As a dentist in Texas you have built one of your most valuable assets, your dental practice. What would happen to this asset if you were unexpectedly disabled and prevented from working for several months or even permanently? Your asset would begin to immediately diminish in value. The DDR Dental Trust is a member organization of fellow dentists that is designed to help dentists protect the value of their practice.
The Dental Trust is designed to help run a dentist’s practice in the event of a disability, death or premature retirement. The members and the administrator actively work at maintaining a practice during temporary disability and also actively work to sell a practice after the dentist’s death or permanent disability. When a member dentist becomes disabled or dies, then the Dental Trust membership is called upon to aid the disabled member until the disabled dentist can return or the practice can be sold. The assisting members help with the continuation of the disabled member’s practice by treating their patients while absent from the practice.
Practically speaking, when a dentist becomes disabled, or dies, the Administrator obtains a list of member dentists in the area and immediately begins scheduling member dentists to fill in for the disabled dentist. Each member dentist usually works for a one-half day or one full day of appointments on one or several occasions, until the dentist returns. The member dentists work in the disabled dentist’s office, with their existing staff and treats the patients scheduled for that particular day.
All patient fees collected by the practice remain with the practice. DDR Members are NOT paid and serve the practice with the understanding that they too will be served in their time of need. The disabled member’s patients continue to receive the dental care that they would not otherwise be able to receive and the disabled member’s practice stays open rather than closing. This is the sole function of the Dental Trust. It has been working to save member’s dental practices for over 30 years.