My wife is also a dentist, but we don’t practice together. She has her own practice, a multidoc, multispecialty monster—six docs in the office, including specialists, 17 treatment rooms, and a team of almost 30 people. They produce some big numbers, and that kind of production means they order a lot of supplies, lab work, implants, and more.
Because of their volume, she has negotiated with different companies for lower rates. She loves to play the game “how much do you pay for this?” with me because she always wins. Because of her volume, she pays substantially less than I do with my small four-operatory practice. I hated that game, but recently, I found something to help me called DDSUnited.
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DDSUnited is a membership group that can help smaller practices compete on prices with high-producing large offices by leveraging the numbers of all of us together. Our buying power is stronger when we combine forces, and DDSUnited facilitates that and makes it happen!
One of the biggest benefits of DDSUnited is the discount on supplies. Using their preferred supply house, which has all the routinely used brands and products (with companies such as 3M, Ivoclar, Kerr, Kuraray, Shofu, VistaApex) costs 15% to 60% less. I’ve noticed a significant reduction in my supply costs since joining DDSUnited, and their supply house, Dental City, gets orders to me quickly and efficiently.
Laboratory partnerships for reduced costs is another main benefit of DDSUnited. There are four dental labs with partnerships with DDSUnited. Through group bargaining, DDSUnited has negotiated a reduction in lab fees of between 20-30%. These are full-service labs that will competently reduce your lab costs on everything from night guards, retainers, and single-unit posterior zirconia crowns all the way to highly esthetic full-mouth rehabs and fixed implant hybrids. Reducing lab costs by 20-30% without sacrificing quality is an amazing benefit.
The third main benefit with DDSUnited is with implants. We all know implants and regenerative supplies are expensive; procedures such as bone grafts have a high price tag for regular practices. DDSUnited has partnered with an implant company to reduce these costs. I’m not talking about some fly-by-night knock-off implant company, either—the partner is Straumann! Yes, that Straumann. DDSUnited members get major discounts on Straumann implants, parts, grafting material, membranes, and more. That even extends to other Straumann brand products such as scanners and clear aligners.
The best part about DDSUnited is that there’s no cost to join and see what benefits you can receive in the way of discounts and access. Their concierge level service is amazing, and it will definitely save you money across many different areas of your practice. Don’t walk…RUN to your computer and join DDSUnited today. You won’t be sorry you did.
Editor's note: This article appeared in the January 2024 print edition of Dental Economics magazine. Dentists in North America are eligible for a complimentary print subscription. Sign up here.
Joshua Austin, DDS, MAGD, is a graduate and former faculty member of the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio School of Dentistry. Author of Dental Economics’ Pearls for Your Practice column, Dr. Austin lectures nationally on products, dental technology, online reputation management, and social media. He maintains a full-time restorative dentistry private practice in San Antonio, Texas. You may contact Dr. Austin at [email protected].
