If you want to buy an established dental practice in Syracuse, New York, you need that practice to include key equipment. Otherwise, you face having to invest even more money in your new office before opening its doors. This sounds like a basic consideration of any practice purchase. But you can lose many things in the transition, if you do not know what to look for.
If you buy an established dental practice….. What dental equipment do you need as the minimum to start providing patient care?
No patient will take you seriously as their new Syracuse dentist, if your office appears shoddy or worn. They certainly will not become a patient if you do not have the equipment you need. When you buy an established dental practice in New York, ask what equipment stays in the office as part of the deal.
This equipment should include:
- Dental patient chairs
- Operating lights
- Operatory cabinetry
- Sterilization equipment
- Utility equipment
- X-ray imaging equipment
- Delivery systems and handpieces
As you consider your decision to buy an established dental practice, take an inventory of these items and others included in the listing. Ensure your purchase agreement notes these items. Ask about their condition and quality, testing or checking them whenever possible. Although few sellers in the dental industry would ever consider swindling you, much can be left unsaid when you do not ask questions.
Dental Chairs, Lights and Cabinetry
As you know, you cannot perform any patient exams or operations without dental patient chairs. Quality chairs are ergonomic to ensure patient comfort, while also meeting the needs of the hygienist, assistant and dentist. Check the quality of the padding and verify armrests move away from the seat to enable easy sitting and standing. Are the chairs programmable and do they include a touchpad or footswitch for the dentist’s control during examinations? If they do not meet these needs or appear worn, you may face upgrading the existing patient chairs.
Next, examine the dental operating lights and cabinetry. Are the lights well mounted and stable on the ceiling, wall or cabinet? Do they feature swing arms to enable changed light direction? Is the cabinetry suitable for keeping you organized and the practice looking neat? Does the cabinetry include mounted storage along an exam room wall, mobile options, islands and other easily-accessible solutions?
Sterilization and Utility Equipment
Sterilization keeps infection from spreading within the practice and is vital for patient health and safety. As you seek to buy the established practice in Syracuse, is the included sterilization equipment a steam or dry heat system? Does it seem suitable for reducing risk of injury to staff responsible for cleaning the dental tools?
Is the utility equipment needed to power your dental tools in good working order? This equipment provides pressurized air, suction and water used in every appointment and to power your vital tools and handpieces. It includes vacuums, dental compressors, separation tanks and amalgam separators.
X-Ray Imaging Equipment
You cannot provide your patients with the best possible treatment, without use of dental X-rays. When you seek to buy an established practice, does it come with traditional film X-ray equipment or does it feature modern digital X-ray technologies? Today’s patients appreciate the safety and quality of digital methods, which provide greater efficiency and clarity. Look for intraoral X-ray sensors, digital panoramic X-ray systems and phosphor plate X-ray systems, in particular.
Delivery Systems and Handpieces
Your dental delivery systems empower you through easier access to tools, including your handpieces, vacuums, air syringes and water syringes. Before you buy an established dental practice, look for a control panel and airflow control on these systems. Also look for a self-contained waterline featuring asepsis tubing and purging. These either mount on the patient chair or on a portable unit.
Does the practice come with a variety of handpieces, such as:
- Electric dental handpieces
- Hygiene handpieces
- Dental laboratory handpieces
- Low-speed air-driven handpieces
- High-speed air-driven handpieces
Are these tools suitable in their condition, quality, weight, head size and balance? Will they suit your hygienists, lab technician, specialists and dentists?
Making the Right Choices as You Buy an Established Dental Practice
Choosing to buy an established dental practice is a big decision. Although Syracuse, New York offers excellent options for sale now, ensure one of these offices is the right fit for your needs. Also ensure the practice comes with the basic equipment you need to open your office doors, or you have access to funding to buy these key items.
Make your decision to buy an established dental practice easier. Work with the professionals of Encompass IHC Dental Practice Transitions. Call us at 919-395-0444 for a free consultation today.
