Dental Practice Heroes
Dr. Paul Etchison
Where dentists learn how to cut clinical days while increasing profits - without sacrificing patient care, cutting corners, or cranking volume. We teach you how to grow a scalable practice through communication, leadership, and effective management. Hosted by Dr. Paul Etchison, author of two books on dental practice management, dental coach, and owner of a $6M collections group practice in the south suburbs of Chicago, we provide actionable advice for practice owners who want to…
Recent Episodes
What Your Front Desk Wishes the Clinical Team Understood (And Vice Versa)
Jul 20, 2026This episode explores the persistent tension between front desk and clinical teams in dental practices, featuring three experienced practice owners discussing why these conflicts arise and how to resolve them. Dr. Paul Edison hosts Dr. Stephen Markowitz (owner of 6 practices with 156 employees near Boston) and Dr. Henry Ernst (owner of an 18-operatory practice in North Carolina) to share practical frameworks for improving communication, including leadership structures, trust exercises, and intentional handoff protocols.
Stop Hiring People to Solve This Problem
Jul 16, 2026Dr. Paul Atchison, host of the Dental Practice Heroes podcast, discusses why dental practices feel understaffed despite having adequate payroll, arguing the real issue is skipped steps and broken systems that create ripple effects across teams. Using examples like pre-collections and scheduling commitments, he demonstrates how small shortcuts by one team member cascade into larger workload problems downstream. Atchison provides three tactical takeaways for practice leaders: narrate the downstream impacts of mistakes, ask teams to identify who is affected when steps are skipped, and celebrate people who make others' jobs easier.
How to Hire a Hygienist Fast in a Tough Job Market
Jul 13, 2026Dr. Paul Edison hosts a discussion with fellow dental practice owners Dr. Stephen Markowitz (6 practices, Boston area) and Dr. Henry Ernst (18-operatory practice, North Carolina) about recruiting and hiring hygienists in a competitive job market. The episode covers differentiated hiring strategies, interview processes that assess culture fit, and the importance of retention alongside recruitment. Henry shares a success story of beating six other offices for a hygienist through an innovative 'speed meeting' interview process.
How to Fill Your Schedule Without a Single New Patient w/ Dr. Spencer Greer
Jul 9, 2026Dr. Spencer Greer, owner of two dental practices in Washington State and dental coach, discusses how dentists can dramatically increase production and case acceptance without acquiring new patients. The episode focuses on improving communication with existing patients about treatment needs, having one comprehensive, honest conversation rather than multiple conversations over time, and overcoming the fear of presenting necessary treatment.
Efficiency vs. Speed: What Actually Keeps You on Schedule
Jul 6, 2026Dr. Paul Atchison hosts a panel discussion with two experienced multi-doctor practice owners, Dr. Stephen Markowitz (6 practices in Boston) and Dr. Henry Ernst (18-operatory practice in North Carolina), exploring the distinction between rushing and efficiency in clinical dentistry. The episode focuses on practical strategies to improve procedural speed—including timing oneself, establishing repeatable systems, starting appointments on time, and avoiding common mistakes that create downstream problems—while maintaining quality patient care and reducing schedule delays.
Why You Can't Leave Your Work Stress at the Office w/ Neo Positivity
Jun 29, 2026Neopositivity, creator of the Thoughts Become Things movement, discusses how mindset and thought patterns directly influence business results, relationships, and personal fulfillment. The conversation explores how autopilot thinking limits dental practice owners, the neuroscience behind changing mental algorithms, and practical techniques for interrupting negative thought spirals. Neo shares real examples of transforming dental office culture by helping teams recognize that conflicts often stem from underlying thought patterns rather than surface issues.
You're Busy, So Why Isn't Your Practice Growing?
Jun 25, 2026Dr. Paul Edison, host of Dental Practice Heroes, delivers a solo episode on why dental practice owners stay busy without growing their practices. He contrasts reactive work (urgent fires) with proactive work (systems, training, planning) that actually drives growth, explaining how urgency hijacks schedules and prevents strategic progress. Edison shares his own crisis in 2021 when he realized his team leaders were stuck in reactive mode, and outlines his solution: deliberately scheduling protected time for proactive work. The episode concludes with a pitch for his VIP growth program focused on installing an operating system across entire practices.
The One Conversation That Raises the Standard in Your Dental Practice w/ Katherine Eitel Belt
Jun 23, 2026Katherine Eitel Belt, founder and CEO of Lion Speak, discusses the critical leadership skill of courageous conversations in dental practices. The episode explores invitation conversations—a framework for raising standards and holding accountability without creating resentment. Belt shares her personal origin story of being "laid off" as a dental assistant and rehired into a higher-standard role, and explains how practice owners can establish clear expectations, coach their teams consistently, and distinguish between supportive coaching and micromanagement.
The Owners Guide to Creating a Team Full of Victims
Jun 17, 2026Dr. Paul Edison, host of Dental Practice Heroes, delivers a solo episode on the "rescuer trap"—a critical leadership mistake where practice owners solve every problem for their team, creating dependency instead of ownership. Edison explains how well-intentioned help prevents team growth, shares a personal story about fixing front desk tardiness, and teaches dentists to shift from being rescuers to coaches by asking questions instead of providing answers.
Your Team Doesn't Want More Money (They Want This) with Bree Groff
Jun 15, 2026Bree Groff, author of 'Today Was Fun: A Book About Work, Seriously,' discusses how dental practice leaders can create engaging workplace cultures by prioritizing relationships, authenticity, and joy alongside productivity. She shares frameworks for leaders to acknowledge wins, make employees feel seen through vulnerability, and implement practical tools like one-on-ones, team check-ins, and personal "user manuals" to accelerate team bonding and performance.
Show artwork and metadata belong to the publisher and are shown here editorially, as part of documenting the corpus behind our analyses. Inclusion does not imply any endorsement of, or by, MeetBri.