Manage Your Practice
The MDS is dedicated to helping dental professionals manage their practices, from navigating guidelines and regulations to understanding the impact of risk management on their practice. Use these resources and tools to manage your practice more efficiently.
Practice Tools
These tools will streamline processes and increase efficiency in your practice.
View Practice Tools
Clinical Practice Guidelines
These guidelines will aid in clinical decision making to optimize patient care.
View Clinical GuidelinesCase Study #1 – General and Informed Consent
A 12-year-old girl is driven to a routine dental appointment by her 17-year-old sister. During the appointment, the dentist determines that two of her deciduous teeth need to be extracted. The dentist discusses findings with the patient and her sister. They collectively agree to extract the teeth. The dentist extracts the two teeth. The patient goes home and informs her mother about the extractions. The mother contacts both their dental insurance carrier and the Board of Registration in Dentistry (BORID) to file a complaint against the dentist, stating that “the dentist did not have our consent to do this treatment.”
BORID opened a case, and disciplinary action may follow, which could result in license sanctions.
Red Flags
- Neither the patient nor her sister was of the required age nor had the authority to consent to the extraction of teeth, as it fell outside the scope of general informed consent.
- No specific informed consent form was presented to the patient and or her sister. (Note: They still would not have been able to authorize it.)
- The parents were not informed of the dentist’s treatment recommendations.
- No specific informed consent was obtained from the parents by the dentist.
- The dentist violated Massachusetts regulations by not getting specific consent prior to performing extractions on a minor.
Massachusetts Regulations
General and informed consent must be obtained in writing, signed, and dated by the patient or their legal representative prior to the commencement of treatment. It shall not be obtained fraudulently from a patient under duress, or from one who is not mentally competent, of the age of majority, or an emancipated minor.
General Consent
Each licensee shall obtain general informed consent from the patient or their legal representative, allowing the licensee to examine, diagnose, and treat the patient. Procedures covered by general informed consent include basic restorative or preventive procedures, as well as permission to bill the patient’s insurer, if applicable.
Specific Informed Consent
Each licensee shall obtain from the patient or the patient’s legal representative a specific informed consent allowing the licensee to perform specialized treatment, including but not limited to administration of anesthesia other than local anesthesia, periodontal, endodontic, orthodontic, prosthetic, oral, and maxillofacial procedures, and specialized treatment for pediatric patients, including behavioral management.
Know the Law
As a licensed dental professional, you are required to know the Massachusetts regulations on dentistry.
Submit Case Study
Do you have an ethics in practice case study you would like to share or practice management-specific content you would like us to consider? Please email Ellen Factor, MDS director of dental practice and member engagement services.
Buying or selling your practice is one of the most critical decisions in your career. It’s with this in mind that the Massachusetts Dental Society (MDS) and the American Dental Association (ADA) have developed resources to assist you in the process. Whether you are selling or buying, the more information you have, the more prepared you can be. The following resources are designed to assist you in your transition.
Manuals and Resources from the ADA
Most dentists do not have complete control over the ultimate value of their practice, as numerous variables beyond their control (e.g., location, patient volume) also influence its value. Nevertheless, some factors within the dentist’s control can certainly enhance the salability and the value of a dental practice.
Utilize these additional resources provided by the American Dental Association. To access these resources, you may need to log in to ADA.org.