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The UK welcomes its first pan-European dental provider, Colosseum Dental

One year after taking ownership of the UK’s third largest dental group, Zurich-based Colosseum Dental Group unveils a £5 million comprehensive modernisation programme focused on clinical excellence and best practice

“We’re really excited to be part of a pan-European group which is in the vanguard of best practice. We’re looking forward to sharing knowledge and outcomes, enabling us to push dental boundaries and enrich the dental experience for our patients.” – Ravi Rattan, Clinical Director, Colosseum Dental UK Ltd

Southern Dental, one of the nation’s largest chains of dentists, is now known as Colosseum Dental UK Ltd. The name change coincides with the first anniversary of Zurich-based Colosseum Dental’s acquisition of Southern Dental, which made it not only Europe’s fastest growing dental group, but also the only one with a network spanning the continent.

With a patient base in excess of 500,000, the majority of Colosseum’s 80 practices in the UK will undergo an extensive refurbishment programme, introducing a new look and feel to waiting rooms with upgraded treatment areas and clinical facilities as part of a £5 million investment in the company.

Peter Keegans, CEO, explained: “Our new owners have a long-term, 20-year vision which is enabling us to invest in upgrading our clinics to be state-of-the-art practices offering the highest standards.”

Local practices serving their community

Keegans continued: “We want to break with convention from other dental chains. Each of our 80 practices will be known by the local name patients have always referred to it. If, for example, ‘Hollybush Dental’ is how a practice has always been known colloquially, we’ve no intention of simply re-badging it as ‘Colosseum Dental’. In this way, each practice will retain its connection as an integral part of its community.

“Our name change marks a new era: a renewed energy and focus, an opportunity for cultural change and to align ourselves with the values of our European colleagues. Armed with a long-term vision, we can now invest in our practices and staff with confidence, knowing our patients will be the ultimate beneficiaries. Everyone wins.”

European scope for professional development and patient care

Being part of a European group means dentists have the chance to provide best practice based on the ability to observe long-term clinical outcomes in a huge, European-wide patient base. Treatment protocols, guidelines and KPIs are currently being developed across the group to provide highly informed patient care, and present the best possible treatment options to patients.

Ravi Rattan, Clinical Director at Colosseum Dental UK, who joined in 2016, is excited to be part of these changes: “At Colosseum Dental, we’re committed to raising clinical standards and offering more advanced treatment options and procedures to our patients. Our new specialist referral centres in Kettering and Kingston offer private as well as NHS treatments such as orthodontics, implants and facial aesthetics. Patients there will benefit from 3D CBCT scanners to enable better, safer treatment planning. Having new investment means we can continue to set up such centres: Our European colleagues are highly experienced in managing large referral centres, and we are learning from their success.”

The group’s aim is for no differences to exist between treatments available at, say, a practice in Switzlerand, and those available at one in Southern England. Lars Armbäck is Chief Dentist at Colosseum Dental Group. Armed with 30 years’ general practice and a special interest in prosthetics, implants, quality and treatment strategy, his focus is on best practice, dentist development and quality assurance. He’s excited by the addition of the 80 English clinics, noting, “Patients everywhere should be able to benefit from digital technologies that enable them to make informed choices about their care. Hence, as a group, we recently chose to invest in intraoral scanners for all patients, and our size means we can negotiate to help keep diagnostic and treatment prices affordable.”

Committed to professional development

Career choices at various levels are being made more flexible, in line with changing lifestyle requirements such as increased female and part time dentists in post. Samaneh Nezamivand-Chegini, a dentist who practises in Central London, having joined in 2012, now sits on the Clinical Board. She says, “It’s great to see my suggestions have been noted, despite my being relatively newly qualified. Peter [Keegans] and his team have listened and acted, which is in turn inspiring my clinical colleagues. On a personal level, I’m being supported to further my career and income via training in implantology.”

Financial solvency – tests fundamentally flawed

The Financial Capability & Capacity (FC&C) tests that are required when tendering or retendering for contracts with NHSE (NHS England) under the “Dynamic Purchasing System” are ‘fundamentally flawed’. That is according to NASDAL (The National Association of Specialist Dental Accountants and Lawyers) and Alan Suggett, specialist dental accountant and partner in UNW LLP.

“The solvency tests are flawed in their application to unincorporated businesses and most owner managed limited companies,” said Suggett. “NHSE don’t (want to?) understand this and their stance is that they are just standard accounting tests that are easily calculated so where is the problem? The problem is that from our initial testing, around 90 per cent of dental practices would fail the tests! As dental practices are regarded as one of the least risky sectors for business lending this is clearly ridiculous.

“The tests are appropriate for larger entities such as the larger corporate groups. However, it would be a cynic that might suggest this is by design rather than accident. As the tests are of a technical accounting nature, it seems that nobody involved (dentists and NHS employees including public sector accountants) understands the issues – they are only apparent to accountants who act for owner managed dental practices.”

Suggett continued: “NASDAL are working with the BDA to persuade NHSE that a cashflow forecast, supported if necessary by proof of deficit funding, is sufficient evidence of financial viability.”