The following article is a summary of a talk Dr. John Ladd of Ladd Dental Group gave to the Kokomo Business Network on August 27, 2014.
“When you stop learning, you stop growing.” That’s Dr. John Ladd’s philosophy, a philosophy that’s moved him far beyond the typical path of dental practices to foster a culture of professional collaboration.
Fresh out of dental school, Dr. Ladd wanted to be part of a group practice so he could learn from and share experiences with his colleagues. As he recruited others to work with him, he invited them to shape the practice: “Some dentists are too perfectionistic: they know the effort they put into building their practice, and think others won’t appreciate it. But some of the new student graduates have good ideas too. You have to be more laissez faire about it.”
To build a “big, hairy, audacious goal” for his business, Dr. Ladd hired a coach, developed a strategic plan, and held quarterly meetings to teach core values to his staff. At each meeting, they would cover a new core value and recognize staff members who were living out the previous value. Dr. Ladd’s commitment to education continues today through many avenues, including a weekly book club he holds with his staff. Some of the books he recommends are The Leader Who Had No Title by Robin Sharma, Good to Great by Jim Collins, Topgrading by Brad Smart, and Mastering the Rockefeller Habits by Verne Harnish.
Dr. Ladd’s love for reading has served him well, because building and maintaining a large practice takes much more than a degree in dentistry. He’s learned to use innovative advertising techniques to help his practice stand out. When he and his wife began their dental practice together, it was a novelty to see a married couple doing business together. They took advantage of that fact and ran a newspaper ad that featured their photograph. Radio and billboards have also offered unique marketing opportunities, because they were formats that other dentists hadn’t traditionally considered.
As his practice has grown and changed, Dr. Ladd has never lost sight of his goal of providing consistent, quality care “one patient at a time; one emergency at a time.” He stays on top of developments in dental care, seeking the best ways to cut costs for his patients while providing the best level of care. For example, while root canals used to be a painful process that stretched over three appointments, they can now be completed within 15 minutes. There are even methods for generating a new nerve in a tooth to restore its function. He also digitized his X-ray imaging, to leverage patients’ resources toward treatment.
He and his staff are committed to giving back to the community. While caring for Peruvian patients along the Amazon River, Dr. Ladd realized that he didn’t have to go to another country to find people in need of dental care: there were many in his own community that needed dental attention but lacked the means to pay for it. Thus, ten years ago he began partnering with the ministry Dentistry from the Heart.
In one jam-packed day each year, Dr. Ladd, his staff, Ivy Tech dental assistant students, and other volunteers assemble to donate their time and talent to low-income patients. All told, they typically have 50-60 people working. Some patients line up at 6PM the night before in order to save a good spot.
During the event, each patient first visits one area to receive dental hygiene, and then moves to another area to receive treatment. There’s no waiting: if they need something done, it’s done right then and there. The dentists and hygienists can’t fix everything, but they can do a lot. By the time the sun goes down, over 200 people have received dental care.
Today, Dr. Ladd and his team of ten dentists and orthodontists serve patients at six different locations with Ladd Dental Group, offering services from basic dental care to orthodontics, TMJ treatment, and even dental implants. Dr. Ladd is currently working on new expansions and new collaborations. After all, “there are always new dental students graduating that need to be mentored.”