We understand that owning a dental practice isn’t for everyone. However, that shouldn’t stop you from doing what you love just because you don’t want to get bogged down with all the administrative tasks that are associated with running a dental office. If this sounds like you, there’s actually an option that may suit your preferences perfectly – becoming a dental associate. Dental associates are non-owner dentists who work in a practice, typically as either an employee of the practice or as an independent contractor. To help you gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be a dental associate, we’d like to give you some pros and cons.
Pros of Being a Dental Associate
Working as a dental associate under an experienced dentist can provide many advantages for an individual. Some of the most helpful advantages include:
- You’ll be able to learn from your colleagues about all aspects of the field of dentistry.
- You’ll receive valuable mentorship from an established doctor who can guide you in your career development
- You’ll be able to purely focus on improving your skills - as well as developing relationships with your patients.
- There will be no need to worry about all of the hassles of running a business.
- You’ll get to live a less hectic lifestyle as you’ll have fewer areas of dentistry to think about outside of work, improving your work-life balance.
- There will still be an assured income along with employment benefits.
- In some cases, you can set yourself up for a future buy-in status where you’ll have shared responsibilities.
Cons of Being a Dental Associate
Unfortunately, there are also cons about dental associates that you should think of as well. Some of these may include the following:
- You won’t have as much control over your professional life as you won’t always be able to change the environment, service, or operation of the practice.
- The procedures you do will likely be determined by the owner doctor rather than chosen by you, giving you less of a say in the type of dentistry you perform.
- It won’t be quite as easy to set goals for your future.
- As a new doctor in an established practice, you’ll need to gain a new patient base, which will require you to invest time and effort into gaining patient trust before becoming established within the practice.
- The financial gain may not be as lucrative as running your own practice.
- There’s not as much of a sense of accomplishment that you could get from running a successful practice.
So Which Is for You?
That’s not a decision we can make – it’s up to you! However, we still can give you a few things to think about if you haven’t yet made up your mind about what to do:
- Do you dislike reporting to others and have little control of your own schedule?
- Are you incredibly competitive and love to set goals for yourself to reach?
- Do you enjoy all the management and administrative aspects of running a business?
If you answered yes to these questions, the more likely it is that owning a dental practice is the best option for you. On the flip side, if you answered no, being a dental associate may be your best choice!
While the choice is completely up to you, Heartland Dental is able to provide you with the best of both worlds. Heartland Dental offers over 200+ hours of continuing education and provides you with a network of over 1,300 supported doctors to choose a mentor from. Being supported by Heartland Dental means you still get to run your own practice while maintaining your desired work-life balance. Interested in learning more about how to join Heartland Dental? Check us out here.