guys should get into like some sort of hypnotherapy like that you know for people like who do things like that and when you sedate them you'd be like stop being a millennial be tough when you wake up you know you know when Wake up. You're Man, who am I, right? Who am I to judge, man? I mean, oh, I don't know. Yeah, I know. I am. I I wish I felt that way. I was telling them earlier, I had a dentist that we've worked with for years text me 3 days ago. Said, "Hey, man. I need need to talk to you guys." And I was like, "Oh, no. I thought like a case went bad or something." went bad or something." Yeah. So, I called him and he's like, "Hey, I'm getting a root canal done next week. I'm just wondering if you'll if you'll put me to sleep for it." Wow. put me to sleep for it." Wow. Wa, Wa, dude. He's like, I I've needed it for a while and I'm just I just don't want to do it. Wow. That's impressive. Happy to help. I mean, I guess it's hard for me not to, but I'm not going to. I mean, it's it's kind of crazy. I mean, you see you see like, you know, a lot of changes just in the space as far as as you know, tattoo anesthesia is a thing. You know what I'm saying? That would be awesome. Have you guys ever done that? Yeah. Mhm. No way. Really? Yeah, we have. Yeah, we have. Wow. That's that's growing. But it's crazy because like some people would say the most valuable thing in life is time. And whether it's tattoos or dentistry, like if you were going to do if you were going to do 25 crowns on a person, how many sessions would you break that into if you were just doing break that into if you were just doing local? Oh, yeah. Probably definitely two. Yeah. I don't I I could do it one. I wouldn't want to do it in one. they probably wouldn't want to do one, but I've done 25 crowns on a patient under general anesthesia in like, you know, six, seven anesthesia in like, you know, six, seven hours, and they wake up and they're just like, "Oh my goodness, thank goodness this is done." Right. So, like like a time factor. I It's It's crazy. My mom was a single mom growing up and one of the hardest things to come by was time off. Like she just couldn't get time off, man. She had me and I was like basically three people, you know? So when she had to get things done, she had to cluster it. And I see that so much like in a patient population. Well, you do make and like it's a fair point to make in the sense that your whoever you're working with can move so much faster when you're there versus by much faster when you're there versus by themselves and and dentistry is really weird. And I don't know how it happens like this, but for whatever reason, it's compartment compartmentalized and like it's like one thing at a time. it's like one thing at a time. Yeah. Right. It's like you need a crown. Okay, come get a crown. It's like, okay, you need an implant, come get an implant. You need a, you know, and I've kind of even in my patient population, I try and give them like the the one day to done option where they come in, if they need their implant or their root canal, I do it all. Um, not everybody needs to be sedated for that. But just from a mindset standpoint, you're you're right, the time off and and all that all that matters, man. I mean, you know, the one thing that isn't happening is like things aren't getting cheaper. like it's harder to get times off time off. It's harder to make up missed time. Um, so you know, when we do stuff for general dentistry, I've done crowns, fillings, a root canal, and a deep cleaning because they're already asleep and might as well get it done during this one visit. And when they wake up, they don't have to come back. Well, it's just true. And it's just the mental too for them like oh man I got to go get and then they go and like let's say they get a crown done and biology is biology. Maybe there's some variant. Maybe they're hard to get numb. Maybe they don't get totally numb and maybe it's miserable for them. and maybe it's miserable for them. Yeah. Bad experience. Yeah. And then come back or if they do they got to like oh god I got to get the implant. I got to get this and that. And so yeah it doesn't matter when you when they're going to be sedated and asleep. It's going to be a great experience no matter what. Yeah. You know, it's interesting too. Like I think one of the things that Dr. Baron does do is like he stays in touch with all the latest. So he'll text me and he'll like, "Hey man, like this person was doing their own sedation and this happened or this such and such did you hear about this?" And it's kind of crazy how common some of these stories are where um like just things happen. They can kind of happen fast to practices that have been doing kind of their own thing for x amount of time. Um, I know you've you've kind of just, you know, it it's what bothers me that what doesn't bother me, but it doesn't matter doesn't matter how perfect your due diligence is. Like I always tell patients, they ask me, you know, about implants and failures and this and that. And it's just like I tell them, I said this would all be awesome if it wasn't for biology, right? We're at the mercy of biology all the time. And there are there are identifiable diagnosed or diagnosible conditions and there are underlying unidentifiable undiagnosible conditions and man if you encounter that and and you're not equipped or prepared and and you're not equipped or prepared that yeah that goes really that goes really bad. Yeah. Which is really comfortable like and and the thing I really like is where we do it here like you know um I wouldn't do this here like you know um I wouldn't do this in Ellensburg or Yakima. It's a hard choice to try and do it there because your response time is so much longer and so your responsibility to manage the patient all the way through a crisis is an emergency response. You're saying you don't have the resources out there you don't have the resources out there to No. And and I mean it for us and we've called a couple of times not for sedated patients but people walking up to the front desk in chest pain or something and those guys are man they're amazing. They're at my door in two and a half minutes you know just driving around waiting for just driving around waiting for something. But yeah, and so when you look at it, you know, it's it's always funny. Everybody always people love to point the finger at at medical practitioners. Every time something isn't perfect, it's you know, there's some sort of malpractice or something happened. And um the the unfortunate truth of it is, in my opinion, is is like we just we endure that responsibility and that risk. And like that's why I really like having sort of the team approach, having anesthesia there, having properly trained assistants and and even like, you know, I think to a certain degree properly trained doctors, you know, but it's being prepared for the unexpected, too. Like I How many times do patients lie to us? Oh, yeah. Absolutely. All the time. Oh, are you kidding? Yeah, I know. Yeah. Like me and you banter about it all the time and and it's crazy, man. And I think if patients were always completely honest about everything they're doing, everything they're they're taking, every every extracurricular activity, then it would be so much easier for any practitioner to care for them. But I think the reality of today is that's not that's that's that's that's not the norm. And people feel ashamed for some reason. Feel ashamed. Yeah, man. Like there's a stigma. Um think we're there to get them in trouble or something. Yeah. They think you're going to That's me 100%. Yeah, right. I mean, I'm there to judge and shame you. Even when I walk in like a hygiene room, if you had flossed your teeth, don't lie to me. Oh man, I'll be like you. I'll puff my chest out. I'll stand a little taller and be like, "Really? No flossing? My teeth bleed when I get floss." Oh, man. But I think that's that is the biggest thing. And I mean, we even encounter it a lot as as anesthesia providers, man. Like, you know, something doesn't look right. And you know, how do you manage that situation? It's it's it's definitely a part of the craft and I know, you know, I handpicked my team here in Seattle and one of the things that I wanted was a lot of experience. I wanted a lot of exposure to kind of what's happening in the real world cuz that's what you encounter all the time in these outpatient settings. Yeah, it's it's definitely a part of it. Um and like goes back to like myself and having my own experience sitting on patients. It's terrifying. And and it's funny because you I'm always asking you questions when we're in there, right? I'm like, James, what what is that? What's going on there? He is super attuned to like the pock He is super attuned to like the pock and well, but a lot of times it's not anything, but when you know I this is kind of funny. This is embarrassing to admit, but I've invented my own realities. like I've decided that versed um you know contributes to like cardiac arhythmias and it's probably just cuz my monitor is you know the patient moves around a lot or something. I'm like oh what's that? What's that? And What's that? And Right. Yeah. It's really hard and and and having to um you have to be overly cautious when you're there by yourself and it's just Yeah. No. And then I think what we're landing in on is just what's appropriate and what's not appropriate, you know, for, you know, ethical behavior and how should we be taking care of our should we be taking care of our patients. Yeah. It's just um no one can argue that it's as safe um no one can argue that it's as safe with I mean my sedation training was like probably 120 hours over the course of like 3 weeks, you know. What was your sedation weeks, you know. What was your sedation training? Super intense, man. And I mean I did 5 years in ICU and then three years in anesthesia. So I mean it's so I mean you just can't argue like if it were me or my family what what would I want? Would I want a single practitioner doing the anesthesia and the procedure or would I want a team of people you know and it's just you called me this weekend. What did we do this weekend? I don't You were like hey will you uh do the sedation for my daughter? Oh yeah. And I was like hey man that's always a badge of honor when like there's there's no way Yeah. No way would I sedate my daughter and do that surgery. It's crazy. I probably shouldn't even be doing the surgery, but we'll see. What uh what do you like in terms of deciding whether or not you're going to do your own versus work with somebody like us? So, since I've been working with you guys, so I a lot of times I did a lot of my own IV stuff. And now, um, about the only thing I'll do is oral conscious sedation, which is like a, you know, um, two staggered doses of of an oral med like Hion, maybe Valium if it's a longer procedure, but that's all I want to mess with, you know, because because I consider that super safe. Um, if it's not super safe, you know, I I think, you know, from management of complications, if I had to bag a patient for 3 minutes until paramedics got there, I'm very comfortable doing that. The probability of having to bag a patient for giving him houseion is pretty low. It's possible. It's pretty dang low. So, I just and then I um if I'm doing like a veneer case or or an arch of crowns or something like that, um I'll just do some oral sedative and that's it. and and I have kind of in my um tool chest, it's like if it's not working and they're they're on the monitor and their heart rate's ticking along too high and I know they're just freaking out. I mean, I can put an IV in and give them a little bit of introvenous, but never again will I try and sort of land the airplane, you know, hook them up, put an IV in and sit there and try and get them to like five or six milligrams of Versa, 100 mics of fentanyl to try and put them in some spot. Which the other frustrating thing for me is is with those drugs and the drugs that I'm allowed to use, they're unstable in the sense that they don't stay in that spot. that spot. Yeah. You know, and and and so I You know, and and and so I shortacting. That's what I mean. So, yeah. And so then I've got to go and try and work and get this done and now they're starting to fidget and I can tell I need to manage this and it's just not worth it. So, yeah, it's a lot to think about. I can't I can't imagine. I mean, it's a lot for us. it's a lot for us. Yeah. To manage, you know, dental's pretty reasonable in terms of an anesthetic, but to think about that and then something that's 100 times more complex like ax case or veneers. Well, and also think about what's impossible and think about like the um just reaction time in in decisions. Let's just say you have some usual and customary like um like a hypertensive crisis. just the reaction time to sit there and be like, well, you know, do we get it? Do we do we get a beta blocker? And I don't give people beta blockers. So, I don't know how to mix it up in an efficient way. And I haven't delivered it a thousand times. It's just inappropriate for me to manage something like that in my opinion. People will think differently of course, but um yeah, I just don't have to do it just because you guys are here. It it feels like dentistry is kind of in a transition period right now where uh there's like an evaluation going on of what should or shouldn't be done. And I I don't know that it's all entirely like greed driven or ego driven. I think some of it came out of necessity for sure. Elite anesthesia wasn't always here and and implants and all has been going on for much longer than that. It's true. And and I think even from the standpoint of like an access of care standpoint, um yeah, and I didn't know if it's just me and what I do in my career, why I'm I'm doing a lot more sedation cases, right? Or is it something that's just becoming more common throughout the entire field? Um I mean, I personally think you guys have contributed a lot to it. I I don't know if you've thought about it or or if you know, but how many anesthesia practitioners have you made available to dental practices in the state? You know, you guys must have the same number of people under your roof as maybe there were in the entire state when you showed up. And so, so access to care and getting somebody going. um uh it is changing but but I think you can't ignore the fact that some really sad stories have come out of some very credentialized individuals you know situations where you have anesthesia and pedo or um you even have you know oral surgeons MD oral surgeons who have terrible outcomes and it and it's you know you you don't want to judge anybody's operation from an armchair. But when you hear and you read about things, a lot of times it's just things, a lot of times it's just complacency. I don't even know if it's complacency, man. I think it's so interesting. You can have the same letters behind your name and have completely different um skill sets behind that. I I came from uh an anesthesia group that didn't train specifically for dental when I first started. And I had already had like 10 years of anesthesia experience and I got thrown into this dental space and I didn't necessarily know completely what I was doing and I was figuring out on the fly and and and I learned a lot but like there's also a learning curve, right? And I remember when I signed up with Elite um after that experience um they were like, "All right, man. Let's get you let's get you out to Utah." And I was like, "Oh, for what?" And they were like, "Oh, man. we're going to train you up. And I was like, "Oh, no, no, no. I've kind of already learned like I've I've I've learned on the fly and I figured things out and I've been practicing for for, you know, 12 years at that time." And uh and Sean was like, you know, "No, no, no. We're going to we're going to get you trained up the elite way." And I flew out there, man. And I was like, "Ah, what am I really going to learn?" Dude, I learned a ton. Like there is there is such a difference in anesthesia in the outpatient setting versus the hospital. like somebody that does anesthesia full-time at the hospital, you know, 90% of the time and does this on the side, they're bringing kind of hospital anesthesia into the outpatient setting and it's just completely different. So, like I think, you know, it's so crazy how, you know, people like, "Oh yeah, I use an anesthesia provider or I use a sedation provider or they have a little bit of experience, but but it isn't the same." And I think kind of one of the cool things about Elite is it's definitely specialized for the space. Yeah. And I think it has to be um when you think about it, too. And I mean it's not that hard for me. I mean I just try and set ground rules and I always call you stupid questions. They're not stupid questions though. but but you know I'm like hey man I don't know this you know this I know I have this p certain patient and then you know I have this like uh BMI concern or something like that. Is that appropriate for the setting? But I think you can never lose focus of what's appropriate in that setting. Yeah. Cuz because you're not going to necessarily And I don't even know if you guys do. Do you guys have crash cards? guys do. Do you guys have crash cards? Yeah, you have a crash car. So if you if you had to defibrillate somebody, you can defibrillate somebody in there. Yeah, that whole thing's a crash cart. Yeah. And that's, you know, and that's that's deeper than I ever want to go on it. But for me, it's always like you just follow the ASA rules. And I think it's it I think more than anything, it's it's kind of crazy, man. Like a lot of stuff has been done in the outpatient setting, but dentistry is kind of the first where it's like it's it's a unique space. I mean, for the most part, like a lot of surgeries were always done in in in hospitals or ambulatory surgery centers and then dentistry comes about and we're doing it in the office and and it's like, man, how do we bring that safety standard to the office and there's just all these moving parts. So, it's kind of cool to kind of hear from you and your perspective and Well, even when you think about it, too, like think of like the the the contribution to access of care cuz man, when you got to take somebody to a hospital Yeah. Oh god, it's impossible. And then the other thing is is like once you have to go to the O, I can't go to the O. Ah, yeah. Right. I can do all these things, but now all of a sudden, who can go to the O? What if they need to be sedated for something, you know, relatively benign like an arch of crown preps or something? of crown preps or something? Yeah, you can take them to the O for that. Then who's going to be the practitioner in the O? Well, noral surgeon's not going to do it, you know. Then you got to find a prostadonist who has or dentist who has um O pre and hospitals just don't operate that way. So it's just incredible contribution to access to care I think is really cool. Yeah, absolutely man. Um so where what what's next for your practice? Are you plans ahead? I don't know. Uh he's trying to marry Rich. Oh, that would be awesome. Come on. Easy safe space. Um, yeah. No, I I have no idea. Um, you know, the marrying thing. I don't Not for money, for love. James, for love, man. I believe it. I'm a classic guy, too, man. Yeah. Um, we're sort of um have a relationship trying to come together. It's kind of interesting. She's in It's kind of interesting. She's in London and so she's in London. Yeah. And she and it's really difficult. She has a business in London and um a really interesting thing that would be really hard to recreate anywhere else. And so I've even looked at um potentially practicing in Europe over there. I don't know. But it's funny when I approached that, I'm kind of like, man, first thing I thought I was like, how who's going to sedate my patients or or or can I even get my patients sedated? And so you talked about going international. It might be the time to think about it. Dude, I' I'd practice. Those Brits, they need help, dude. So, that's the thing. You wouldn't have any shortage of patience. Brits. Whoa. Did he just say he's Brits. Whoa. Did he just say he's awesome? Is this thing on with anesthesia? It's all right. When I go there, I'm like, "Look, man. Tea Party is over. I'm here. It's safe. Don't worry." I can confidently say there are very few British people watching this podcast. That is true. And you know what? if they were and they could find us. They're they're actually some mean like quick to swing guys. So, I just get behind James. Just keep James. Yeah. No, so I don't know. Um uh this is awesome and I love doing what I'm doing and as long as I feel like I'm helping people and and making a real difference in their life, I think it'll keep me in it. Um, but it's uh um it's ch it's and I you guys maybe don't feel it. It's a challenging climate and and it just seems to be um becoming more and more challenging. Like I I just don't see things swinging back and and you know, I'd love love to dig on Washington State and you know, the tax implications they're making, but they're not making it easier for small business and things like that. So So I don't know. So, I think for me, you know, as long as I I get that I've done something for someone that I feel like very few people could and and I really feel like I've helped their life, I'm going to keep going and, you know, and until until I feel like I fall off that plateau, man, and I'm and I'm not performing the way I need to perform, and then I'll be done. I don't know. You know what's crazy, man? Uh, so this is like legit my guy. like this guy, he he's one of the practices that I not only do I love going to cuz we just have the greatest banter. Um, but he also really cares. Um, it's one of those practices where uh he he he's always willing to go that extra mile. We had one of the toughest patients ever. Like not only was she tough from the surgical standpoint, but she was tough from like the emotional standpoint. Um, oh god, don't tell this story. But but it was crazy because, you know, she didn't follow any of the posttop rules. She didn't do anything that she was supposed to. And uh and the next day, this guy lives in North Bin, which isn't close at all. And he he bought her food and delivered it to her all the way back in Seattle. Oh man, you just don't hear that a lot. Like, you don't hear that kind of like, you know what, man? Um I'm going to see this through to the end. um this patient just needs that extra TLC and so he has this rough exterior because he's from Gnome Alaska and like he's been in Alabama but like you know Birmingham but uh but he is like a a tender heart at at his core. You hope I am. That's not true man because I've seen it man and I I do I do value that cuz uh you know at the end of the day like that's what it really takes to deliver care today. like it takes doing what it takes for each and every patient. And not all patients require that, but when it's necessary, man, it's good to have it in your tool belt to deliver it because at the end of the day, like we want the results. We want the patients to be satisfied. We want them to get whatever they've paid for, man. And and it's cool to be kind of in that in that ring with you. It's uh I I would say it's a tough you know you live you your practice is in Belleview so like like I think that is kind of a harder area right because it's more of a high-end area like I think marketing becomes a bigger tool. Well, it is and it's kind of interesting and and h probably shouldn't say too much. We're a little bit unique in what we do in like the all-on world. And so, we're actually reaching out and to um we think some I wouldn't say starving markets, maybe some underserved markets and definitely markets where the kind of surgery that I do doesn't exist. And we're trying to create sort of a we're trying to reach out to hubs. Brits. No Brits. Reaching out to the Brits, man. They're too mouthy. Can't do it. So, yeah, we'll see. So, where's your practice headed? Is it like where do where do you see your practice in the next 5 years? More of the same, really. You know, I really feel like it's kind of weird. I don't like to compliment you, but I will. And it's like you guys have really helped me reach kind of like the pinnacle of what I think. I mean, it's really cool. There's there's a lot of dentists who went their entire career who can't really say I've like helped somebody repair their self-esteem and their confidence and I made them more jobw worthy and I made them, you know, I did all these emotional things for them and and I'm really proud of that and and I don't need to I really don't need to go on to anything else and because for a long time I just was hungry and I wanted to do this thing and the next thing and the next thing and that's how I kind of landed here. But now, like working with you guys, I'm in just such a comfortable spot where I feel like um we're taking the best care of patients. You know, we're making great decisions on the on on what we're executing and where we're executing it and and we're making this great difference that I've just sort of um resigned myself to just more of the same at this point. And just just, you know, repeat repeat and just, you know, find good people and try and help them. And that's all I want to do. And it's cool, man. I think you've nailed in your marketing like your new marketing campaign is really awesome and like your volume's going up. Um, and it's kind of cool to see like us work together and you know you kind of like dial it in to where you I I can definitely tell you love doing surgery like more than anything else. So to be able to do more of it and do it at a high level is is is pretty cool. Yeah. No, I think it's it's it's cool and it's funny. It's Where else are you guys? So you guys are here obviously Utah Salt Lake. Salt Lake, Denver, Phoenix, Seattle, Oklahoma City, Dallas. Oh my goodness. Yeah. Minneapolis, Houston, San Antonio, Minneapolis, Houston, San Antonio, Austin. Austin. Wa. Wa. Chicago. So, how many of you are there? Between full-time and part-time, we're like 150. Wow. I think that's unbelievable. Yeah, that's like Yeah, that's crazy. And what's cool too is I mean like the need for what he does is beyond Belleview. Um I think he's had aspirations, you know, he's he's always bounced. I don't know how serious you are, but he's like, "What if I moved over here? Would you guys come with me?" And I was like, "Yeah, I do look at that and and you can't help but do that." It's it's it's the it's the greener grass syndrome, you know? but it's kind of cool to know that we're mobile enough to like go where you are, dude. We'll go where you are. Well, and it's it's it is funny that you say that because my like latest campaign like to reaching out to underserved areas. Yeah. I actually am just just not real smart with things sometimes. And I was like, "Yeah, let's maybe um let's look for a good market and then let's test run some marketing and, you know, if I think there's a great need there, then I'm going to go find a facility and go there." Um and my marketers are like, "It's a $500 airfare." Yeah, why don't you just recruit them into what already works? And so, so hit that market hard instead of doing like a test thing. Hit the market hard, you know, um different differentiate yourself in your marketing for how you are and what it is different about what you do and and try and pull them in and help more people that way. So that's kind of where we're we're at with Yeah. I think Randy I I I mean I don't know exactly at this point, but I think 80 90% of his pat sometimes Randy sometimes like I'll be at my house and like I'll be like grilling steaks and like potatoes and I'll make my plate and I'll go over and put it on my table and I'll walk away and I'll turn back around and Randy will be there and he's actually taking steaks off my plate. It's just so you watch your back. Yeah. Yeah. You got to watch them. They are Randy and his brothers. Yeah. Yeah. they're going to watch her. Yeah, that's awesome. But it shows you that that's a But it shows you that that's a successful way to go about it to a certain degree, right? It's like a proven concept. Yeah, it I I do think so. And it's I don't know. We'll see what happens. But my deal is is I'm I'm operating from from one challenge in a case to the next and just find me a good person who needs it and let me try and help them and that's it. I think at the end of the day, we're all trying to feel satisfied in our careers, honestly. I mean, we do it all day, every day. And and I share very similar feelings to you where before Elite for me, I was bouncing around a lot. I think I looked at jobs at jobs everywhere all day long while I was in my job. And there's just so much satisfaction in this that I I mean I' obviously I own this company, but I you know very early on I was just like this is very satisfying. I I enjoy doing this and I I can't see myself anything And and I don't know for you guys, but it's got to be different. Like the hospital environment for you guys has got to be a little bit of soul crushing. It's awful. Yeah. And and and what are you trying to do? you're just you're trying to keep a very sick patient, you know, alive for the duration of a, you know what I mean? You're you're not part of that. Keeping someone alive versus delivering something that's a life-changing experience for them. Two totally different things. Yeah, it's it's really fun to be a part of. Yeah, I'd Yeah, I think so. I would be into it, too. Yeah. And so, it sounds great. You make it sound awesome. So, there's a um anesthesia school in Tijana. I My application's in. So, he always talks about Can't wait. Oh, that'd be it' be it'd be awesome, man. We'd get you on board, bro. Can't wait, man. So, if there was anything next other than what I thought Yeah. Golden slippers, man. Work for my gold. We'll take We'll take you. Well, Dr. Baron, this has been super fun, man. Appreciate you coming and working with us. And thanks, man. Absolutely. All right, Dr. Baron, uh, thanks for joining us and and we'll see you guys joining us and and we'll see you guys next --- # Building a Practice That Lasts | Jared Hepworth on Dentistry, Growth & Grit URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/podcast/building-a-practice-that-lasts-or-jared-hepworth-on-dentistry-growth-and-grit Section: Podcast Episode 4: Building a Practice That Lasts | Jared Hepworth on Dentistry, Growth & Grit Guest: Dr. Jared Hepworth Published 2025-05-30 · 31 min In this episode of The Roots, we sit down with Dr. Jared Hepworth—dentist, practice owner, and all-around straight shooter. He shares the real story behind building and growing his dental practice, what’s changing in the dental industry, and the mindset it takes to lead a successful team in today’s landscape. Whether you're a dentist, office manager, or just someone who’s curious about what it takes to thrive in a competitive healthcare space, this episode brings practical insights and honest reflection from someone who’s in the trenches every day. 🎙 Topics we cover: – Building a patient-first practice – Navigating the challenges of private dentistry – Leadership lessons from inside the op – Advice for new docs getting started Welcome to the Roots podcast presented by Elite Anesthesia where we dive deep with dental professionals about the challenges, breakthroughs, and stories behind their successful practices. Today we have Dr. Jared Hepworth with us from White Ridge Aesthetic Dentistry. Welcome, Jared. Excited to be here. Absolutely. Jared owns Whit Dental, which is just right down the street from us. uh a man and a practice that we've been involved with for honestly since the inception of Elite 5 years ago. Yep. You've been around uh since the beginning. Pretty exciting. It is. It's been fun. Well, to not only work with you guys, but to see you guys grow. Yeah. And see that development. It's been awesome. We both been through a lot, I would say, over these last few years. Yeah. It's crazy to think of where we started and where we are now. Um all good things. All good things. Yeah. It's uh I think seeing you guys is always so fun. Uh cuz for two reasons. Number one, I immediately think about where we were at the beginning of all this. And number two, it's fun to, you know, reflect on the whole journey of where we're both at right now. It's like seeing family. It's like seeing family. That's exactly what it is. With, you know, a fair amount of time in between, which is like seeing family is kind of good, too. That's true. Yeah. Yeah. Not too much. Yeah. Not too much. Uh so tell me uh I mean obviously you own White Ridge right now. Tell me about dentistry. Tell me about getting into dental. Um kind of where the initial interest was, where you went to dental school, if your wife was on board with that kind of thing. Yeah. Working with a bunch of women. Yeah. Yeah. That's always a hot topic. Um I had already committed to a dental school by the time uh we were married. So she didn't have much decision. I don't think too many people argue with having dentist as a husband. So um but the initial initial interest started um back in high school. It was you know I always always was drawn towards just the medical field in general. Um wanting better understanding you know just the human body and how things work and you know why things break down you know the opportunity to help people figure things out illness or otherwise. And so I was always drawn towards that field in general. had no idea what I specifically wanted to go to, but that was an interest in going into kind of science and that field. Um, but then when you know you're an awkward high schooler and then you get braces on and uh that was the first time getting them off was the first time I really looked at the smile, you know, it's like, "Oh, that's cool." The results. Yeah. What they did, you know, and and so then I started noticing other people's smiles. I started looking at teeth in a different light. And so that was when I started to think about look into the dental field and realize art was always something I was into as well. And so to think okay this is a profession where you help um you know it is in the healthc care field but then also I get to use my hands to do things as well. So the combination of those things piqued my interest with dentistry. And so then it was one of those, you know, situations where in high school I was like, you know what, I think I want to be a dentist. Made the decision made and and then just picked something, some major that would get me there and uh followed that path. And so um yeah, kept going that way. Went to um Roseman University of Health Sciences um here in Utah in Salt Lake. Yeah. first first dental school here and uh part of the guinea pig class, the inaugural class, the initial one with Rosa. Yep. How was that? Um it was good. It's um had a good experience there. It's like anytime I think Son's a part of the first class, you know, they're trying to figure things out, too. So, some interesting things, but we had a really cool a unique class. You know, there was a second career for a number of people. So, we had like an older class that had some life experience. um you know one of one of my classmates had um had seven kids and this was a second career for him. Phenomenal guy um and then amongst others who were CEO of maybe a company and now wanting to go a completely different direction. So that was fun because there was some um a business mindset amongst some colleagues and things and it created really cool camaraderie of um you know that just relationship and and it's been fun to see what other you know colleagues have done. Yeah, that's something I wanted to ask you. Uh, you know, you go to school to become a dentist. You're the owner of a practice. Now, when you're in dental school, is that something that they talk to you about or do they feel like does it feel like they trick you into dentistry and then at the end of it they're like, "By the way, like you have to own a business, too." Oh, and here's half a million dollars of debt. Yeah. Yeah. If you're lucky. Yeah. I don't know if trick is the right word, right? Not that it's by intention, but gosh, do they prepare you for business? No, not at all. Like, and and I'm sure every school is a little bit different, but I think we had a twoe class as if that's sufficient to cover some MBA. Yeah, exactly. And so, seems like enough. So, for sure, I think they they feel like their responsibility is is we're going to teach you to be a good dentist and doctor. Um, and then you figure it out. What you do with it is up to you afterwards. But that makes it so difficult because they're not setting you up in my opinion the right way. But that's to get into a whole another topic of academia and and what from a my own personal opinion. Well, I just think it's interesting. I mean, you and I are both business owners at this point. Both of us medically dental trained uh with very little that was my experience as well. Mhm. Um, you know, not that I had intentions of being in this kind of phase, but you know, owning a business is difficult. And it just feels like it would have been nice to have somebody present that early on in training to give a little bit more, I don't know, real life experience, uh, or at least plant the seed of like these are the things that you should be thinking about as you move through your education because this is really what being a dentist is. We're teaching you a skill, but your life is really going to revolve around building a business, managing a business, managing people. That's a totally different skill set that uh we weren't trained to do at all. I completely agree. And it's something that, you know, because you can um you can know how to diagnose and maybe treat something, but you're absolutely right. If you don't know how to communicate with a team, lead a team, if you don't know how what a P&L is, right? like just some basic principles, but if you don't know how to run this stuff, then then it's not going to work. Yeah. And I think you mean you made a point about your debt. Um you and I both got into debt to be able to do or acquire the skill that we got. Obviously, maximizing the potential of our degree or the skill set that we obtained is important. I think and that's not exclusive to us. I think anyone that graduates with any type of advanced, I guess, degree in general, specifically medical or dental at this, you know, for this podcast, uh, you want to make the most amount of money that you can, you know, within a certain type of practice or lifestyle. And I just think it's an overlooked piece. Like, it's important. You need to pay that debt off. uh you need to move forward and provide a a certain type of lifestyle for your family that everyone has expectations for that they're sacrificing to get to at the end of it. Yeah. I I don't know how they uh I don't know how we make that change, but it seems like something some it would be nice if something did. I agree completely. Yeah. I want to ask you a quick question about your uh the dental school training. Was there ever a mention of anesthesia in that training at all? Oh, that's a great question. Uh, now you're really testing my memory. That's over 10 years back. But to be to be perfectly honest, I don't think so really. Like I don't um even as it related to oral sedation like there was that I can remember there wasn't an introduction. I mean maybe some small thing in passing but clearly no course nobody came in and said this is a big part of practice that you should think about. That's interesting. I've I've thought about that and wondered now that we interact with so many dentists. Yeah, I have my suspicions, but I and and not that you could speak for every program, but I it seems universal that anesthesia is somewhat of an afterthought in your practice. I think you're right. And I think especially now this isn't always the case but I think about a lot of the um the faculty um in dental school and thinking about their experience because I had opportunity to talk with a lot of them and the type of cases that we do that um many times are so beneficial with anesthesia. I don't think a lot of them were doing those kind of cases and so I don't know how it's at the forefront at a lot of what they did. Interesting. Very practice specific. Right. Not to say, of course, it doesn't have a place in even dayto-day dentistry, though, for sure. Yeah. Yeah. And I I want to get into that because I think that's definitely been one of the most interesting parts of this whole deal for me personally. Like when we first started doing I guess surgery, anesthesia together 5 years ago, it was obviously all surgery focused. Um, you know, we did a lot in force together um amongst some other cases, but all surgical. And what I've really learned over the last 5 years is I think the demand for anesthesia from our patients is quite a bit higher than we are uh I guess willing to see. Um and I think that that's kind of changing and I've seen that change in in my time over the last 5 years. I mean I see it in our practice for sure and I do it's kind of a combination because to your point I mean even dating back to dental school the fact that that's not taught at an early time first the education just on anesthesia needs to be understood and and accepted on the doctor's part because then once you understand and see that and see it in practice then it makes it easy to present that option to our patients right on a more regular basis and create that option and and then so of Of course, it's readily accepted once we understand and see that. So, I believe it is becoming um more readily like understood that that option is available. Uh part of that though is the doctor better understanding understanding and how that plays into their practice. Yeah. I I'll ask you know we'll go in and do like a dental anxiety specific case maybe even for a a cleaning and I'll ask like how do you make the decision? Is it the patient that comes to you? Are they are they shaking and sweating in their chair? And so you like what's the trigger for you to say, I think we should offer anesthesia to this patient? That's a good question. Um, for the most part, they'll come out and tell you. They'll say, "I hate the dentist." Yeah. Thank you. That is me, right? And I hear that almost every day. You're a bird. And that's right. You just can't take it personally, otherwise it becomes hard. But not um but they they mention that and and so one of my things though I love it when they say that because cuz sometimes they are fidgety or nervous or but they'll usually tell me when they say you know I hate needles or I hate the dentist or whatever it may be and then I always follow that up. I don't just brush it off. will tell me what it is about the experience that you don't like specifically. Cuz for some people, they're like everything, right? And uh but for others, it's like it's just the shot or it's the sound of the drill or whatever it may be. It's specific to that person. Then I do gauge. It's like this might be something that's just some nitrous is going to calm them down. They're going to be fine. Um maybe this is an oral sedation. Maybe they need to be put out completely because some of those patients who are terrified to get anything done have that experience with you guys and then they come back and go that was the best dental experience of my life. Yeah. Well, thank you. No, I I think it's I just think it's interesting. Uh we've developed this vision at Elite. You have your mission and vision statements. We've developed this vision at Elite that is every patient has the opportunity to be put to sleep for any procedure or any case. The philosophy behind that is that we feel like patients should have the the choice. Um you know obviously I think that's an evolution being able to do that. Obviously if you are going to offer that to your patients you have to have some confidence that you have somebody to deliver on that. um whether it be you doing oral sedation or having somebody else come in. I just I think it's I think it would be interesting to see if you offered anesthesia to all patients that walk through. Not that you're trying to tell anybody that they should or shouldn't. Um, I guess the question is how many patients walk out that would have done a case, uh, you know, that didn't do a case that would have done if they had some type of option for their dental anxiety that, um, maybe they didn't express. Uh, we have this doctor that works for us. Um, when we hired her, she I had her here in the office and I I just said, "Why did you take this job? Why is this interesting to you?" and she said, "Um, I I have severe dental anxiety. Had some things, you know, cases done as a kid and it just caused a lot of trauma for me." And she's a a young, very put together physician, somebody who, you know, walks into your office and you wouldn't like immediately think like we're going to have to offer something to this person. and she has told uh you know when I asked her like does she do does she get anesthesia with her dentist um she told me that for years 10 or 15 years she put off any type of dental work um because didn't feel like anesthesia was an actual option for her and you know that was why this job was interesting to her to be able to provide an option for patients like her that uh you know wouldn't even get a cleaning done without being actually totally put to sleep. It's kind of interesting and it can restore their faith in the field. Yeah. Through anesthesia, right? And it is uh I think you're right. I think there's a lot of cases those dayto-day, you know, the people that come in every 6 months, that's a different story. But um when new patients especially, that's something I like to kind of bring up and ask about, especially if there's any bigger treatment. Like we'll focus on the treatment, but we always finish with okay, let's talk about sedation. Yeah. So we do, to your point, offer that to every single person because they'll let us know, oh no, I'm totally fine or Yeah, that sounds great. Yeah. And I think that's exactly the point is uh we talked to a lot of dentists who I shouldn't say gatekeep, but kind of it's like unless this patient's, you know, visibly sweating in the chair, like it's just not really not really interested in it. And I think ultimately as a dentist trying to do the best for your patients, also as a business owner trying to do the best for your patients, um, offering a service to the to your patients that they want is important. Yep. So, in dental school, uh, we'll just move to graduation unless there's anything you want to get into at that point. No, no, that's good. Did you you mentioned that you got married in dental school or before? Right when it started. Right when it started. And then did you guys have kids while you're in dental school? Yeah, we had one one little girl, my oldest. Um, we have four now. And um, which that's what my my life revolves around is is my kids. And that's what for me, that's what life's all about, spending time with them, creating experiences, memories with them. So, that's that's what I love doing. It's awesome. We've always been able to, I think, connect on the family aspect of this, which is uh, at the end of the day, the most important part. Mhm. Um, so you had four Well, you have four kids. You only had one in dental school. Yep. Married, graduated, and then where did you go from there? Um, so I went out, I did a worked six days a week, speaking of, uh, just wanted to get as much experience as possible. So I worked in private practice and in a DSO. Okay. Uh, for some time. And then Did you do that here in Salt Lake? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. And, uh, and then and then went exclusively to the DSO for a time. um and then had the opportunity to to buy my own practice. Um and then that's where where I'm now and where I've been for the last few years. And so which was really good to see some private practice, some DSO, which honestly did give me some of that exposure into um the business side a little bit because I was able to pick, you know, the CFO's brain and CEO and talk some about about some of those things and how things were set up and then and then of course starting my own. What do you feel like working with the DSO as you look at your practice now? How many years have you owned your practice? Um, so you're coming up on eight eight years. Yeah. Uh, what do you feel like you took away specifically from working at the DSO? Um, pros and cons because I think from, you know, that dental support organization, it had they have a lot of good things set up, you know, especially from a business mindset because that's those are the things they're looking at. They're looking at numbers and looking at metrics like that to make sure things are running well. But then of course I'm the one in the office, you know, working with the team and working with the patients. And so that way you get kind of that dichotomy between yeah, you need to focus on numbers because if you don't, you don't have a business, but at the same time, this is very much a peopleoriented business. And so that relationship is super important. So taking the best of both, right? because there's things I think I mean any organization is going to have pros and cons with it and so there's some things I really liked from it and there's some things I didn't like. So to be able to take that and then piece together what I felt like was a good combination of my own practice was valuable. Uh I think yeah I think that's really interesting. I in my own you know business and career I've been able to interact with um better business minds than mine and I think you know through osmosis it's been uh it's been helpful to me helpful to our company. Yeah. I think overall just appreciative of like getting to interact with those type of people that you know they put that first that the businesses that that is their training. Um and I think been a being able to understand a little bit more from their mindset. So, um, got into your own practice. You worked with the DSO, got into private practice, bought your own. Um, we know your partner really well. Uh, Rick as well. Tell me about choosing a partner. That's that's a pretty big decision. It is. And that was Gosh, I wish I could say that I had, you know, an algorithm that perfectly picked him out because I think anybody would love to work um uh with with Rick because he's an incredible guy in in every way. He it but ironically he was the first guy that I like reached out to. So it was essentially a connection made when I was just looking you know um for doctors who were interested in work in the area and I connected with him. He was the first doctor I interviewed really and immediately you could tell he was fresh out of school wasn't he? He was. Yeah. And he was just looking for a job and you guys got connected through a friend or something. Yeah. It was uh like a dental recruiter. Okay. and um who was a a friend of his that made the connection and and so it worked out for just a couple days because at that time um I was focusing more on surgery and so it made sense he came in for some more general dentistry and then uh and then as we were expanding things were going great. He was one of those that came out of school and it felt like he had already worked for a while. Yeah. Um I think it was a neat experience for him because within a year he had gone from I mean school you're doing fillings and crowns and then by the end of the year he's doing bone grafts, implants, even full mouth reconstruction which I think was a really neat opportunity for him and within a couple years I mean he seemed like he had you know lots of time under his belt. He came out well prepared. Exactly. Well he came from one of the better institutions out there which happened to be where I went to school as well. Oh, is that right? There you go. But he he was he was well prepared and he also is somebody that I think that picks up on just procedures so well and and so uh so it kind of made it easy at that point. We had worked together for a couple of years. The practice had grown a lot with him being there. Everybody loved working with him and it was a really easy decision to make that partnership available to him and things have been going great ever since then. Yeah, Rick's a great guy. I mean, you guys are a an awesome tandem. Tell me about your Tell me about your practice briefly, like what do you guys focus on? Um, what's the overall, I guess, philosophy of of what you guys are trying to accomplish as dentists in your own private practice at White Ridge? What our practice looks like? I mean, ultimately, our goal is is what we're striving to create is the ideal like oral health opportunity that leads to the best systemic health for our to the best systemic health for our patients. um to improve their quality of life to live the best life they can live and and that can look you know many different ways to different patients but you know the more we learn and the more we do we just see how I mean the oral health is so important as it relates to our systemic health I just had a a patient who's a neurologist who was just giving us this article about the connection you know between our periodonal health and and the direct correlation to um the the risk of dementia. Yeah. And and so to see those kind of studies and of course the ones we know related to the heart and whatnot, it's just directly related in more ways than we realize even airway with sleep. And so so our goal is to create the most ideal way to educate our patients so they're aware of where they currently are and and what would be the best things to do to get them to the most ideal position so they're living the most healthy and best life that they can. And then a lot of times we get patients coming in for consultations who aren't in a good place, you know, and they need to start over completely. Um, you know, whether that is a fixed arch option or um or a combination of implants and some crowns and restoring things, but but we try to look at everything as a whole um to put them in the best place uh that we can. And and so it's kind of unique where we've we've been able to set it up. It's a fun dynamic where um Rick and I are able to alternate, right? Where we kind of have more of a general dentistry hygiene day where we can focus on some of that day-to-day and that educational side. And then we alternate where we have more of a surgery or cosmetic day where we can do consultations and we can do some of these bigger cases. Those are the days when you guys come in so that we can spend 6 hours, you know, or whatever it may be in the operatory without having to step out for a hygiene exam. And that's worked really well for us where we're alternating days and it's a good mix of kind of both of those fields. Yeah, I think it's really interesting the effects of dentistry, I guess oral health on our overall systemic health. I one thing that I've come to understand I mean dental is kind of a I shouldn't say it's a new field for me now but um it was 5 years ago. One thing that I've come to appreciate uh through your practice and others is the effect of our oral health and appearance on our overall well-being as a whole. not just systemic health, but I think the way that people feel about themselves and how that translates into their, you know, everyday life. Do do you feel like I feel like that's something that um you guys do exceptionally well. You guys treat the patient as a whole. Um and I think being able to deliver on both aspects of that, I've just seen in your practice how that plays out in real life and it um it's probably the coolest part of this for me. Obviously taking good good care of patients on our on our behalf is good. You know, making sure that patients are safe and healthy and have good anesthesia, that's all important. But overall, facilitating uh a good outcome for a patient is is really cool and really impactful. Uh and you guys just do that so well. That really is probably the most rewarding part of what we do because you're right, when we say systemic health, we tend to think of our physical health. But you nailed it, our mental, emotional, um, you know, that social health, like that overall well-being, that's such a critical part of our overall health and the longevity, right? That interaction and the relationships that we have in our life. And so speaking of that, like there's one I'm just thinking of it because we were just putting kind of some new pictures up of some before and afters and there's this one patient that um we just finished up with and to that point he came in and one of the things I feel like we take the time to do is to to understand where the patient's coming from and not to look at them as okay here's a pano. Where's the infection? What do we need to do to treat it? Awesome. Get on your way. It's yeah, that's a part of treating the individual, but but what's their story? Where are they coming from? And where do they want to be? And and so this gentleman, for example, talked about how his family had mentioned that something changed and he's not really the person he used to be. And for him, he felt that he was so embarrassed because his teeth had he had lost some teeth and they had ground down over time. and you know and so he found himself being reserved in social settings and so his personality changed because of that and and so when I mean it's emotional experience for him to share that with us but then that gives me the motivation to say okay this is what this is the outcome we're looking for for you and I would love to be able to get this back in your life now you have to always be careful to promise certain things but we want to be a part of this transformation and and I can't tell you how many times he's teared up even since then throughout this process and giving us the biggest hugs and talking about how you gave me my life back. Yeah. and how his his family has commented on it. And even from that consultation, his just outgoing, gregarious self that it's like this has always been him, but has been hid away for years. And to for him to get that back in what he feels like is, you know, a prime time of his life um with older kids and grandkids, it's it's life-changing. And so to your point initially of talking about just that emotional and mental health and well-being, oh, it's critical and it and it's awesome to see that kind of transformation. Yeah, it's been an amazing um thing to be a part of. Like I view our role in this as a facilitator and get to kind of be in the sidecar of what it feels like to be able to transform somebody's life like that. and it's really turned into kind of a driving part of what we do. Um, just envisioning the number of people that are out there that wish that they could get to that good place in their life, uh, but can't for one reason or another. And if dental anxiety is the reason, uh, us being able to be here and facilitate, maybe unlock that door for them to walk in and for you to actually do the work, uh, that means everything to me and us as a company. Um, I think it's a short life we live, you know, and to be able to facilitate that type of thing for somebody, uh, especially in the way that you guys do it, like this isn't a this isn't a a smile factory. This is, um, actually, you know, getting in and and understanding a human being and doing whatever it is that needs to be done to make it to make them better. That's absolutely right. No, I couldn't agree more. And I love that you said that it's not just a smile factory. Like we are we are in the business of of changing people's lives for the better. And it's a it's a special opportunity. Yeah. And your patients can tell. People can tell. I think all of us have that in us. And it's something that I've always appreciated about you and Rick. Tell me, I guess to wrap up, tell me about White Ridge. You guys um what are the plans over the next few years for for White Ridge? Um, good question. I think, um, Rick might get tired of it, but I'm like always thinking of new stuff to do or to change, but part of what I mean, we were talking at the very beginning with sedation and just be knowledgeable about that. It's the same thing with there's so many aspects of dentistry that that appeal to me and it's almost frustrating to realize we don't have enough time for everything and trying to fine-tune. But the part that's getting me excited right now beyond what we're doing is um is the airway I kind of mentioned before and and of course the critical role that sleep is in our lives that I think that a lot of people don't realize. Yeah, everyone knows it's important but how important that really is and how much it affects us and how many people um are affected by that. So, one of the things we're looking at is the the exciting part of expansion by just moving teeth around and expanding things to help open up airways to put people in a a better place. So, that's kind of a new way we're going beyond what we're doing as well because you start to see once you learn about it, you start to see the need for it more. So, um, aside from all the bigger cases we're doing, there's a lot of people in between that don't have to start over on things, but at the same time, their occlusion could be in a much better place. And so, that's kind of it's kind of a new route for us that we're looking into at as well. Some some small changes that they can make to make pretty big improvement overall, I think, impact on their life. That's awesome. I didn't know that you guys were doing that. Yeah. Uh, Jared, appreciate you coming in. It's been a a pleasure to talk to you. It's uh always a pleasure to work with you guys. We wish nothing but continued success with Widge for you and Rick and and uh hope to keep working together for a long time. Well, thank you so much. We hope the same. Yeah. Uh thanks guys. Thanks for joining us again, Jared Hepworth. Um we uh look forward to bringing more incredible dentists on and and talking more about themselves, their practices and and elite anesthesia. --- # Why Dr. Swarbrick Switched to Third-Party Anesthesia—and Isn’t Going Back URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/about/podcast/why-dr-swarbrick-switched-to-third-party-anesthesia-and-isn-t-going-back Section: Podcast Episode 5: Why Dr. Swarbrick Switched to Third-Party Anesthesia—and Isn’t Going Back Guest: Dr. Swarbrick Published 2025-05-15 · 30 min In this episode of The Roots Podcast, Dr. Swarbrick shares how partnering with a third-party anesthesia provider has transformed the way he practices dentistry. From faster surgical days to a more efficient workflow, he dives into how outsourcing anesthesia allows him to focus on what he does best—dentistry. Join us for a candid conversation about: Why surgical efficiency matters more than ever How anesthesia support reduces clinical stress What it looks like to give patients a smoother experience The ripple effect on staff, scheduling, and growth If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to offload sedation and still keep full control of your practice—this one’s for you. Welcome to the Roots podcast presented by Elite Anesthesia where we dive deep with dental professionals about the challenges, breakthroughs, and stories behind their successful practices. Today we have Dr. Jordan Schwarbick with us, an oral surgeon with Reva Dental Implant Center. Dr. Schwarber, welcome. Good to be here. Thanks for having me. Yeah, we've known each other for uh for a while. We elite and Dr. Schwarrick specifically, we've worked together since I think since you moved to Utah. Is that right? Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, we go back probably pushing four years now. Yeah. Doing cases all over the state of Utah and uh just keeps getting better and better. I remember I we started off doing um like thirds with you. Yeah. Started out in some offices that I was providing coverage for uh just doing mainly wisdom teeth and fullmouth extractions, occasional, you know, implants. And uh at the time I was doing the sedation myself. Had a few assistants that would travel with me. It was a it was a traveling, you know, type of situation and we weren't real happy with that situation. I was doing the sedations. The assistants were great, but hadn't really been trained in sedation and having to bring all of our equipment, all of the meds, everything. And uh it just we just thought there there could be a better way to do it, which is when I found you guys and reached out. And after the first case, I was hooked and I've been been stuck with you been with you four years uh four years since and yeah, multiple states, multiple practitioners now working with you and uh and always great experiences and most importantly from the beginning. uh you know this is my mindset everyone at Reva it's what's best for the patient and and I really truly believe this is the best thing for the patient the best way to um to for a patient to have the procedure done and the safest and that's one of the main reasons why we continue to to work with you guys. Yeah, we obviously agree and uh we've had a great time working with you. We've had a great time working with Reva and just to reiterate, I mean, very same similar feelings. You know, we work with implant centers and dental surgeons everywhere and all different walks of life, different practices and always been incredibly impressed with you and with Reva. And I can I can say from personal experience and then you know Elite as a business, we've always felt like patient safety comes first and I would say that you know you you as much or more than anyone have always recognized that and it it means a lot to us and I think means a lot to your patients and to your business too. Yeah, exactly. Thank you so much for saying that. Yeah, it's something that uh you know, we not only preach, but we implement and and that's why this partnership works so well. I think you know we we put the patient first, put the patients uh experience, comfort, safety first before anything. Um, you know, when we were uh in the process of creating the the clinical workflow that we follow at Reva, um, you know, me and several of the other doctors sat down and said, "Okay, if these were only family members or only really good friends, how would we want them treated and what would we do?" And that's how we outlined uh the process and and it started with, you know, doing sedation the right way. I can do the sedation. Do I want to do the sedation now or do I feel like I should be doing the sedation? No. I feel like there's a better way. And so it's it's something that I love offering to our patients. As you know, many of these patients, they have not been into the dentist for years or decades because of dental fear. And their teeth and their oral hygiene has suffered because of that. And so when they come into our office and we can let them know, you're just going to take a nap. You're going to take a nice comfortable nap. And when you wake up, everything's going to be done. you can just feel and see that stress, you know, come off their shoulders that they've been carrying because they just just are terrified of of having dental treatment done. And so, it's it's so nice that we can offer that. So nice that these patients that have been, you know, neglecting their oral health now can can have it treated and and end up in a better spot because of it. So for many many reasons uh you know we're very appreciative of the the service that you guys offer and for the um results that it allows us to give our patients. Yeah. You know we talk to these patients as well and and it's reciprocated. They know that Reva is all about safety. They know that Reva cares most about them and that that means a lot to us too. I mean we we definitely see both sides and uh just overall really enjoy working with you guys for that reason amongst others. Can can you tell me a little bit more? Um, you said a lot about doing it the right way. I know that I think that's kind of a controversial thing. Can you tell me a little bit more about what that means? Yeah. Yeah. My my interpretation of it, you know, as I mentioned, I can do the sedation. Um, in certain situations, you know, there's patients when it's a light, you know, mild sedation and it's a quick procedure. It's a little different situation. um in this type of situation that we're dealing with where it's it's a procedure that's going to last more than an hour. Um it's a procedure that's a little more invasive. Um it's something that uh you know if I were to do the sedation, not only um does the procedure end up taking longer. My attention cannot be fully directed at the surgery and the patient. I'm going to, you know, I'm going between the sedation, the procedure, the medications, you know, have to having to monitor everything at once. is basically doing one person doing two jobs is what it ends up, you know, being. Um, we're actually the only specialty out there that does their own sedation and the surgery at the same time. And so when we change that and when I can just focus on the surgery, when I can be more efficient with the procedure, um, it leads to faster procedure times, quicker recoveries. you know, it's been shown time and time again. A lot of these complications occur due to, you know, prolonged surgery times and and um you know, infections and things like that can can occur when when it takes a lot longer than it should. And so I can uh work on you know, becoming more efficient with the surgery. Um fully fully, you know, concentrated on on what I'm doing with the implants. And I know that not only will the surgery go better, but there is a specialist right there at my side in elite anesthesia that this is all they specialize in. This is what they do day in and day out. And they are 100% focused on the patient, on their comfort level, on the depth of sedation, on their vitals, making sure everything goes smoothly throughout the procedure. And having seen both situations firsthand, I choose specialists monitoring and taking care of each specialty item with the procedure, which is an oral surgeon performing the surgery, anesthesia provider in elite, you know, a nurse anesthetist or anesthesiologist handling the sedation, and then also for us, the third part is a prostadonist managing the you know, prostadonic side of the procedure, which is the teeth and and the bite and all of that. Um, and it we just see time and time again when specialists handle the specialty portion of the procedure, you have better outcomes, you know, better success all around. So, yeah, that's that's what we preach. Yeah, I mean, I think it makes sense that uh putting the right the right people in the right place doing what they were trained to do uh creates the best outcome for the patient. Crazy, right? Yeah, it makes sense. It's not too complicated. Yeah, exactly. It is fun. I mean not everyone's committed to doing that and I think there are various re reasons for it. I think it's important um you know for anybody you know watching this to understand you know REVA is a a dental implant center specializes in all X procedures. These are or can be long cases and as you mentioned, you know, these patients often are not the healthiest dental pl dental patients that come through the door. And so I think it's important to kind of differentiate or categorize the patients that you guys are actually seeing and to specifically talk about anesthesia and in general why it's important to have specialists dealing with complicated patients. Um, you know, they're just in general kind of unhealthy. Exactly. Yeah. Uh due to the demographic um due to um many situations going on and and as we know oral health is so tied to systemic health and these patients that we're seeing, they're seeing us because of their oral health situation and and you know it having declined and being in a bad situation and in a bad spot. And so a lot of that can transition to and and translate to other systemic issues and coorbidities that we're dealing with. And so, uh, yeah, it's sedation's tough enough when you have a healthy, you know, patient, healthy young patient there in front of you. Um, when you have a patient with some some health issues, um, it just becomes that much more, um, uh, don't want to say complicated, but but more challenging and and that's why, you know, that's that's when we call the specialist. Yeah. You your background, I mean, you are an oral surgeon. Um, where did you do oral surgery residency? Yep. So yeah, my quick background, I uh did my oral maxel facial surgery training at uh in Indianapolis through IU Health. Um we covered all the main hospitals downtown in Indianapolis and and you receive, you know, training in in every every aspect of oral maxyl facial surgery, you know, trauma, cancer, uh dental implants, uh dental aviolar, you know, extractions, third mers, things like that. and um and so great background in the surgical uh aspect and then also we receive uh uh training in the anesthesia portion. So for you know 8 months we're there with the anesthesia residents giving sedation and performing procedures uh on the sedation side and and so even with that background you know and I feel very comfortable performing a sedation. Yeah. Now when I perform a sedation and do a surgery is when is when you know I'm I'm I've started to realize there's a better more efficient safer way to go about doing it. Yeah. Tell me about uh so obviously residency did both things anesthesia and uh the surgery portion. What was it like getting into practice and actually having to marry those things together? Yep. You know we we obviously you know did several cases in residency as well. we were doing the the you know extractions, dental implants with the anesthesia. And so we we do train that uh on that before you you're released into private practice. Um but uh you know it's it's it's I think as you will talk to most practitioners, general dentists, specialists, anyone um the anesthesia uh can be the most stressful part of your day-to-day life. And that was probably one of the biggest things for me and the most impactful things is as I was traveling initially as we talked about to all these remote locations, the most stressful part was performing the anesthesia. And it would keep me up late at night, you know, have trouble sleeping before cases just because, you know, you think you think you're dealing with a healthy patient, next thing you know, you're you know, you're you're into some into some issues with anesthesia. And so healthy as far as they tell you. Healthy as far as they tell you. Exactly. And so uh and so removing that stress and removing that portion of my responsibility for the day and I still am there and and and you know um helping when I when I need to but uh being able to focus just on the procedure um was a significant improvement in my in my you know work life balance. Yeah. Um, yeah. I mean, speaking about oral surgeons specifically, I've noticed as we talk to oral surgeons that are maybe a little later in their career versus uh newer surgeons that are fresh out of residency or still in residency, the feeling about having a third party come in and do anesthesia seems to be slightly different. Just just so I'm clear, I I think I think we're on the same page. But on the side, you notice you notice that the that the older the older surgeons are are kind of stuck in their their ways a little bit. I think Yeah, I think they have more concerns, more questions about it and they've been doing it their whole career. I mean, from our from our standpoint, um you know, we don't spec we don't uh we don't take a side like elite anesthesia is not trying to say that every you know, the oral surgeon shouldn't do anesthesia. that's not at all the position that we take. I think there's a use case for anybody. Um specifically with the um oral surgeons that are, you know, later in their careers that are experienced and have been doing this and they they know the game and know how to do it. I feel like the use cases, you know, like you were saying, patients are getting more complicated. They're sicker than they've ever been. Uh you know, drugs, marijuana use, that kind of stuff is is more of a factor. And so there there is a use case for bigger cases, bigger surgeries. Um, you know, maybe for thirds and smaller cases, it doesn't make sense. But in the younger surgeon population, it feels more like, yeah, I don't really want to do this at all. I'd rather you guys handle all of it. No, it's a really really interesting point you bring up and and you definitely do see it. Um, as you mentioned, you spoke to it a little bit. You know, some of these surgeons, they've been doing it for 30 years. Um, they've been doing it day in and day out. And for those young healthy wisdom tooth, you know, third patients, um, you know, I think some of them are are a little hesitant to change. They have something that's working. And you know what, in that situation, if you're comfortable, if it's working, you know, like you're saying, they can continue on and it's and it's probably going to, you know, continue to work great cuz it's worked great for 30 years. the second that uh you know you get that unhealthy patient in the chair and I would say the second that that surgeon starts to starts to you know get a little nervous with the case you got someone you can call you know the second that you're get referred that uh all onx case from your local provider and it's going to be a three-hour case I don't care who you are and how long you've been doing it no one really wants to to do a surgery and a three-hour sedation and so now now they got someone they can call and so yeah like you said there's always there's always a situation where it makes sense um But, you know, for the folks that have been doing it a long time and and uh are a little bit stuck in their ways and and want to continue doing it, um you know, they can do that as well. But, uh if there is a better way and if there is if it's a chance that it makes your life better, you know, I always I always tell them at least give it a try. Yeah. You know, I I don't want to talk about anesthesia the whole time. We want to hear about REA and about you. Uh tell me it seems like for especially oral surgeons seems like one of the bigger um you know questions about using third party anesthesia is the economical aspect of it. Does it make sense for me to now pay somebody else to do this or for my patient to pay somebody else to do this? And we usually talk about, you know, increased efficiency, increased um, you know, better surgical outcomes and that kind of thing, but can you speak just a little bit to the economical piece of it? Yeah, it's a good question. You know, it's something that, you know, occasionally we get asked for from providers that are considering using you guys. And, uh, to your point, um, you know, there are groups out there that require the patient to pay for the anesthesia directly. Um, we wanted to create a center and an environment where the patient feels like we are taking care of them every step of the way. No surprises, no fine print, no no nothing like that. And so when they decide to move forward with us, we take care of the anesthesia no matter how long it goes. Um, and we take care of that so that they uh so that they feel that they feel they're taken care of. With that, you know, it provides efficiencies as we mentioned. So we're able to get them in and out of the chair much much quicker. And it's not that we're rushing. It's not that we're flying through things that, you know, we should be taking more time. It's just that we can fully focus on the procedure. And so, uh, it's it's huge in our in our process and in our workflow because our patients are leaving the same day with a set of permanent teeth. And so the faster that we can get the procedure done and that our lab can fabricate the teeth for for us to then place in the patient's mouth and and fix to the implants, the faster they get to get home and start resting and recovering. We see that with this process and with the increased uh increased efficiencies, patients are recovering quicker, less pain, less swelling, just just benefits them all around. And so um for those reasons, you know, the additional cost is completely worth it for us. We have most of our patients will mention it to their friends. A lot of their friends are in their similar situation. And so we we get a lot of referrals because their experience goes so smoothly. And so why penny pinch on something that could be so impactful to that patient and make everything go so much smoother and in the long run lead to, you know, additional uh volume and business for us just because we're taking care of our patients the right way. Yeah. So and and potentially money loss in the future dealing with complications or Exactly. Poor surgical outcomes that you got to deal with later. No, 100%. So, yeah, really really hard on in our minds um to imagine doing it any other way. Yeah, that means a lot to us. Like we we genuinely care about the patients that we work with, care about the outcomes. Um it shows. And not just for the patient. Thank you. Not just for the patient, but for you too. like for you, for the people that work for you, um for the assistants, just overall feels like a better experience um with it than without it. 100%. Yeah. For for every team member that's in the room, you know, the patient uh their family, their family seems to, you know, family member that's dropping them off the day of surgery seems to, you know, just be able to rest a little easier knowing that they're in the care of multiple specialists handling each part of the procedure. So yeah, it's like you said, it's very few uh very few um scenarios where we could ever imagine, you know, not doing it this way. Yeah. I should say no scenarios cuz Yeah, cuz we we love it. So tell me about working with Reva, you know, as an oral surgeon. Revas has been a great company. We've really enjoyed, you know, working with them. What is it about Reva that's that's different? You know, like we mentioned earlier, um you know, the the experience is so important to us. Doing our best to to really provide the absolute best patient experience is what we're after. And uh and with that comes, you know, specialists for each portion of this. There's a lot of centers out there that are doing this, trying to learn how to do this, and they just haven't received in our minds the proper training. And so what I love about uh Reva and why I love working there is there's a surgery portion that trained oral surgeons take care of and responsible for. There's a teeth portion, the prostidonic portion that trained prostadonic specialists are overseen and responsible for. There's the anesthesia portion that our our team in elite anesthesia is overseen and responsible for. There's the lab portion that we have a you know specialized lab that helps. And so again, just it's it we're really big on specialists doing special specialty things and uh and we think that's one of the reasons that uh that a lot of our patients do end up coming to us and that we see such great outcomes. Um it's just it's just you know for some reason in the dental world it's not as clear as in say the medical world. You never go to your general family doctor for a heart procedure you know heart cath and and for for some reason in dental it's not quite as clear. And so we really like that we're keeping that, you know, clear and and um and having specialists uh do specialty things. Um and then also just the culture, the people that we have there, the staff, everyone truly truly loves and cares for these patients and you can see it day in and day out. Um which is one reason we love working with you guys. You can see that you guys truly care for these patients. I'm receiving text messages later that night from your providers after they've done a case. Hey, how did Bob do after surgery? Wake up. Okay, he's doing okay. He's such a nice guy. I mean, you don't see that elsewhere all the time. And uh and so love working with with staff that wants the best for the patients that that um celebrates p the patients and uh and yeah, just just wouldn't do it any other way. It's it's yeah, love working there. I can personally attest to to both those things. I I uh you know we've worked with you worked with Reva as well for a long time and you as I think about what makes Reva different to me and and to our providers uh I think that's what stands out the most. I I think as a business we feel taken care of by Reva which is unique. you know, we work with a lot of people and and I can't say the same about everyone and I've always felt like um you guys care about our relationship more than anything else and that you know business is is tough. You know, everyone's got different motives. And I think, you know, elite at the core is trying to take good care of patients, good care of dentists, good care of the people that work with you guys, good care of our own employees, and I think I've always felt like Reva is the exact same. We've always aligned on those things, and it's it's been an awesome, easy partnership. No, it's it's reciprocated. Uh, for sure. Yeah. So dental implants changing a whole lot over the last we'll say 20 years but especially probably over the last five. What at Reva have you guys adopted technology-wise that has kind of furthered your practice more than anything else? Yeah, it's interesting you say that because even in the last four years since we've been around, there's been a lot of technological advances that mainly benefit the patient. And so we're always working with what who we view as the top, you know, uh companies in the in the dental implant world on the implant side, on the digital scanning side, um you know, all the 3D technology and and are in the process of testing some of these products for these companies before they come before they even come to market. We want to make sure that if there is something else available that improves, you know, the patient experience, the outcome, that we implement that immediately. And so we've already, you know, had things that we've implemented that weren't around four years ago. But some of those things are the new scanners. Um, as you know, as you go between, you know, offices and see the different uh scanners out there, we feel like the digital technology that we have and the digital workflow is is the absolute best that a patient can can have right now. Um, it minimizes the time in the chair, increases efficiency and accuracy. These new scanners are incredibly incredibly accurate which ultimately leads to a very very nice natural fit of the teeth and um and a set of teeth that looks natural, feels natural and and allows patients to function the way that they should. So all the digital technology that we have uh we believe is the best that you can you know that you can get right now. Um, and any ch any chance we have to improve that and as we mentioned, you know, as these products come out, we we do what we can to to, you know, change our workflow as needed to implement anything better that's coming to market. Sounds like Reva is about the best people, the best specialists, the best technology. Uh, completely humble about all of it. I think as a patient, if you go to Reva, you expect to have as good as as good of an experience as you could get anywhere else or better. That's that's that's the goal and everything. Again, all these decisions that can be made for multiple reasons. The reason at Reva is the patient and that's what we love. It's it's the patient. It's the patient outcome. And so that they can look in the mirror at the end of it and smile and say, "Yes, this is this is my smile. These are my teeth." And feel overjoyed that that they have them. That's that's our goal. So if my mom needs implants, I'm going to appreciate it. and we have done several family members that are staff at Reva and and being able to do that and help those those family members. It's it's one of the best feelings and and the the you know selfishly as as a provider, you know, the gratification that comes from helping a patient go from being edentilous, you know, without teeth or from having just a mouth full of broken down teeth to having the best smile in the room and being able to eat steak and vegetables again. It's just nothing else in my opinion compares to that in in my field of oral maxyl facial surgery. Out of all the things that I could be doing, I knew early on in my career. This is what I wanted to focus on. Um because of what I wanted to focus on. Um because of of of because of it being such a life-changing procedure because of this ultimately changing the direction of these people's lives. It's it's such a fun thing to be a part of and uh and love, you know, day in and day out being able to help these patients. So, I've been doing this almost as long as we've been working together, about five years. And I had no idea um how impactful your smile is. I had no idea until we started get, you know, doing, you know, implant dentistry and working with dentists, working with oral surgeons. Um Allx specifically is just uh incredibly impactful. And I same thing for me like the gratification that I get from facilitating these procedures as as an anesthesia provider. Um you know number one they're super nervous during the day which is is you know that's always part of anesthesia. Everyone's nervous for any type of Everyone's nervous for any type of surgery. Um, that's something that I love about anesthesia. But, you know, usually in a hospital they're getting a like a a colonoscopy or something like you don't walk out of your colonoscopy feeling like you do after getting a whole new smile, right? It's a very it's a very unique and different feeling. You know, as I mentioned in my training, there's a lot of things that an oral max facial surgeon can do. And uh and again, just in my opinion, nothing compares when when you give that patient that final set of beautiful teeth. Um it's like immediately they they look in the mirror and you can see in their eyes, they know their life has been changed and and we see them. They're getting better jobs. They're they're back out dating again. They're in the gym. Like it just just all the other things start coming together. It's like a catalyst for everything else they do in their life. You see him a year later and you hardly recognize him. you're like, "Are are you, you know, working with a company that we work with?" Or, "Oh, no, you're a patient." You know, it's like and and and yeah, it's just it's just the funnest thing to be a part of and and to use our skills in that way to help these patients. And so, absolutely love it. Never plan on stopping. And again, such a big part of it is, you know, this relationship um doing it right, doing it uh in a way that is safest for the patient um so that they can use these teeth afterwards. you know, we got to we got to do the what's right and what's safe so that so that they uh you know that they can actually get the teeth and use them. What do you think the long-term vision is for for Reva and for you and your career? Like what are we hoping to do over the next five to 20 years? Yep. You know, my wife occasionally asked me the same question and I am exactly and there's and there's surgeons that you know do these all on X procedures for a while and then shift to something else and they go back to the hospital. I never see myself doing anything else besides this procedure. It utilizes all of my surgical skills because it is it is a more complex intricate procedure which I like. Uh much different than taking out wisdom teeth. And so I love the procedure. I love um what I get to do for these patients. Uh the satisfaction that it brings me as a provider. Um and I love working with Reva. Reva is a company that I think you know they they believe in doing things the right way and I love being a part of that. Um, I love uh helping them grow and and you know, help other surgeons learn how to do this. They haven't had as much as much experience and so I I see myself doing that uh um you know for the for the foresee foreseeable future. Reva has always been easy for us to root for. You guys have always done things the right way and treated us well. Obviously treated patients well. I'd say um you know we get a lot of feedback on outcomes um from both patients and you know just being in the community and Reva is very very well regarded um and it's we're grateful to be associated with you guys. Oh that's great Jordan I could ask you questions all day. We could talk all day. I think we're uh I think we're out of time, but I really appreciate you you coming around. Of course. You've been one of our our greatest um friends, associates, allies throughout our time here at Elite, and I I hope it's reciprocated. I hope you guys feel the same way. 100%. Yep. Let's just get those mountain bikes out and hit the trails. Let's get rid. You can show me how to shoot. Exactly. Thanks so much. Thanks, man. I appreciate it. --- # Privacy Policy URL: https://www.eliteanesthesia.com/legal/privacy Section: Legal Covers what information is collected through the website and payment portal, how it is used, and the cookie policy. Includes the text messaging clause: mobile information is never sold or shared with third parties for promotional or marketing purposes, and mobile numbers are shared only with the carrier that delivers the messages. 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