How the COVID-19 Pandemic Has Affected Dental Practice Transitions, One Year Later

It seems like a lifetime ago and also just yesterday that dental practices around the country were shutting down due to COVID-19. Every aspect of businesses has been affected, from practice valuation and employment to retirement plans and even emotional intelligence. Reopening doors meant discovering ways to heal your business, planning for practice recovery, and communicating changes to staff and patients in an effort to get them back. Dentists were at first surprised they weren’t deemed “health care workers” in order to qualify for the vaccine, but now dentists are being allowed to distribute. Here’s where dental practices stand during these still highly unusual times. 

Dental practices for sale

The pandemic has accelerated the typical dental transition process with an increasing number of dentists looking to sell their practices. While some sellers want to continue working post-sale to ease the transition, insufficient production could prevent the buyer from keeping the selling dentist on staff due to financial obligations.

For the buyers

The use of a practice broker to find a qualified candidate to purchase a dental practice has only been amplified as a result of the pandemic. Creating a buyer’s profile can only help locate a practice that meets all the buyer’s criteria, as well as narrow down the list of available buyers for a selling dentist.

Valuation

The truth is that although the typical practice production declined due to the pandemic, most have rebounded to pre-pandemic numbers. While collection levels during 2020 are considered, a best practice method for valuing is to look at multiple years to determine the practice’s worth.

Transition options

The pandemic has opened doors to transition options that might not have otherwise been considered. For example, sellers who wish to stay on longer than that should consider transitioning to a dental service organization, where there is more flexibility. The industry is continuing to consolidate, and the pandemic has not slowed this trend.

What’s next?

Contact the experts at Professional Transition Strategies for more guidance on how to keep your dental practice moving forward.