Cliff's Notes

Inventory Control, Your Business Can be a Power House

Cliff’s Notes for January 10, 2010
…..E-Blast…..

Cliff Marsh, Henry Schein ……Cell: 201-321-7494……Fax: 201-262-2210…..E-mail: cliff.marsh@henryschein.com

“A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus”
Martin Luther King, Jr.

In This Week’s Issue
* Defense Wins Games, Part II – The Advantage of Inventory Control Software!
*Defense Wins Games, Part III – Your Business is a Power House!
* GC America gains “Kosher Status”!
* Teens Without Teeth, A DPR Web Exclusive!

The Advantage of Inventory Control Software…………………………………………
Every day the world is moving faster. Keeping pace with new state & federal regulations as well as rising costs of just doing business is devouring our most precious resource, time. We need to spend more hours today to generate the same revenue as we did in the past let alone increase it. We need to devote those hours to line items that increase production and retained earnings.

The cost of inventory (fluid, sustained or capital) for an organization based in production, such as a dental office, is negligible compared to the cost of managing it. Now I’ll explain that statement. According to an ADA survey of their membership on business expenses, dental supplies average 6.2% of gross production. That leaves 93.8% of operational expenses on a P&L statement that need to be addressed. Employee costs alone are approximately 30.3%. Now, in the real world, a 20% savings on dental supplies will change your P&L by 3/10 of 1%. However, if you have a $500k practice, you will still need to manage $75k in sustained inventory. Over the past couple of years, I have seen my clients, that instituted inventory software control, increase inventory turns, increase cash flow and realize more retained earnings. Retained earnings, that’s the bottom line, ask your financial advisor about the virtues.

What exactly will inventory control software do?
1 No more guess work with product numbers or sizes.
2 Product usage levels. See the last 3 dates a product was ordered as well as quantities.
3 Category expenses. See the exact amounts of products used for each category and the expenses (i.e. X-ray, infection control, cosmetic, etc.).
4 Monthly detailed expense reports to help form budgets.
5 Access to all national manufacturer free goods promotions and rebates.
6 Notification of all product promotions exclusive to your organization.
7 Proof of Purchase print-outs that eliminate the need of finding invoices for free goods.
8 Automatic coordination of quarterly purchases to obtain all free goods and rebates.
9 Direct access to warehouse inventory.
10 Next day delivery & 99.5% fill rates.
11 Instant UPS tracking of shipments.
12 Access to all invoice and credit reprints.
13 Less staff time spent on non-revenue generating responsibilities.
14 Control of supply expenses.

How much time does your staff spend shopping for prices? How much do you pay your staff? How much $$ are you really saving? Is their time more valuable doing something else like dealing with patients or scheduling? Your staff’s time is your investment, what’s the ROI?

Inventory control software is free and easy to use. It is a stand-alone program that does not affect any other software programs and offers its own on-line encrypted warehouse connections.

Your Business is a Power House!………………………………………………………………………..
It doesn’t matter how big your organization is or the clientele you service, if you focus your business relationships, your practice will run smoother and you will reduce your expenses as they relate to production. Here is a simple analogy, you can use light to illuminate a room or you can concentrate it and create a laser.

Years ago when I had a small company, we were looking for a new banking relationship. There is always a little intimidation when asking for money and we were no different until a trusted advisor laughed and called us a little power house. We had a clean operation that wanted to grow and needed solid business relationships along with experienced professional consultation to help us steer the ship. There wasn’t one bank that didn’t want to talk to us and show us their value in helping us “do business”. Doing business, or in your case is seeing patients and takes a lot of time. All of your business relationship need to respect that and earn their value by helping you maximize your production time.

If you are planning on practicing dentistry for more than 5 years, you will need a relationship with organizations that can provide all the resources you need when you need them. Start by looking at what your business requires on a day by day basis. Look at clinical, front desk, management, legal, financial, etc. Then select some companies to interview. Offer to focus your business with one source and in return, they need to show you what additional services and values they can offer.

The lowest price should not be the main criteria. Price shopping is a consumer mentality. Value shopping is a business mentality. As an example, we had wanted to add an addition to some commercial property. It was a 3600 sq ft cinderblock warehouse extension. We had plans drawn, got city approval and began interviewing contractors. The contractor we chose was the 2nd most expensive, $60k above the lowest, but we had a good gut feeling about a quality effort backed by some great recommendations. The work was done to specs and the contractor handled all of the issues. We were able to keep business flowing with nothing more than a few little speed bumps. We focused our business and the value of the service we got in return could not be measured. We invested in a relationship and the ROI was off the charts.

MI Paste by GC America Gains “Kosher Status”………………………………………

K MESHULASH / TRIANGLE K INC.
1240 EAST 29 STREET YORK BROOKLYN, NEW YORK 11210
TEL: 718-258-5596 FAX: 718-252-8418
Rabbi Jehoseph Ralbag Rabbi Aryeh Ralbag
Coordinator
בס”ד
30/09/2009
KOSHER CERTIFICATE
This is to state that the following products produced by GC CORPORATION located in Japan are under our Rabbinical Supervision and are KOSHERCHALAVI (Dairy) לאוכלי אבקת חלב נוכרי . Our Rabbinical Supervision visits the plant on a regular basis and has checked that all the ingredients are Kosher.
The following products are Kosher-chalavi:
שמות המוצרים:
Tooth Mousse
MI paste
Tooth Mousse Plus
MI Paste Plus
A D may be placed on the above items.
This certificate is valid until30/09/2010 We hereby affix our signature today 30/09/2009 in Brooklyn, New York,
Respectfully,
Rabbi Aryeh Ralbag, Rabbinical Coordinator

Teens Without Teeth, A DPR Web Exclusive………………………………………………
December 30, 2009 | dentalproductsreport.com
web exclusive
Teens without teeth
A genetic condition prevents permanent teeth from forming. Hear from one woman living with the condition and what you can do to help.

By Lauren Bryant, Associate Web Editor

Mackensey Carter
Both mother and daughter suffer from the same symptoms. Their upper right and left laterals never grew in after their baby teeth fell out. “We’ve been told that this is a genetic condition,” said Mackensey Carter, a Georgetown student who learned of her condition at an early age.
“I discovered that I had this condition when I was very young because right when I lost all my baby teeth and my permanent teeth were coming in, I noticed that nothing was growing in the spots by my two front teeth,” she said. “I was already planning on having orthodontic work done and x-rays confirmed my condition.”
Studying the gene pool
Although information on this condition can be difficult to find, Drs. Rena D’Souza and Sylvia Frazier-Bowers from the University of Texas Dental branch at Houston, have been conducting a study about this genetic condition. According to the study, congenitally missing teeth can occur in two variations: hypodontia and oligodontia. Hypodontia is characterized by the absence of six or fewer permanent teeth, while oligodontia is characterized by the absence of more than six permanent teeth.
The researchers’ efforts revealed that a mutation in the PAX9 gene was responsible for a rare form of oligodontia, missing molars, in a Houston family. Finding more genes responsible for congenitally missing teeth may unravel the genetic code for all teeth, and it may potentially provide for genetic screening and new forms of treatment for individuals with this condition1.
Treatment options
For Carter, treatment options came from the orthodontist who discovered the missing bone and congenitally missing teeth during x-rays.
“The options he gave me for the future were either implants or a complete upper bridge,” Carter said. “ He explained that implants were the better option because they are more permanent and more cosmetically attractive.”
Carter’s orthodontist also recommended she wear braces to fix her bite and straighten her teeth before processes were put in place to repair the gaps and missing teeth in her bite.
“He recommended that I look into implants around the age of 18 because by that time my teeth would not be shifting as much,” she said.
Because Carter did not have any bone to support an implant structure for her upper right and left laterals, her orthodontist started by moving the two teeth on the other side of the missing teeth over so bone could grow in the gap where implants would eventually be placed.
After a few months, the teeth were moved back to their normal position and two prosthetic teeth were constructed and fastened onto her braces so the gaps would not be noticeable. After the braces were removed, the doctor constructed a retainer with prosthetic teeth to create the illusion that she was not missing any teeth.
Unfortunately for Carter, the orthodontic work that had been done to form bone for implant placement had not created bone with enough depth to withstand a fixed implant.
“This meant I would have to have bone grafting done, which is what my orthodontist was hoping to avoid,” Carter said. “So last summer I had bone grafting done so I will hopefully be able to get implants in the beginning of the upcoming summer.”
Advice for others
Getting multiple opinions about treatment options is the No. 1 piece of advice Carter has for other patients with her condition.
“Also make sure you speak to your dentist, oral surgeon or orthodontist about any worries or concerns you might have about your treatment plan so they can be addressed early,” she said.
Flexibility also is important, Carter said. It’s uncertain how teeth will respond to treatment. Patients must be willing to accept successful treatment along with failed treatment and remember each body reacts differently.
To dentists or other doctors who may be treating someone with this condition, Carter says to listen to that patient’s concerns about treatment.
“For me, it was important that my oral surgeon was very understanding about my situation and how it could be embarrassing or uncomfortable,” Carter said. “For all dental professionals, care about your patients’ emotional and physical well-being because dental procedures can sometimes be uncomfortable and worrisome to patients.”

Cliff Marsh
Henry Schein Dental
P.O. Box 663, 45 Rt. 46 East, Suite 605
Pine Brook, NJ 07058
tel. 201-321-7494
fax.201-262-2210
e-mail. cliff.marsh@henryschein.com
http://www.cliffsnotesblog.wordpress.com

January 10, 2010 - Posted by Cliff's Notes Blog | 1