As dentists, we’re visual. We have a picture in our minds of what we want our dental office to look like. Or a dream of what we hope that someday it could be.
But working on the dream part is actually not the way to start the process of planning to achieve that dental practice! To do that you need to start on the much more boring and practical side ... and then work to determine what is necessary to meet your dreams.
4 key questions for planning a dental office
Here are 4 questions to consider as you plan for your dream dental practice:
1. What KIND of dental practice do you want to create?
That means – who do you want to be? Are you creating a place to make a living because you think that a certain kind of practice is a great business plan, or do you have a specific vision for the kind of work that you want to do? These can be very different practices!
2. Do you know of any location (town, or neighborhood) where you can do this kind of work?
If not, how will you figure that out? To get you started with thinking about this, take a look at these resources that will help you start thinking about site selection:
3. How many treatment rooms will you need to accomplish your goal?
Do you know how to calculate this? Are you guessing? You really should minimize the guessing - that’s risky! We can help with that. If you would like, one of our Practice Advisors would be happy to walk you through our Dental Office Construction Cost Calculator using your numbers to see if you’re on track to building the office of your dreams. Just contact us or give our team a call (1-800-275-2547) at your convenience. There's no charge or obligation for this service.
The Dental Office Construction Cost Calculator is a great resource, and it helps organize the various costs of a project based on dental operatory count. You just pick how many ops you want, whether you want to rent or own, and some basic cost/loan info. Then we can tell you how much the project will cost, and what your cash flow needs will be at opening. Remember, if this is a new practice, you’ll probably be losing money at first! The magic is to minimize that, yet not stifle growth!
4. What size space will you need to design an office that will support this practice vision?
Once these basic questions are addressed THEN you actually get to begin designing! Again, we can walk you through these big decisions – and we’re happy to talk to you at absolutely no cost. We’ve done this thousands of times!
How should you start designing your dental office?
So, as I’ve just mentioned, for virtually every office, the first design decision that you make is that you need to see if the requirements of your dream can be fitted to your potential space or onto the plot of land that you are considering! To do this we use a Blocking Diagram. This is the quickest, most reliable, least expensive, way to match your needs with a given space.
At Design Ergonomics, we often see doctors bring us floor plans that check one box — the right number of treatment rooms — but miss the bigger picture. For example, a plan might squeeze in 10 treatment rooms, yet leave only six seats in the staff lounge, a front desk built for two, or a lab that can handle just 20 cases. On paper, it looks like the goal was met. In reality, the design sets you up for bottlenecks, overworked staff, and frustrated patients. The problem? The designer delivered what you asked for — a certain number of treatment rooms — but ignored the space you must have to make those rooms work efficiently. That oversight can cost you productivity, profitability, and peace of mind for years to come.
These things should all have been handled long before the drawing of any Floor Plan!
By using a Blocking Diagram first, you are able to avoid all of these mistakes and rapidly decide on the potential of a space.
It’s incredibly fulfilling for us to help our clients build dental practices that they are proud to own, and that allow them to give back to their communities and provide for their families. For a complete reference to every step of starting a new practice, check out the Dental Start-Up Guide. In this book, my team and I share how you can transition from being an employee to leading your own successful practice.
Dr. David Ahearn
With over three decades of expertise in cosmetic and restorative dentistry, Dr. David Ahearn is a nationally recognized leader, educator, and innovator. His passion for cutting-edge technology and exceptional patient care is the driving force behind everything we do. As the founder of Design Ergonomics and Ergonomic Products, Dr. Ahearn has dedicated his career to designing, equipping, and training North America's most efficient and productive dental offices. His proven strategies help hundreds of practices reduce stress, boost productivity, and build sustainable, scalable growth each year. A speaker and educator, Dr. Ahearn continues to shape the future of dentistry, empowering thousands of dentists to transform their practices, improve the quality of life for their teams and families, and deliver outstanding care to their communities.
