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IRVINE, CALIF. JULY 08, 2020
Smile Brands Inc., one of the nation’s leading dental support organizations (DSO) providing business support services to approximately 450 affiliated offices across 18 states, today announced its Safe.Smile.Space.™ platform with the goal of making each location a model community for infection control, inclusivity, tolerance, and civil discourse.
In these turbulent times, many people are struggling with heightened levels of stress and apprehension. Smile Brands is launching Safe.Smile.Space. to create a framework for making each office a protective tent or model community in which all can experience the organization’s vision for a safer world. “In the best of times, dentistry is a demanding profession,” explains Smile Brands CEO, Steven C. Bilt. “Our current environment has added tremendous stress from the challenges of COVID-19 and broad social discord. While many patients are expressing greater appreciation for our work, we have also seen this climate negatively impact some patient behaviors. The goal of this program is to establish the principles for how we want all to behave in our offices as a model for the broader social dialogue.”
Key principles of Safe.Smile.Space. include:
1. We adhere to the strictest safety protocols to protect ourselves and our patients from infection.
2. We do not adjust our protocols for patients unwilling to do their part to ensure their safety and ours.
3. We support each other and patients with kindness, understanding, and empathy.
4. We do not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or racism. This includes violence and hateful or hurtful language, including micro-aggressions.
5. We are attuned to each other’s needs and seek to uplift each other’s spirits when needed.
As part of the program, all patients will be asked to do their part to help keep Smile Brands locations safe from infection and incivility. Team members will receive tools and training to help manage their own anxiety and support patients having difficulty coping due to the current environment.
About Smile Brands Inc.
Based in Irvine California, Smile Brands Inc. is one of the largest providers of support services to dental groups in the United States. The organization’s award-winning culture has made it the only dental support organization on Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work for the past three years. Additionally, the Company was recognized by Comparably in 2019 as a top large employer for Diversity, Women, and Culture. Smile Brands’ affiliated dentists benefit from industry-leading business support services, so they can spend more time caring for patients and less time on the administrative, marketing, and financial aspects of operating a dental practice. The organization supports approximately 450 affiliated practices and 60 brands across 18 states, including Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Ohio, Oregon, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. Smile Brands is a portfolio company of Gryphon Investors, a leading middle-market private equity firm based in San Francisco, CA. For more information, visit https://www.smilebrands.com.