Evolution and economics in dental office design May 18, 2008
Posted by Dentist.Com in Office Design.Tags: Add new tag, Americans With Disabilities Act, dental office design, ergonomics
add a comment
Pat Carter and Jeff Carter, DDS
Most people would agree that designing an effective dental facility requires an intimate understanding of dentistry and a thoughtful identification of the design objectives for a specific practice. That statement alone involves a multitude of details and design decisions that can be quite overwhelming (assuming you want to attend to all the details and get it “right”). And while that is the primary part of the designing process, evolving factors outside of the control of practitioners will greatly impact the design and economics of current and future facilities.
What are some of those factors?
• Regulatory factors
In the early 1990s, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations required appropriate labeling, storage, and inventory access to certain regulated dental materials and drugs. It also mandated protective eyewear, gloves, and gowns for the dental staff; appropriate disposal of biohazardous materials; and compliance with sterilization processes to protect the general public (your patients). In response, dental office design began to include appropriately sized and accessible storage and inventory areas, staff areas with changing rooms and storage for gowns, appropriately labeled and located disposal drops, and thoughtfully conceived central sterilization areas.
Designing for young children – a competitive advantage May 18, 2008
Posted by Dentist.Com in Office Design.Tags: children's waiting rooms, pediatric office design, waiting room design
add a comment
Renee Reback
Providing creative waiting rooms and play spaces for children is an important consideration in today`s competitive marketplace. Given the current high U.S. birth rate, the census forecasts a total of over 40 million children under the age of 10 during the next decade. With a much stronger focus on the benefits of preventative dental care and early treatment, odds are that a significant portion of them will be in your waiting rooms. With some forethought and professional advice, designing space and providing the appropriate products to engage children can offer benefits beyond occupying them while in your office.
James Barnard is president of Playscapes Children`s Environments, a company that designs and manufactures children`s furniture and activities with emphasis on its use in the medical environment. “When you design for children in a health-care environment,” Barnard says, “you`re really designing for four separate clients – children, their parents, staff, and the facility owner. They all have separate needs which should be taken into account.”
Jay Levitt, DDS, is the owner of four Dentistry for Children PC practices outside Atlanta, Ga. Dr. Levitt worked with professionals to help him create waiting areas that function as more than just a place to sit and wait.
“Our waiting area is designed to communicate how important our patients are to us,” Dr. Levitt emphasized. “I not only want everything to look terrific, [but] I want an environment that makes our patients feel comfortable. We used to have staff bring in old books, puzzles, and games, but small pieces were lost and the game or puzzle became worthless. We now select more durable equipment without small pieces that can be lost or swallowed.”
Dental Office Design and productivity for the rest of us May 17, 2008
Posted by Dentist.Com in Office Design.Tags: architects, architecture, dental office design, dental offices, office designers, office redesign
comments closed
by David J. Ahearn, DDS
In every practitioner’s life there comes a time when it is clear that a physical office change must occur. For some doctors, this happens early in practice; for others, a reawakening occurs later in the practice life that makes this transition desirable. Nevertheless, it is a point through which every dedicated caregiver crosses at some time.
Because office redesign is such a rare event, we do not gain enough knowledge or experience to do justice to this critical task. For example, we place composites every day, and, as a result, our trade journals have hundreds of articles about them each month. Our knowledge is great in such areas — not so regarding future office planning.
Dental supply companies frequently will supply you with a floor plan at no up-front cost. Unfortunately, they can’t be expected to spend a great deal of time on productivity enhancements that only an actual practitioner would understand, nor can they be expected to labor long and hard to save you money. These plans tend to be simple to draw and very expensive to equip. It isn’t the supplier’s fault. Everything costs money and there is no such thing as a free lunch. This is a reasonable choice for practices that are relocating but not expanding, or for offices that are simply purchasing new equipment to replace outdated hardware rather than re-engineering or re-invigorating their practices.
High-end office designers offer great service and have the benefit of prior dental practice experience. They are noted for creating “image” practices for those dentists who desire them. Design costs alone for such offices can run into the tens of thousands of dollars as each step in the design process is individually handled. Moreover, due to the one-of-a-kind nature of the design, it is common for a project to take up to two years to complete.
