Question for seasoned oregon denturists

[Affinity]

I would be more interested in ROI, as much as I hate to say that .. I think its a totally different career path than solely being a lab tech, more along the lines of what a prostho does compared to general dentist. It opens a lot of doors, and I believe that is the path to employment, the certification is the business. The problem as I see it, is not only is the program a years salary for a current tech, but you also need to take a year or two off, meaning little to no income for several years, lot of saving prior.. this is not a program I would get into debt over.

I would like to see a business plan for a denturist clinic, it seems like you would have to have a lot of turnover to make good money, and charge a premium.. when you charge a premium, people expect a 'Dr' to do the work. Not necessarily how I see it, but how patients perceive value. If you could do your internship with the Dr in your clinic, you may be able to make it work while still having income. Being in a clinic and doing the dentures sounds like a great business plan for a denturist. Low overhead, knowledgeable staff on hand, lab space already there.. You could possibly fast track if you can pass the pre-req tests and move on to the internship.

You could market the hell out of some crazy hybrid mesh, super premium, super lightweight, fully digital denture, milled valplasts, etc etc.. and you would be light years ahead of what Ive seen from any denturist in my state. The competition are the aspen dentals out there. I dont see denturists hurting for work, rarely see advertisements. Ive thought a bit about it as you can tell.

 

[TheLabGuy]

If you ever want to see a General Dentist shut up and get embarrassed at there lack of knowledge, throw them in a room with a Denturist. I've seen it many times and always get a good chuckle out of it. You have this God Complex Dentist and then the quiet guy sitting in the corner pipes up and smacks that GD right in the talkywhacker with a good ole dose of education. Much respect to those Denturists' from this guy!!!

 

[JonnyLathe]

The key to being a good and successful denturist is to know how to do your own lab work. I've met several denturists that come out of denturism school that are primarily taught the clinical side and are weak on the lab work. To be truly profitable you need to produce your own work and see your own patients at your own clinic.

You also have to be resilient to working with denture patients. It's one thing to be a really good lab tech and be done with everything once the case goes out the door, it's another to deliver to the patient and have to deal with the adjustments and unrealistic expectations.

 

[Affinity]

The key to being a good and successful denturist is to know how to do your own lab work. I've met several denturists that come out of denturism school that are primarily taught the clinical side and are weak on the lab work. To be truly profitable you need to produce your own work and see your own patients at your own clinic.

You also have to be resilient to working with denture patients. It's one thing to be a really good lab tech and be done with everything once the case goes out the door, it's another to deliver to the patient and have to deal with the adjustments and unrealistic expectations.

This is exactly why dentists dont like doing dentures. If you heard your beloved granny with wooden dentures complain everyday as a child, I guess it makes a good denturist down the road, that actually cares.

 

[JonnyLathe]

This is exactly why dentists dont like doing dentures. If you heard your beloved granny with wooden dentures complain everyday as a child, I guess it makes a good denturist down the road, that actually cares.

Dentists don't like doing dentures for a multitude of reasons. They don't make a lot of money compared to crowns/implants/hybrids, they're really hard to get done right, and some patients just really don't have ideal anatomy for them but are left with their only option.

 

[Denture Dude]

Dentists don't like doing dentures for a multitude of reasons. They don't make a lot of money compared to crowns/implants/hybrids, they're really hard to get done right, and some patients just really don't have ideal anatomy for them but are left with their only option.

I agree with this. And yet, they still do dentures. The docs resentment towards removables ends up seeping down to the lab. I’d like to see the resentful docs just stop doing dentures altogether. Either you want the job or you don’t. And, as an in house guy yourself, you know that us techs are often married to the patient just like the docs. Doc has to be a psychologist to the patient, we have to be psychologist to doc and patient.

 

[sidesh0wb0b]

Dentists don't like doing dentures for a multitude of reasons. They don't make a lot of money compared to crowns/implants/hybrids, they're really hard to get done right, and some patients just really don't have ideal anatomy for them but are left with their only option.

dentures dont "make a lot of money" for dentists that do not understand the process. and its our fault, in my opinion, from the lab end....we need to do more to train them on things. why? because dental schools arent teaching it!
1. tamper expectations to patients who have not had dentures before. ITS DIFFERENT! take care of your natural teeth and you likely wont be in dentures.
2. proper protocols and procedures for impression taking, bite/lip/smile/facial references
3. dialogue dialogue dialogue. i cant tell you how many cases per month we get back from try in with a note on the Rx that says "patient doesnt like xyz because their old dentures is abc" and of course, there was no notification that the patient had a denture to start with.

cmon lab peeps.lets step up our game!

 

[Affinity]

What do you expect when the industry is leading them towards this:

 

[bigj1972]

If they're not gonna bother to research on there own, I'm not wasting my time for free playing teacher.
Best motivation for learning is fees.

If they can pay dental school 100k's, they can pay my ass.
This ain't no free clinic.

There are endless materials available for free to study......I'm not gonna read it for them because they are too lazy, then repeat what it says. My free time is already in use.

 

[rkm rdt]

What do you expect when the industry is leading them towards this:
View attachment 42528

Nice job!
You can sit back and enjoy the playoffs while A2 D2 spits these out for you..May the all on 4s be with you.

 

[bigj1972]

Nice job!
You can sit back and enjoy the playoffs while A2 D2 spits these out for you..May the all on 4s be with you.

Don't use this one.... It has a bad motivator!!

 

[rkm rdt]

They all look the same to me

 

[bigj1972]

They all look the same to me

 

[sirmorty]

"What do you expect when the industry is leading them towards this:"

First Generation Zirconia crowns say Hi.



It will take a bit of time for the materials to advance, But with a little bit of stain and a some talent you can make it look good.

 

[JonnyLathe]

"What do you expect when the industry is leading them towards this:"

First Generation Zirconia crowns say Hi.

View attachment 42529

It will take a bit of time for the materials to advance, But with a little bit of stain and a some talent you can make it look good.

There's no doubt you can make printed dentures look amazing, especially if you do a gingival cutback and use some gradia and optiglaze. My biggest skepticism is their strength. If I were to do one long term it'd be with a really strong resin like Rodin Sculpture and make it monolithic.

 

[sirmorty]

Yeah well printed Dentures will just not have the same warranty and besides we have all read the literature.
You can just reprint one out and done. Magic!

 

[bigj1972]

Yeah well printed Dentures will just not have the same warranty and besides we have all read the literature.
You can just reprint one out and done. Magic!

And if dentist bought their own printer, they could print one for 75¢ and save all that money on the lab bill.

 

[Denture Dude]

Someone needs to start a motivational post laying out all the good to look forward to regarding lab industry. Id do it but I can’t think of much right now other than, inside work out of the weather, and. Gimme a min. I’ll think of some others.

 

[bigj1972]

Someone needs to start a motivational post laying out all the good to look forward to regarding lab industry. Id do it but I can’t think of much right now other than, inside work out of the weather, and. Gimme a min. I’ll think of some others.

We perform a medical art, providing a public service to those too lazy to brush.

 

[Affinity]

I was going to start a post on the intricacies of induced anxiety this job involves and how to deal with it, and I still might.. but Im afraid of the turns a thread like that could take..