Küster Dental Weblog

Dental Office Design Progress Photos

I always enjoy being able to share progress photos of dental office design projects. I especially enjoy doing so once paint starts going on the walls. On this dental office design remodel project the crew worked throughout the weekend to get a jump on the holiday week. I’ve very excited by what they got accomplished.

This is a view of the Reception Room before the dental office design remodel started.

Here is another view of the Reception Area before the remodel started.

Here is the new Reception Area. The spot covered in cardboard is the new fireplace!

This view gives you a hint at how the Reception Area is changing.

Here is a before shot looking down the hall toward the operatories.

This is a view down the same hallway. A bit different, huh?

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Finished Pictures of a Dental Office Design Project

Posted in dental design, dental office design, interior design with tags dental office, dental office design, dental office interior design, interior dental design, office design, dental design, dental interior design, interior design for dental clinic, interior dental office design on 20 November 2009 by James

These have been a while in coming, but I finally have some finished photos of a recent dental office design project to share. The charge from the client was to create a space that felt like an Apple computer store. You’ll have to let me know how well you think I did in capturing the same clean look and feel that the stores have.

Walking in the front door

The front office - complete with water feature!

Looking into an operatory

Another operatory view

The dental office sterilization room and lab

Looking down the hall

Client Bath - View 1

Client Bath - View 2

The staff lounge

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What Does Your Brand Smell Like?

Posted in branding, dental design, dental office design, interior branding, interior design with tags branding, client experience, customer experience, dental design, dental experience, dental interior design, dental office interior design, emotional branding, interior branding, interior dental design, interior dental office design, interior design, interior design for dental clinic, office design on 19 November 2009 by James

Silly question? Not really. One of the strongest senses we have and one that makes the greatest impression on how we remember spaces and experiences is what those spaces and experiences smell like. Much of the appeal of coffee houses is the aromatic smell of coffee. I know people that don’t even really like drinking coffee that like to hang out in coffee houses because they do like the smell of them.

Think back to when you were a kid and your mom just baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies. What did the house smell like as the sheets of cookies came out of the oven? Isn’t this one of the most pleasant memories you have from childhood? Or, take the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. How often is the smell of pumpkin pie, fresh baked bread, and turkey roasting referenced when someone is describing their Thanksgiving memories? Obviously, the smells of the holiday have as much if not more to do with its special place in the American psyche as the actual flavors and time spent with family and friends.

In crafting a dental office design that builds a strong interior brand for clients it is as important to pay attention to the smells that are created as it is to the color, light, and textures that are used. To create a strong, positive mental image in the minds of patients, we want to engage as many of their senses in the dental office design as we possibly can. The sense of smell cannot be omitted from the list.

So, does your dental office smell bright and clean? Does it smell of antiseptic? How about vanilla, flowers, or spice? What images does its smell conjure up in the minds of your patients? Think about it, “What does your brand smell like?”

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Keep Regulations in Mind When Designing Your Office

Posted in dental design, dental office design, interior design with tags ADA, dental design, dental interior design, dental office, dental office design, dental office interior design, HIPAA, interior dental design, interior design, interior design for dental clinic, office design, OSHA on 17 November 2009 by James

In creating a successful dental office design there are so many more things to consider beyond just the color of the walls and what artwork is going to hang in the reception area. Most notably is making sure the design conforms to all governmental regulations such as ADA, OSHA, and HIPAA. In complying with these various codes and regulations, one area that often does not get the consideration its due is compliance with OSHA’s Blood Borne Pathogen regulations. “How does this regulation impact dental office design,” you ask? Good question!

One area that immediately springs to mind is designing the sharps disposal area to have the proper isolation and covers to be in compliance with the regulations. Sharps and biohazard disposal must be separated from other forms of waste disposal and these containers must be closed. When designing the waste receptacles and casework for these items, one must be certain to take the regulations into consideration.

Another area is the handling of uniforms. Any uniform or article of clothing that has come in contact with bodily fluids (blood) must be separated from other garments. Additionally, these garments are not to be worn from the premises. So, having a proper container for doctors and staff to put uniforms for proper cleaning before they leave the dental office is important. Additionally, having a proper place for doctors and staff to change into street clothes prior to leaving the office at lunch or the end of the day is just a matter of courtesy. Who really wants to change in a small bathroom or in the middle of the staff lounge?

Keeping various governmental regulations in mind when planning a dental office design will prevent a whole host of possible liability and fine exposure later.

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The Five Elements Gain Two New Members

Posted in branding, dental design, dental office design, interior branding, interior design with tags ADA, branding, dental design, dental interior design, dental office branding, dental office design, dental office interior design, dental practice marketing, emotional branding, HIPAA, human interaction, interior branding, interior dental design, interior dental office design, interior design, interior design for dental clinic, marketing, office design, OSHA on 13 November 2009 by James

Wednesday I spoke to periodontal students at the IU School of Dentistry. As I suspected, the students were thoroughly delightful, asked wonderful questions, and I really had a great time. We had a great dialogue on dental office design for a full two hours!

Later that same day I met with Torrey Dawley from Sandpaper Studio and we filled a full hour talking about branding and how important impressions make on the success of any business, not only dental offices. Again, another fully engaging conversation in which the time just flew by!

So, what does all of this have to do with dental office design and where am I going with today’s post? Well, between my preparation for Wednesday’s talk to the dental students on interior branding and dental office design and Wednesday afternoon’s talk with Torrey, I’ve come to realize that my Five Elements of Interior Branding for creating a successful dental office design are missing two important elements. Now, it goes without saying, as I’ve blogged about both of these points several times, that I’ve been including them in the dental office designs that I’ve created. What I haven’t done, prior to now, is quantify them and give them their own place within the Interior Branding Elements framework.

So, what are these two additional elements inquiring minds want to know? Regulations and Costuming. The Five Elements become Seven.

The three areas of HIPAA, OSHA, and ADA, not to mention the other various building codes, have a huge impact on the design considerations for any dental office design project and their importance cannot be overlooked. Thus, I’ve decided to give them their own place within The Elements.

Costuming deals with what the dentist and the dental staff are wearing. In the Element Human Interaction I’ve always addressed the importance of making conscious decisions regarding how one talks with patients, scripting this, and training to the script, and I’ve touched from time-to-time on the dress of the staff. I believe the dress, or costuming, has been getting short-changed and it is time to give it its own Element.

Look for me to be addressing both of these in further detail in upcoming posts on dental office design. Look, too, for an updated white paper that includes these elements. I’ll keep you posted on when that’s ready for download. Have a great weekend everyone!

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Talking to Students

Posted in branding, dental design, dental office design, interior branding, interior design with tags ADA, Americans with Disabilities Act, branding, client experience, customer experience, dental cancellation rates, dental cancellations, dental design, dental experience, dental interior design, dental office, dental office branding, dental office design, dental office interior design, dental practice marketing, emotional branding, HIPAA, interior branding, interior dental design, interior dental office design, interior design for dental clinic, marketing, office design, OSHA on 11 November 2009 by James

Today I’m off to talk to graduate students in the periodontal program at the IU School of Dentistry. I always enjoy opportunities to talk to dental students (well, any students for that matter) about design and the considerations that go into creating a good dental office design. They are often surprised to learn that there is more to a good dental office design than pretty throw pillows or nice artwork on the walls.

Now, I’m not exactly sure why they are surprised as they can readily relate that there is more to creating a great looking smile and keeping one’s teeth for a lifetime than just brushing every day. In a society obsessed with image, we carry this obsession over from just having sparkling, white teeth to having great dental offices, too.

This means the office must capture the essence of the dentist and the dental practice. This is the “defining touch” that I describe in my five elements of interior branding. This “defining touch” along with the other elements helps keep patients coming back and referring their friends to the dental practice.

Additionally, the dental office design must adhere to all of the HIPAA, OSHA, and ADA regulations for a safe and compliant workspace. Believe me, there is nothing in any of these regulations that even remotely touches on throw pillows or artwork! Ha!

My sessions with students are often engaging and filled with excellent dialogue. I’ll let you know how today’s session goes!

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Colors, Colors, Colors!

Posted in branding, dental design, dental office design, interior branding, interior design with tags branding, client experience, customer experience, dental design, dental experience, dental interior design, dental office, dental office branding, dental office design, dental office interior design, dental practice marketing, emotional branding, eye strain, interior branding, interior dental design, interior dental office design, interior design, interior design for dental clinic, office design on 9 November 2009 by James

This past weekend I’ve been working on the paint colors for a dental office design project I’m currently working on. Many may feel this is no big deal; however, I tend to spend a considerable amount of time on this portion of a dental office design project to make certain that the feel and flow is just right. While paint is relatively cheap and wall colors can change easily, not so true of the flooring, lighting, and furnishings that have been purchased as part of the project. Besides, who wants to repaint all the time? Not me!

Colors impact our mood. I think most school kids are taught that some colors are warm colors and some are cool colors. The warm colors (red, yellow, orange) arouse and stimulate, while the cool colors (blue, green, violet) calm us down. My high school used yellows and oranges in the halls to excite us and help us speed from class to class during the five minutes between classes. Then, the classrooms were painted in blues and greens to calm us down and get ready to learn. I visited the school a few years ago and found that the entire school had been repainted using the school colors of blue and white in the halls and tans in the class rooms. Obviously, whoever was in charge of the new color scheme missed the point of the original one. Makes me wonder if kids still make it to class on time?

Back on my current dental office design project, I’m down to just the right shade of beige for most of the walls. “Why is this such a big deal,” you ask? Well, some have more yellow in them than others, so they coordinate with the other tones that are fixed, such as the furniture and upholstery than others. The monkey wrench in this particular dental office design project is the available colors for the vinyl base. I’m not happy with any of my choices relative to everything else on the project. Today I’ll be in search for other base manufacturers to see what color choices they have as options. I’ll keep you posted. After all, not all beiges are created equal!

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Come Join Us at the November IDERA Meeting!

Posted in general with tags dental practice marketing, IDDS, IDERA, Indiana Dental Association, Indianapolis District Dental Society on 6 November 2009 by James

Join us for the November Indiana Dental Education and Resource Association (IDERA) meeting on Friday, 13 November from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. This month the meeting will be held in the offices of Midway Dental Supply at 6451 Saguaro Court, Indianapolis. Many thanks to Jeff Paden and the team at Midway Dental for being our hosts!

Our guest speakers this month will be Dr Dave Wolf, President of the IDDS Foundation and Carolyn Hansen, Executive Director of the Indianapolis District Dental Society (IDDS). They will be sharing with us the important work that the IDDS Foundation performs in helping those in need.

Come mix and mingle with other dental industry professionals, meet Dr Wolf and Carolyn, make new friends and connections, and learn why it is so important to support the IDDS Foundation.

I look forward to seeing you next week!

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Getting the Proper Flow

Posted in dental design, dental office design, ergonomics, interior design with tags interior design, dental office design, ergonomics, dental office interior design, interior dental design, fine motor skills, office design, dental design, dental interior design, interior design for dental clinic, dental office ergonomics, interior dental office design on 5 November 2009 by James

When working with your designer on your new dental office design there are two areas that you want to make sure you spend adequate time so that a good plan is achieved. One is the front reception area and the other is your sterilization room. If you have an on-site lab, you might also want to spend some time on this area, too.

Why do I say this? There is a lot of detail in these areas. While your dental office designer may have laid out dozens of reception areas and sterilization rooms for other clients, your particular collection of equipment and work habits directly impact an efficient design of both the space and casework. The casework should incorporate your equipment to provide for easy reach and access. This will diminish the chances for repetitive use injuries amongst your staff. The heights of cabinets and counters should also make for easy and comfortable working conditions. Plus, they must accommodate the physically handicapped whether they are currently on your staff or not.

Working with my clients on mapping out these areas is a real joy for me. The time spent learning about their particular dental practice so I can design a flow and create a plan that serves their needs is one of the most enjoyable parts of being a dental office designer. So, when scheduling time with your dental office designer, remember to allow for adequate time to be spent on these critical areas. Improved efficiencies in both reception and sterilization which translates into healthier bottom lines await you if you do!

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3-D Digital X-rays are Cool!

Posted in branding, dental design, dental office design, interior branding, interior design with tags branding, cancellations, client experience, customer experience, dental cancellation rates, dental design, dental experience, dental interior design, dental office branding, dental office design, dental office interior design, dental office technology, IDERA, interior branding, interior dental design, interior dental office design, interior design, interior design for dental clinic, office design on 2 November 2009 by James

Last week I attended a seminar on 3-D digital X-ray. What amazing technology! The things that are able to be done with cone beam systems and the improvement in patient diagnostics and care that are possible are simply mind-blowing. Okay, the real engineer geek in me was coming out during the seminar, as I was really getting excited about this.

So, what does this have to do with dental office design? Well, my third element of interior branding is the Application of Technology. In this element we make use of technology to improve the patient experience. There are many ways to accomplish this task and now, I’ve learned about another one that fits the bill. Being able to show a patient, in brilliant, 3-D images, exactly what is going on inside their mouth and with their care can only heighten the level of trust and comfort level they experience under care. An increased level of trust and comfort translates into fewer canceled appointments and more referrals; both of which are crucial to the bottom line of any dental practice.

My job as a designer is to help my clients integrate such technology into their overall branding message. All of the elements need to work together to create a complete dental office design. Focusing too much on any one element to the detriment of the others will leave the branding message weak and vulnerable and diminish the potential returns from the investment made in that area.

While I’m at it I need to put in a plug for Jim Pienkowski from Planmeca. If you have an opportunity to hear Jim speak, I recommend you do so. He is a charming and engaging speaker and he knows his subject matter well. The members of the Indiana Dental Education & Resource Association (IDERA) were able to schedule Jim to speak at their Fall Workshop courtesy of Jeff Paden and the good folks at Midway Dental Supply.

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