Omnistar Beacon

Dental practices succeed and flourish when they have efficient and effective communication meetings. Take the Morning Huddle, for example. This episode illuminates the importance of communication. The team can't know what you want, if you don't say it!

We see doctors and their team become frustrated because someone was placed in a position with little or no training; or worse, continuing to do something the same way expecting a different result. This episode illuminates the importance of team training.

Episode 1 of our "Tip Series" begins with  Treatment Plan Acceptance.  Nearly every practice struggles when it comes to gaining  patient commitment but it doesn't have to be that way. Sheena Hindson, RDH and practice coach offers some ideas on how to overcome this common, yet costly, obstacle.  Treatment planning is often turned into a session of clinical jargon, the last thing a patient wants to hear.  Everyone knows the old saying, "it's all Greek to me".  Well, that's what patients hear when a clinician starts rattling off something that is more suited to a room full of dentists getting continuing education. Listen up for some simpler approaches and watch your treatment plans become production. 

Regardless of where you are in your career, selling to a Dental Support Organization is complicated. The devil is in the details. On the surface, a seller is mesmerized by an offer that may not be so straightforward. Upon closer inspection, a blind spot emerges. Our podcast exposes what you need to know in order to navigate the DSO landscape.

Getting ready for the North Carolina Dental Society Annual Session at Kingston Plantation. We will see you there...

Welcome, You are here at the Beacon! I am your host David Darab…prepare to have your Blind Spots Illuminated!So…It’s very appropriate, since our Team here at OmniStar Financial and Dental Systems Optimization are Experts in Blind Spots, that we devote this episode to Cognitive Biases which create Blind Spots.Let’s kick off our discussion with a quote from one of my favorite thinkers, Professor Richard Feynman, A theoretical Physicist, Exceptional Teacher, and Contributor to the Manhattan Project.> “The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool.”> Richard P. FeynmanIt is possible for people to be confused or unaware about something rather important.  The fact that most people don’t know they are missing it doesn’t make it any less of a problem for them or their practices.This is the best definition of a  Blind Spot!For those of us that remember the movie City Slickers,  you may recall the main character played by Billy Crystal,  went out West with his friends to

This episode will take a look at your schedule, most importantly how to make your schedule hum with productivity and not business!Let’s start with a quote from Stephen Covey…we all know him from his best-selling books,  The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, First Things First, and Principle-Centered Leadership.Stephen says…"The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities."I, you, we are constantly bombarded by marketing messages vying for our attention and clicks.These are commonly presented with email subject lines like the following I received over the past week…* How to help your practice emerge from the Pandemic…* Dentists' biggest practice challenges…* Steps to Take for an All-Star Practice…* Positioning your practice for Growth…* How to Turbocharge your Practice…* Marketing Ideas that will take your practice through the roof…Our Team here at OmniStar  DSO is all about "Simplifying the Complex!"I can think of no better or more productive area to focus on than your

Welcome…You are here at The Beacon…So glad you found us…I am David Darab, your host for this episode.Prepare to have your Blind Spots Illuminated “To begin, begin.” said William Wordsworth.Let’s do that and get started.It’s the New Year, 2021…Happy New Year to You!  We are all excited to see 2020 end, and our hopes are that the countless challenges we faced last year will soon come to an end too!The New Year is a time of reNEWal, time for a fresh start, and a time to reset, recalibrate, and recharge.  It is also a time we are constantly reminded about our New Years Resolutions.  Seems  that we can’t say New Year’s without adding the Resolution part too.   Every year we pass this same threshold with the same hopes and desires for the year ahead.What will you do??…do you have a plan??Will you offer up some recurring laundry list of New Year’s Resolutions like you may have done many times in the past;I’ll go first…- lose weight- workout more- eat better- work less- spend more time with your family- save more- sp

The topic for today is Air Purification.During this podcast, we will take a deeper dive into Air Purification Systems.  It is our intent to make you more knowledgeable of the choices and technologies available so you can make the best decision for your practice.By now you have been back in your practice working hard every day to adapt to the new “normal”.  We are realizing that we are in this COVID-19 Pandemic for the long haul now and that our work practices today may persist for the foreseeable future…this may, in fact, be the “new normal”.As concern for the transmission of HIV, AIDS, and Hep B ushered in the OSHA Blood Borne Pathogens Standard in the early 1990s, it is possible we may see an “Airborne Pathogens Standard” emerge from the present COVID-19 Pandemic.  Especially since we understand better that infection with COVID-19 comes primarily from breathing air in indoor spaces where people with the coronavirus have been.   The greater the exposure, the greater the risk of becoming infected.After urging

The primary focus of risk management is the protection of resources from losses due to legal action and the activities associated with risk management are easily adapted to a dental practice. The focus of these activities is directed at identifying areas of legal vulnerability and taking steps directed at mitigating or eliminating these risks. Additionally, purchasing insurance to offset potential financial losses is essential to risk management. The current areas of legal vulnerability center around issues of (1) absence of consent to care, (2) negligence, and (3) breach of contract. Consent to care, to be valid, must be informed and granted voluntarily. To meet the test of "informed," the information given to the patient must be in understandable language and contain the risks, benefits, and alternatives to the recommended treatment. Otherwise, it may not provide much of a defense. In addition, the patient must be given an opportunity to have his or her questions answered. Obtaining consent in th

You have been thinking, it might be time. You have enjoyed a wonderful career in dentistry, have grown and nurtured an exceptional practice with wonderful patients. You have invested heavily in CE, for your clinical and business skills along with staff development and training. You would like to share what you have learned with a young doctor and begin to consider transitioning your practice, but you still love what you do.You are not sure though. Should you consider an associate so you can work a few days less every week? The associate can work your old schedule, you say. But wait, do you have enough room in your office for two doctors to be treating patients at the same time, you have never done that. You think I can expand and add an operatory, maybe…possibly? Or, expand our hours, with a staggered schedule? What is the staff going to say?! How about another hygiene room too, our patients are waiting way too long to get into hygiene!Whoa, not so fast partner…Can I afford all of this?How much is my practice

We are focusing on one of the most sensitive subjects of the dental practice. That’s right, fees.  Do you routinely raise your fees? If you are like many dentists we encounter, the answer is no. Yet, keeping fees set at one rate for too long ultimately increases your overhead ratio and takes a bite out of profits. This is a controversial subject and one that is quite emotional for practice owners. Despite what many patients believe, dentists rarely feel comfortable about raising their fees. Patients also don’t realize how much overhead is required to operate a top-notch practice – and costs rise every year. Nevertheless, most practice owners are fearful of driving patients out the door if they raise their fees. This tendency to is seen every year, even in the face of a deteriorating bottom line. Now, I know this may be difficult to believe, but all is not lost.  Did you know that patients tend to focus on relationship, experience, and atmosphere, long before they focus on price?  Let’s dive in to this blind-s

Successful treatment planning begins with meaningful patient conversation. Learn how to ask the right questions and watch your profits rise.

“Fake News” for Dentists: Section 179With the year-end approaching we will soon be turning our attention to holiday celebrations and festivities; Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and Section 179 Deductions!If you are a small business owner, especially a dentist, you will be visited by equipment sales professionals, especially at year-end, who tout the incredible tax savings one can accrue by using Section 179. With those two words, “tax deduction”, dentists become easy prey for the dental equipment sales rep, and many times make large capital purchases for their tax benefits alone.In this podcast, we are going to spend some time learning more about Section 179, and illuminate several Blindspots the sales rep is sure to leave out.Section 179 is a part of the Internal Revenue Tax Code which allows small businesses to take an accelerated tax write-off in the year of purchase for equipment which would otherwise be depreciated, or expensed over time. Most of the equipment in a dental practice qualifies, and unde

That’s from the Film, Logan Lucky, and yes...we are going become “one of those Facebook boys” and get to know “all the twitters” too!Welcome, you’re here at The Beacon, so glad you found us! Prepare to have your Blind Spots Illuminated!In this Podcast episode we are getting Social with an introduction and primer to Social Media Marketing for your Practice.To start… Social Media is hard to get right, but easy to get wrong.Everyday, users send 500 million tweets, make 4.5 million likes on Facebook, and upload 95 million photos and videos to Instagram. Social Media is a powerful influencer in today’s competitive Marketplace. Everyone is doing it, using it and viewing it; the largest to the smallest businesses, Governments and Politicians, superstar athletes and actors, your friends, neighbors, and patients too, and so do you! Your Practice Needs a voice here also, but where do you start? What do you do? The choices are so numerous you can be overcome with “analysis paralysis” and do nothing, or keep doing the sa

PODCAST EPISODE (EP10) Analyzing Your Financial Statements Welcome, you’re here at The Beacon, so glad you found us! Prepare to have your Blind Spots Illuminated! Over the last 3 episodes we studied and examined the key financial statements you should be receiving monthly; 1. the balance sheet 2. the income statement or P&L 3. and the Statement of Cash Flows Now, what the heck are you supposed to do with all that information! In this episode we will examine some basic financial statement analysis. Much of this analysis involves calculating ratios from the data contained in the financial reports. As I promised at the very beginning, the math here is very simple…Division, nothing more complex than that! The listener may find it easier to follow this analysis and ratios by printing out the show notes and using them as a reference. Ratios offer points of comparison , which can reveal more than the raw numbers alone. Ratios can help you determine if the numbers are favorable or unfavorable. Ratios themse

In this Podcast we continue our deconstruction, decoding and deciphering of the key financial statements. Last episode we dug into the Income Statement. I hope you found that insightful. If you haven’t heard it yet no worries, check it out when we finish here! This Episode is about the STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS. The third and final Financial Report you should be reviewing monthly. To begin, let’s make sure your accountant is providing this report to you. I have found that the CASH FLOW STATEMENT is not always included in the monthly reports, but can be added simply by requesting it. And as you will learn here, this is an important report to review! In fact, it could be the most important report, since CASH is least subject to estimates and assumptions and critical to keep your business afloat. In each of the three financial statements we have studied, there is a measure, or indicator, of business performance; In the Balance Sheet we have Owner’s Equity, or Retained Earnings. In the Income Statement we