by A. Turk
“Morty, is that what you did with Ben?”
“I’m not that smart. After seven years, I gave him twenty percent, and then in 1992 when Goldie got sick, I retired and gave him the remaining eighty percent. Listen to what I say, not what I do.”
Davis could see the surprise on Nichols’s face as he said, “But you’re still working. If I remember correctly, you only stayed retired about two months.”
“Yeah, but Ben overpays me as his associate, and he works me so hard, I don’t even have time to spend the dollar he does pay me each month. That’s after my raise. At first he only paid me a dollar a year.”
Twelve dollars a year didn’t go very far. It was their private joke.
Davis asked the next question: “Doctor, you trained in the sixties. Are there any procedures that a young dentist could offer your patients that you don’t perform? That would be a good way to expand your practice. So a younger dentist would perform slightly different procedures and would use different techniques.”
“Yes, but we’d get to the same place.”
Davis saw the opportunity he’d been waiting for to broach his brainchild of an idea: “What if you looked at this issue differently? What if you hired a medical doctor, let’s say an oral surgeon?”
Nichols replied, “I’d never thought about that possibility.”
Davis spoke with authority: “The fields of cosmetic dentistry and oral surgery overlap and have great synergy. An MD degree opens up what the practice could offer your patients. The MD license has much more flexibility than a DDS. Another possibility is a plastic surgeon who specialized in the face.”
Nichols warmed up to the idea: “I refer patients to oral surgeons all the time. I bet they earn fees in excess of a hundred grand a year off my referrals. With an MD associate I could keep those fees in house.”
Davis had anticipated the direction of this discussion and had directed Sammie to research several legal issues, including whether a DDS and an MD could practice together.
Sammie took her cue from her uncle and started reading from the memo she’d prepared for the meeting: “The Tennessee legislature does permit DDSs and MDs to practice together, but Dr. Nichols would have to reincorporate. Dr. Nichols’s current professional corporation only permitted the practice of dentistry. A new corporation would have to be formed, and its charter would provide that the corporation could provide both medical and dental services to the general public. The only snag is that the young doctor would have to own at least one share of stock in the new corporation because at least one of the owners would have to be licensed to practice medicine.”
Davis interrupted his niece: “That’s not a problem. The young doctor can own one share, and the bylaws can provide that all decisions are controlled by a majority vote. If you own ninety-nine percent, you’ll have absolute control. We can make a condition of ownership, employment by the corporation. So if the MD resigns or gets fired, he’ll have to sell his share for a predetermined price. We’ll also include a non-solicitation of patients. We can't prevent the new associate from competing with you because he'll be an MD and you're a DDS, but we can prevent him from competing with the practice and that's the same thing.”
“What’s the difference?”
It was Morty’s turn: “Don’t worry, Peter. We’ll take care of the legal side and protect your interests. You just find the right candidate, and we’ll get the paperwork done. Just make sure you do a thorough background check. All potential candidates must be vetted before they are interviewed. This person will represent you in the community. Your reputation will be tied with his or hers. A partnership is like a marriage except there’s no sex involved."
Everyone in the room laughed, and the meeting broke up.
CHAPTER SIX
THE SEARCH BEGINS
Wednesday, October 25, 1995
Dr. Nichols was tired of working a twelve-hour day, six days a week. The office opened at seven and closed at seven. Nichols believed that he owed the highest obligation of service to his patients, and that included availability. His patients were busy people, whose work schedules often dictated when they could be seen.
The staff worked the same hours, and even with overtime they were on the verge of rebellion. Nichols’s office manager, Donna Burns, kept the chaos manageable. She’d been with him since the beginning, more than twenty years.
In life, as in business, timing is everything. As the new millennium got closer, there was an unprecedented public awareness of the importance of one’s smile and a fascination by women, and even some men, with looking younger. This took many forms, but one of the rages was for women to enhance their lips, plump them up. Dr. Nichols, who already catered to the music industry, could cover the smile, but only an MD could perform surgery on the lips.
Nichols finished his last patient at five and let his staff go home early, except Donna. Tonight the search began for an exceptional MD candidate to expand Nichols’s practice.
Through the American Medical Association (AMA), Nichols had found a recruiting firm in Washington, DC that specialized in the placement of medical professionals. Nichols and Donna reviewed the company literature sent by McCormick & Associates and were impressed. When Nichols discussed his decision to hire the recruiter, Davis reminded him of Morty’s warning that each candidate had to be vetted. Nichols assured him that according to the literature McCormick did a complete investigation before any interview was conducted. That eased Davis’s mind; it was one less thing for him to worry about. McCormick professed to be the expert.
As the last staff member walked out, a tall gentleman with immaculately groomed silver hair walked in. He was well tailored, in a dark blue suit, crisp white button-down shirt, and red bow tie. He was tall, at least six four. He was extremely tan. He must have just come back from a long vacation in the sun.
Donna approached him, and when she shook his hand, she got a good whiff of his cologne. He smelled of gardenias.
“Mr. McCormick, I’m Donna Burns. We spoke on the phone several times. Welcome to Nashville.”
McCormick in a baritone voice responded, “Ms. Burns, a pleasure, your directions were perfect. I’ve checked into the Hermitage Hotel, and I’m looking forward to meeting Dr. Nichols. These site visits by my firm are important in the processes of finding the right candidate. What an unusual place for a dentist’s office. How old is this Tudor?”
“It’s turn of the century. There are a full kitchen upstairs and several offices. There are two third-floor turrets. That’s where the lookouts watched.”
“What do you mean?”
“This used to be a speakeasy during Prohibition. Before that it was a house of ill repute. Those turrets housed lookouts to watch for cops who might show up to raid the place. We still have chairs up there but no need to have anyone watching. Our dental practice operates within the bounds of the law.”
McCormick laughed and pointed out, “That can be a selling point for the new physician. Everybody enjoys a colorful story. I’ve been busy. We’ve got lined up three promising telephone interviews for tonight.”
As McCormick was finishing his sentence, Nichols walked up to him and extended his hand. “Dr. Peter Nichols. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Donna has told me a great deal about you, your firm, and the service you provide. Your survey questions and our prior telephone conversations were certainly thorough. I look forward to these telephone interviews you’ve chosen.”
McCormick smiled and, in a warm, friendly voice, said, “Call me Rocky. You’re Donna and Peter, right?” He assured Peter that each physician had been properly vetted, and each had been interviewed by first one of his associates and then by him.
Nichols thought the man was professional. Why shouldn’t he be? His fee of $10,000 applied toward twenty-five percent of the gross salary of the hired physician was pretty steep. Nichols was convinced if they found the right MD, McCormick’s fee would be well worth it.
“Thank you for agreeing to come to Nashville t
o meet with me. Can I offer you a soft drink or something stronger?”
“It’s all part of our service. We can’t make the right match without a site visit. By my being here for these interviews, we get to discuss our impressions right away and in person. That has real value in the selection process.”
“What will it be?”
“I’ll take a Jack Daniel’s on the rocks, since you’re offering. I understand the distillery is just south of Nashville.”
“Yes, it’s about forty miles south of Nashville. Would you believe it’s in a dry county? It’s a national brand, but the locals can’t even buy a bottle in their hometown of Lynchburg.”
Nichols led McCormick and Donna into his office and fixed all three of them a drink. After a few pleasantries, he asked, “Have you placed a physician with a dental office?”
“Yes, but only three times, all in California. We’ve been highly successful. Each practice grew exponentially by offering new services. I think your idea of combining a dental practice with a related medical field is ingenious.”
Nichols gave credit to his attorney and then moved on to describe the nature of his practice. The discussion included information that had already been provided by Donna when she completed the practice survey, but Nichols wanted to explain and McCormick was willing to listen and sip his drink.
Nichols indicated that either an oral surgeon or a plastic surgeon, who specialized in the maxillofacial area, would probably be the best fit. Nichols explained that he wasn’t a snob, but he preferred someone from an Ivy League school or at least a first-tier medical school.
Donna, who was far more cost conscious than Nichols, asked McCormick one of the more important questions: “What type of salary range and benefits can we expect to pay?”
McCormick replied, “That’s the million-dollar question, not literally a million. I would guesstimate that a good plastic candidate will cost at least $150,000 out of the box. An oral surgeon will be a little less, maybe $135,000. For benefits, you should expect moving expenses, malpractice insurance, continuing education costs, 401k, three weeks of vacation, and health, disability, and dental insurance. At least the dental insurance shouldn’t be a problem.”
The three laughed.
“Benefits usually run about twenty-five percent of salary,” McCormick added.
Nichols winced. “Just like your fee?”
Donna put in her two cents: “Boy, with your fee, that’s a total cost of almost $200,000. That’s quite an investment.”
Nichols was a bit nervous about the cost, but he wasn’t going to get cold feet. He needed an MD associate and eventually a partner to buy his practice.
McCormick broke Nichols’s chain of thought: “Well, one thing you’ve got working in your favor is Nashville. If your practice were in Detroit, I couldn’t attract anybody from a top-notch school. But Nashville is a good-sized town, not too big, not too small. Its demographics are almost perfect.”
Nichols, Donna, and McCormick spent the next thirty minutes discussing the three candidates: Dr. Mary Brennan, Dr. William Cattleman, and Dr. Charles Juan Batista Garcia. Each had impressive credentials.
Brennan was currently completing her fellowship in plastic surgery at Mass General Hospital in Boston. She went to Harvard Medical School and to Amherst as an undergraduate.
Cattleman, an oral surgeon, had been in private practice for two years in Chicago and went to Georgetown Medical School and William and Mary as an undergraduate. On the application, under his reasons for seeking a new position, he indicated he wanted to move to a smaller city, preferably in the South.
The last candidate, the youngest, was exotic. He was born in Majorca, a small island off the coast of Spain. He was schooled in Switzerland, graduated from Princeton at nineteen, then went to Columbia Medical School, and was about to complete his residency in oral surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Nichols asked about the credentialing process. McCormick assured him that even though none of the candidates were licensed in Tennessee, McCormick & Associates knew how to expedite the paperwork and get their candidates licensed in their states of employment.
It was agreed that Nichols would handle the telephone interviews and that Donna and McCormick would make notes and if necessary pass a note to Nichols for a follow-up question. He dialed the female candidate, Dr. Mary Brennan.
The conversation started off badly. She had disdain for insurance cases and preferred cash cosmetic procedures. She wasn’t open to the delay of collections. Nichols’s practice relied heavily on insurance payments. In what Nichols thought an inappropriate tone, the young female fellow insisted that she’d work only five days a week, no more than fifty hours.
McCormick had warned Nichols that most candidates would complain about the proposed six-day work schedule. In Nichols’s mind, that point was non-negotiable. If they didn’t want to work hard, like he did, then they were the wrong candidates. Brennan wasn’t the right candidate. He’d wasted his time.
The next call was to Dr. William Cattleman, an oral surgeon. Cattleman, now in Chicago, missed Virginia. He’d grown up in Richmond.
“The farthest north I’d been before Chicago was DC. I just prefer the slower pace of the South and its people. Tell me a little bit more about your practice, sir.”
Nichols described his cosmetic dental practice and how he wanted to retain an associate who could offer his patient base a wider degree of facial cosmetic procedures, including chins, lips, and noses.
Cattleman listened and then asked, “What are the partnership opportunities?”
Nichols explained that he was looking for a young associate who could work his way up to partner by buying into the practice over time, and Nichols could reduce his involvement as he relinquished control.
Cattleman questioned whether that would be possible because of his more than $100,000 of student loans. Nichols didn’t like the sound of that. Every dollar Cattleman paid back on his student loans was a dollar he couldn’t pay Nichols for his interest in the practice. Cattleman was just too far in a hole to be a reliable purchaser of the practice. Nichols told Cattleman he’d be back in touch.
Donna had been quiet during both conversations after the introductions. She broke her silence: “Brennan isn’t the right doctor for our practice. This isn’t a nine-to-six place.”
McCormick, who’d also been quiet, spoke up, “What did you think of Cattleman? He’s hungry. At least you’d know he’d work hard to get out of debt.”
“I’m not sure what that means. He’s in debt because he couldn’t afford college and medical school. That’s no crime. In fact, it’s admirable. But it also means his extra cash will go to pay off loans, not to purchase my practice.”
Donna shared her opinion: “Don’t be in a hurry. All of these candidates look great on paper, but you’ve got to expect that they’re all going to have some hidden and probably obvious blemish. Nobody’s perfect. You need to find a good fit. They’ve got to have the right personality. They’ve got to be willing to listen and learn from you, and when the time’s right, they’ve got to be able to lead. That will take a special individual. That kind of doctor isn’t just sitting around. We’re going to have to find him or her. Don’t be impatient.”
Nichols knew that Donna was right. I need to be patient, he thought as he dialed the last number.
“Dr. Garcia, may I help you?”
“Hello, this is Dr. Peter Nichols. My office manager, Donna Burns, and Rocky McCormick are also on the line with us. It’s a pleasure to meet you by telephone.”
Despite his exotic background, Dr. Garcia had no accent. “I’ve been looking forward to this call. Mr. McCormick has told me a great deal about both you and your practice. I think it’s a brilliant idea to associate an oral surgeon with your established cosmetic dental practice.”
“There seems to be a synergy in combining my practice with a related medical practice. I’ve gone as far as I can as a solo practitioner. I’m bringing patients
in the door. An MD surgeon would offer a world of other options to my patients.”
Nichols and Garcia spent the next twenty-five minutes talking about themselves and where they thought a combined dental-medical practice could go. Dr. Garcia was very articulate and personable. He obviously was well educated and well spoken. The young surgeon impressed Nichols.
“I’m looking for a place to start my career. I’ve been to Nashville, the city is growing, and I could see myself settling down there, finding the right woman, and starting a family. I’m willing to make an investment of my time and money in the right practice.”
“You don’t have student loans?”
“I’m debt free. I’ve been very lucky. I had the skills, but my parents could afford my education. My parents have also supplemented my income as a resident. They’re behind me a hundred percent.
“Just so you know, I love country music. The thought of treating some of your celebrity clients is very exciting. When I operate, I listen to country, over the objections of some of the doctors and nurses. It’s one of the perks of having been selected chief resident.”
Garcia hoped his last remark didn’t come off as bragging.
“I’d love to come down and visit your office and meet you in person. I’d be happy to pay my way down for the interview.”
Nichols assured him that wouldn’t be necessary and promised to be in touch.
After Garcia hung up, Nichols got really excited. He said, “He sounds perfect. He’s smart and personable and is willing to work hard. He’s not talking about working fifty hours a week; he’s got a fire in his belly.”
Donna waited for Nichols to take a breath. He’d really gotten himself worked up.
“He sounds a little arrogant to me, and it’s been my experience, if something seems too good to be true, then it is too good to be true,” she observed.
“Don’t be so negative. Let’s have him come down here, look him straight in the face, and make a decision.”
McCormick felt compelled to comment, “He’s exactly as advertised. He’s highly educated and motivated. He’s what you want and what he appears to be.”
