– I believe it is nearer “the worst of times.” Galloping inflation, talk
of $3 for a gallon of gasoline, excessively high interest rates, and
dentists finding more free and unused time in their appointment
books does not portend a hope for a bright future. industry-funded clinics. We are really comfortable when the
patient can elect to go where he or she wants to go – when you
and I can fail in our own right – where you and I are not denied
a crack at the competitive market place.
One young dentist of my acquaintance who wants to open his
office was told recently that a loan on his equipment would be at
the rate of 17.5 percent. And now for the bad news – no money is
readily available to him to be borrowed. Well, I must tell you, I am capable of adapting my methods to
preserve practice. I plan to survive no matter what is done to mess
up the system. I believe that a generally informed public, the
consumer, about whom so much is written, will want a system
that does not program a level of mediocrity. I believe that the
consumer will not ultimately support a system that places an
incentive on the provider not to perform.
What is