Chew on This! A Dental Podcast

It’s not a great visualization but we make it work. Kevin spent time exploring TikTok fads and discovered crazy things people do to take care of their teeth. Teresa is following a story about a dentist who is faced with protecting her office and boy, is she in a rough situation. Then we wrap it up by talking about people who should just show up for their interviews. Why is that so difficult?

Episode 7 Highlights

• Hot from TikTok: New Dental Flossing Technique
• Do you close your office to save your employees?
• Hiring and interviewing - the struggle is real 

Quotes

• Quote from an Los Angeles office: “It’s just become a scary situation, they were defecating, urinating but now it has become violent.”
• Quote from an Los Angeles office: “I saw the camps grow almost every day I went down there.”
• “As an employer, it is on you to provide a safe working environment.”
• “Managers this is what we do - we take care of our people.”
• “We both saw the lack of talent coming 2-3 years ago.”
• “In 20 years of management I have hired 100s of people.”
• “People don’t show up or they lie… but we need to put on our big girl panties and get better at it [interviewing]”
• “My two best hires came from outside the dental industry.” 

Links from the episode:

• https://abc7.com/homelessness-van-nuys-la-dentist-elizabeth-rojas/6846854/
• Tik-Tok flossing  https://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/dentist-warns-against-tiktok-trend-22849921
• Interview Questions attached

*If you like the show then I’d appreciate a good rating. Tell your friends. Even podcasters ask for referrals!**

Connect with Kevin on his IG page and at DrBicuspid.com

Connect with Teresa on her IG page and on Facebook

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https://abc7.com/homelessness-van-nuys-la-dentist-elizabeth-rojas/6846854/

Tik-Tok flossing  https://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/dentist-warns-against-tiktok-trend-22849921

Interview Questions

We started out talking about Walmart’s continued push into healthcare including Medicare Advantage Dental Plans. If the carriers are a bit concerned should dental offices pay closer attention to this trend? We then moved on to the ethical dilemma of reporting employers when shady shenanigans are happening. It’s not as cut as dry as it seems because there can be real financial repercussions for some. 

Episode 6 Highlights

• Walmart enters the Medicare market
• Walmart and dentistry 
• DISC assessments
• Goal are consistent with personality traits 
• NY Dentist charged with forcibly touching a patient

Quotes

• “If this is them going after the stand alone independent market, I think they are going to make a killing.” 
• “You can now get a colonoscopy from Walmart for $270 dollars.” 
• “There is a 60 second personality test that I can use on anybody.”
• “DISC is something I have gotten into more and more to see how dental professionals and us as friends and neighbors interact with each other.” 
• “As a team member you have an obligation to a one strike and you're out policy when it comes to patient safety.”
• A common fear: “If I turn this (person) in, I will lose my job.”
• “I think it's important for us all to evaluate what our breaking point is.” 
• “If you are seeing things happen over and over again, at what point are you complicit?”

Episode Resources

• Email Kevin for information on the 60 second assessment: [email protected].
• The Right Plan for the Right Person: Introducing Walmart Insurance Services
• NY dentist allegedly touched patient forcibly, could face prison time?

Links

**If you like the show then I’d appreciate a good rating. Tell your friends. Even podcasters ask for referrals!**

Connect with Kevin on his IG page and at DrBicuspid.com

Connect with Teresa on her IG page and on Facebook

Seth Lookhart aka The Hoverboard Dentist is sentenced for violations ranging from Medicaid fraud and organ harvesting. What?? He’s not just a doc on a board - there’s more. We also discuss the fines levied against a doctor who was alleged to not do enough to protect employees. How could they have avoided this? Have you ever planned criminal behavior over text messages? One day we may do a dramatic reading of them. Stay tuned! 

Episode 5 Highlights

• Violation of Coronavirus Safety Guidelines lawsuit
• Hoverboard dentist court case

Quotes

• This doctor “was fined nearly $10,000 for violating Coronavirus safety guidelines”
• “OSHA was set up to protect the employee” 
• “I hope they went to management, and didn’t go straight to OSHA”
• “My job as a manager is to protect you” 
• “The stakes are higher, you have employees that are legitimately scared”
• “I am still amazed how many people don’t get OSHA or HIPAA training” 
• Regarding the hoverboard dentist court documents: “It is one of the most egregious Medicaid fraud cases I have had the pleasure of going through” 
• “They did this to themselves - iit was so blatant and obvious” 
• “They were leaving patients under sedation longer than was necessary because they wanted to bill that extra 15 minute increment” 
• “Judge said ‘you darn near could have killed people’” 
• “Moral of today’s stories: don’t be a bad person” 
• Another motto: “Get up in the morning…try not to kill anyone"

Links from the show:

Susan Gunn's podcast https://moneyinmoneyout.libsyn.com

Boston OSHA case:

• Georgetown Dentist Fined $9,500 For Violating Coronavirus Safety Guidelines

Hoverboard dentist articles:

• Hoverboarding dentist gets 12 years in prison for fraud, unlawful dental acts
• Anchorage dentist who defrauded Medicaid and extracted patient tooth while riding hoverboard sentenced to prison
• PDF of court documents: http://law.alaska.gov/pdf/criminal/MedFraud/2017/041717-LookhartInfo.pdf

**If you like the show then we’d appreciate a good rating. Tell your friends. Even podcasters ask for referrals!**

Connect with Kevin on his IG page and at DrBicuspid.com

Connect with Teresa on her IG page and on Facebook

Episode 4 Highlights

• Business Interruption Claims Denials
• The Future of Trade Shows
• World Health Organization announcement - did you talk to your patients about it? 
• The ADA’s membership fee - is it worth it?

Quotes

• “You’ve got to read the fine print” 
• On Dr. Brett Wells in Raleigh: “His office was destroyed by the rioters and I want to know if insurance covered it” 
• “The lawyers are going to make bank with this virus”
• “I think a lot of people are burned out on Zoom”
• One of the trade show draws “is to see people and the equipment” 
• On the International Dental Show, “Will I as an American be able to go?”
• Will trade shows adopt a “Don’t touch this, but you can look” policy?
• Teresa cries about how “CareCredit Pillow Pets are cut off”
• “I have seen people empty the candy bowl into their bag…go to CVS and buy yourself a Snickers, you don’t have to steal!” 
• Regarding the ADA’s role in the industry: “You need to have lobbyists or it’s like taking a knife to a gunfight” 

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Link to business interruption insurance article:

https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2020/09/04/581573.htm

CDA link about membership plans:

https://www.cda.org/Home/News-and-Events/Newsroom?Article-Details=Offering-a-discount-dental-plan-in-the-practice-%E2%80%95-the-basics

Links

**If you like the show then I’d appreciate a good rating. Tell your friends. Even podcasters ask for referrals!**

Connect with Kevin on his IG page and at DrBicuspid.com

Connect with Teresa on her IG page and on Facebook

Episode 3 Highlights

• Emergency Board Meeting of the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners 
• World Health Organization Statement
• Effects of COVID-19 for those with Periodontal Disease
• Kansas: Assistants scaling below the gum line
• Chicago MidWinter goes virtual for 2021

Quotes

• “You should probably know if your State Dental Board is active or not” 
• “COVID gives providers more opportunity to have conversations about the Oral Systemic Link”
• “We can’t be afraid as an industry to say ’this is what you need to know and why’”
• “Covid has been the best excuse for the dental industry: - use it to set up great systems!
• “If you are an assistant, or dentist listening to this, you should know that https://www.danb.org is an important resource”

Links

Texas State Board decisions: 

https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/regviewer$ext.RegPage?sl=R&app=1&p_dir=&p_rloc=380950&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_reg=380950&ti=22&pt=5&ch=108&rl=7&issue=09/04/2020&z_chk=

COVID lawsuit link: https://ctmirror.org/2020/08/10/covid-sparks-lawsuits-in-ct-but-not-the-epidemic-those-seeking-lawsuit-shield-for-businesses-expect/

ADA responds to the WHO’s statement on postponing routine dental care:

https://www.ada.org/en/press-room/news-releases/2020-archives/august/american-dental-association-dentistry-is-essential-health-care

Ep 2

In this alliterative episode Kevin brings up a recent court case brought against a dental office for not providing proper PPE. It was a matter of time before the cases started to show up. What could this mean for future litigation? Teresa is concerned about city flight and what that does to urban practices. How do you build up your numbers when your patients don’t work or live near your office? These are definitely interesting times. 

Episode 2 Highlights

• Dentists vs. Hygienists on PPE
• Pricing Transparency 
• Patient Populations Drying Up in Cities

Quotes

• “They were allegedly pushed out of their jobs because of the concerns they raised” 
• “I think it boils down to what is considered reasonable PPE”
• “There are a lot of guidelines in place that employers should be following” 
• “It’s not just the clinical team, managers I know are walking from their jobs” 
• “Our country is litigation happy…that's for sure” 
• “If something happens to your manager are you going to be able to step in?”
• “We are learning now how important leadership and communication are”
• “If you are an assistant, you are gold out there” 
• “Most managers could take a course every year in conflict resolution and learn something” 
• “You have to fight for your right to have your opinions heard” 
• “Make sure you are being as transparent as possible” 
• “I think we deserve all of the money we charge” 

Links from the show

• Arm and a Leg Podcast  https://armandalegshow.com/
• Information about the RDH lawsuit
• Transparency bill information: https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2019/11/15/trump-administration-announces-historic-price-transparency-and-lower-healthcare-costs-for-all-americans.html

**If you like the show then I’d appreciate a good rating. Tell your friends. Even podcasters ask for referrals!**

Connect with Kevin on his IG page and at DrBicuspid.com

Connect with Teresa on her IG page and on Facebook

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Episode 1 Highlights

• Walmart continues to expand into dentistry.
• What’s going on with your October schedule? 
• We’re excited to launch - let us know what you think!
• “Coming to America” is an underrated film. Trust us.

Quotes  

• “It started as Walmart Health and now they are opening all these dental clinics” 
• “These offices are beautiful, they are well equipped, and with the high end stuff” 
• “You know what is in Florida right?… a lot of old people” 
• “If you don’t think Walmart is going to be competition, you are absolutely fooling yourself”
• “Walmart is big enough to have purchasing power with a lot of insurance carriers” 
• “I think it is going to be hard to pass up a $25.00 evaluation when you are in pain”
• “Look at the 2nd week of your hygiene schedule for October” 
• “Be proactive, look at the rest of the quarter” 
• “The things you can control, now is the time to take control of them”
• “If a second wave does come, we have got to be better about communication"

Links

**If you like the show then I’d appreciate a good rating. Tell your friends. Even podcasters ask for referrals!**

Connect with Kevin on his IG page and at DrBicuspid.com

Connect with Teresa on her IG page, website and on Facebook