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Excellence for the wellbeing of the patients

Excellence for the wellbeing of the patients

Interview with Oana Taban, CEO & Founder DENT ESTET

Q: 2020 is, most clearly, a difficult year, for everyone.  How  was  it  for  the  dental  industry,  and  more  specific,  how  did  you,   at   DENT   ESTET,   feel   the   impact   of   the   pandemic crisis? What are your expectations for the end of this challenging year?

O.T. Undoubtedly,  2020  was  and  still  is  a  challenging  year.  We  have  witnessed  a  disruption  in  our  lives,  our businesses, our way of acting and behaving. The dental industry all over the world and also in Romania,  as  we  are  locals  here,  had  passed  a  difficult period because of the almost 2 months of lockdown   and   lack   of   activity   imposed   by   the   Ministry of Health in March. DENT  ESTET  was  also  affected  by  this  pandemic,  but  we  are  making  consistent  efforts  to  recover  losses by the end of this year, so that the financial results at the end of 2020 be at the same range or even, surpass, those of the previous year. I  am  very  happy  that,  despite  this  special  context,  my team has grown stronger and we were able to continue  delivering  excellence  in  dental  medicine  for the direct benefit of the patients.

Q: DENT ESTET is the most complex dental network in Romania, with clinics in 3 of the  largest  cities  in  the  country.  What  leverage  do  you  have  over  other  clinics  on  the  Romanian market? What is your key for success, during these turbulent times?

O.T. 21 years of excellence in dentistry make us reliable, safe and trustworthy in the eyes of the patients, for whom safety and quality were the first two criteria of selection, regarding their dental treatments.DENT ESTET is an innovator and we are proud to have  the  first  complete  digitized  dental  clinic  in  Romania.  Technology  plays  an  important  role  in  our    treatment    approach,    it    offers    diagnose    accuracy,   results   predictability,   and   confidence   that at the end of the treatment the patient will get the smile he so much desired.To  make  the  best  of  technology,  DENT  ESTET  has  introduced,  for  the  first  time  in  the  Romanian  dentistry, the concept of the multidisciplinary team and we are happy that some of our first doctors are still part of this strong team. I      have      constantly      encouraged      individual      performance  and  we  have  offered  access  to  the  best worldwide trainings for our doctors. I believe that  an  irreproachable  medical  act  lays  in  great  practice,    constant    feedback,    and    continuous    learning. So,  when  a  patient  comes  to  DENT  ESTET,  he  will  have  at  his  disposal  a  complete  dedicate  team:  a  Patient  Care  Coordinator  to  follow  him  into  his  medical journey, a coordinating doctor to supervise the  treatment  evolution  and  dental  specialists  to  treat  him  and  make  sure  that  the  final  results  overcome his expectations.Also,  we  are  very  proud  to  be  the  only  dental  company  under  the  MedLife  Group,  the  one private medical network in Romania.  If in the previous    years    our    partnership    bloomed    in    opening new clinics in Romania, this year it means stability,  joint  strategies  to  be  better  and  stronger  for the patients.

Q: The   overall   medical   system   is   under   pressure  nowadays.  In  this  context,  did  you  notice  any  change  in  your  patients’  behavior? What trends can you identify regarding the attention paid to dental care since the debut of  the  Covid  crisis,  compared  to  the  previous  period?

O.T. Yes,  the  pandemic  changed  the  patients’  behavior.  There   are   patients   that   postpone   their   dental   treatments due to financial instability, but most of the   patients   are   becoming   more   aware   of   the   importance  of  their  dental  health  and  the  impact  that a poor dental state has on the general health, on   the   immunity,   and   even   on   the   emotional   aspects of their life. DENT ESTET has never ceased educating patients into   prevention,   as   our   team   of   doctors   has   continuously been a great voice in this matter. Moreover,  we  keep  informing  our  patients  about  the safety protocols in our clinics in order to make them feel safe and motivated to continue or to start their  dental  treatments  being  confident  that  they  will benefit of an irreproachable medical act in the safest environment.

Q: This  crisis  came  with  a  lot  of  changes  and       challenges.       How       was       the       readjustment to the “new normal”? Did the  crisis  shift  your  business  priorities  in  any  way?

O.T. The  new  normal  is  like  our  normal,  because  we  continued  to  work  at  our  best  and  to  innovate  in  the direct benefit of the patient. We never stopped developing   our   medical   team   and   perfect   our   medical expertise. That is why, even in this uncertain period, we built a  unique  partnership  with  Prof.  Paulo  Maló,  DDS,  PhD,  the  inventor  of  the  ALL-ON-4®  concept  and  the  creator  of  the  modern  implantology.  We  are  very  proud  that,  through  this  historical  moment,  DENT ESTET has put Romania on the international dentistry map. Through this collaboration, we say that “Excellence has chosen Excellence”, but going deeper, we mean that  excellence  has  chosen  the  wellbeing  of  the  patients. Prof. Paulo Maló, DDS, PhD will coordinate and  mentor  the  DENT  ESTET  team,  and  together  we are offering to the patients with complex cases and severe bone atrophy the chance to a new and normal life. And this is the greatest win of all!As  for  the  business  plans  we  had  for  this  year,  we  have  postponed  for  a  short  period  the  expansion  into   new   cities,   but   we   will   still   be   able   to   successfully  relaunch  them  in  the  first  months  of  the following year.

Q: In the current context, which are the top 5  priorities  on  your  CEO  agenda?  How  the  new  economic  reality  will  look  like,  in your opinion?

O.T. Safety has been, since the first DENT ESTET clinic opening,  one  of  my  top  priorities.  That  is  why,  in  our   clinics,   we   have   successfully   implemented   safety  and  sterilization  protocols,  following  the  local  authorities’  recommendations,  and  enriched  them  with  elements  from  the  dental  protocols  in  France, USA, UK, Germany and Italy. We are very focused to offer to the patients a safe dental place and to minimize the spreading of the SarS-CoV-2 virus. At DENT ESTET we commit to patient’s care above all,  innovation  comes  to  mind  and  our  constant  focus on investments in certified new technologies. It   all   translates   into   raising   the   bar   in   dental   treatments,  speeding  up  a  hassle-free  treatment  process and helping people return rapidly to their day to day life!DENT   ESTET   would   not   have   obtained   such   incredible  performances  over  the  years  without  a  strong and performant team. That is why, we have created a sharing culture which ultimately triggers individual initiative and superior performance and in  turn,  helps  new  doctors  to  easily  adopt  and  integrate.Obviously,  I  am  business-results  oriented  and focused  on  cost  efficiency,  an  important  aspect  to  allow the sustainability of the company and fuel its growth momentum.In sustaining future expansion, it means of course we  are  continuously  looking  into  the  drivers  of  both organic growth and enticing new patients.  It comes natural to us to reward the people who have entrusted  us  with  their  health  and  that  is  why  we  have  put  in  place  a  loyalty  program  through  of  which  we  want  to  assure  the  patients’  long  term  dental health.

Q: As you previously mentioned, you have recently      announced      an      important      partnership, with Prof. Paulo Malo, DDS, PhD, world expert in dental implantology, which is  a  clear  sign  that  DENT  ESTET  continues  to  develop, innovate, grow. Do you have any future plans   regarding   the   network   expansion,   new   lines of business, new partnerships?

O.T. We  are  always  open  to  innovation,  it’s  part  of  our  philosophy. The partnership with Prof. Paulo Maló, DDS, PhD points out three development directions of our practice. Firstly,  we  will  be  managing  the  complex  dental  cases  through  innovative  approach  and  constant  training at its highest level. Secondly, it provides us access  to  the  latest  technologies  in  implantology  and  to  the  knowledge  of  the  creator  of  modern  dentistry.And probably the most important is that we will be providing    the    Romanian    patients    access    to    specialized treatments that have proven success in complex cases.

Q:  You  are  a  visionary  entrepreneur.  From  your  perspective,  what  would  be  your  „Focus on ...“advice for the managers of local companies during this challenged period?

O.T. From  my  experience,  I  would  advise  Romanian  entrepreneurs  to  continue  doing  their  work  at  their best and in same time keeping close to their purpose and values. It is during the difficult times a reminder of why you exist as a company and what you love doing most would translate into a “yes we can” attitude and keep you going. And last but not least, adopt the new reality and be flexible  to  new  ideas,  be  agile  in  decision-making  process and keep monitoring results over time!

You can also consult the interview in the document below:

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DENT ESTET CLINIC SA