“We care more” – About care as a business philosophy | Interview with Bogdan Ciucu, co-founder of Dental Elite

In an increasingly competitive medical market, where performance is often measured solely in numbers, Dental Elite offers another stake: care. Started as a family business in Brașov, the Dental Elite chain of dental clinics has grown based on the idea that when the organization takes care of doctors, they can, in turn, take real care of patients. State-of-the-art technology is essential in this model, but not sufficient without passionate and committed dentists. In this interview, Bogdan Ciucu, co-founder, talks about how care becomes organizational culture and performance engine in a modern medical business.

What exactly does patient care mean in a modern dental clinic, from your perspective?

For us, care starts from the moment the patient enters the clinic and feels that someone is paying real attention to him. We are not only talking about the medical act, but about the entire process: how we communicate before the first visit, how the patient feels in the office, how clearly and transparently we explain the treatment plan, what the medical and financial options are, but also what happens after they leave the clinic.

We are interested in knowing whether the patient is well after the treatment, not just during it. We want patients “for life”. Of course, most often you solve a specific problem, but our responsibility is to take care of that person for years in a row – that is, that he has the confidence to return to the clinic at any time. When you do things right before, during and after treatment, you no longer feel the need to look at the competition. We only look at ourselves and wonder if we are better today than yesterday.

Technology increases the predictability of dental treatments, but it does not replace empathy

How does this concern translate into investment in technology – and why isn't technology enough, if not doubled by empathy?

Technology is extremely important. In recent years it has greatly raised the bar in medicine and significantly reduced natural human error. It helps us provide more predictable, less invasive and more comfortable treatments for the patient.

But technology alone is not enough. If you don't have people who know how to use it and who are constantly trained, it's just a powerful but underutilized piece of equipment. That's why for us, technology always goes hand in hand with empathy and constant investment in the medical education of our team. We have partnerships with international leaders and put a lot of emphasis on continuous courses and training. Technology without well-trained people and without real care for the patient does not achieve its purpose.

Talk often about the team of patient who. What role does it play and what does it change in the patient experience?

The team of patient who is an essential link between doctor and patient. Many patient questions are not strictly medical: how long does the treatment take, what are the costs, what payment options are there, how can appointments be adjusted. This is where colleagues from the non-medical team come in, with support, clear and transparent information – but above all with understanding.

The doctors are focused on the medical act, and the team of patient who it takes these needs and manages them quickly and efficiently. Basically, the patient has a dedicated advisor who helps them navigate more easily through the entire clinic experience. And when medical questions arise, our colleagues talk directly with doctors and come back with clear answers. Thus, the patient is never left without support or information.

How do you select and train doctors so that professional competence and empathy go hand in hand?

Doctors come with a foundation formed in college, but we all know that this is not enough in real practice. Dentistry is a “stealing” profession – you learn a lot from practice and from working with other very good doctors. That is why we are looking for doctors who have experience in multidisciplinary teams and who want to constantly learn.

In interviews, you can immediately feel if a doctor is curious, if he attends classes, if he follows medical leaders and if he has a real desire to evolve. State-of-the-art technology and serious training only work when put in the hands of people who want to get better year after year.

The interdisciplinary model in modern dentistry

How did the idea of ​​having all specialties under one roof come about and what real patient problems does this model solve? What compromises have you refused precisely to protect this form of care?

Dentistry has specialized a lot in recent years. It is almost impossible for a single doctor to keep up with all the specializations, technologies and innovations. The interdisciplinary model solves exactly this problem and provides the patient with the most suitable treatments possible. Sometimes it can even help identify problems that might otherwise have been missed.

In complex cases, the treatment plan is discussed by several specialists, which significantly increases the chances of success. Of course, this model sometimes requires more time and more visits from the patient, but we refused to compromise on the human quality of doctors, professional level and openness to technology. This is our standard and we do not discount from it.

Why is it important that caring starts with colleagues, not just the patient?

Because if you take care of people, people will take care of patients. A team that feels respected, supported and listened to will pass this on to their patients.

Care is contagious. It shows in the way they communicate, in their attention to detail and in their involvement. We are not perfect, but where we see we can do things better, we change them.

Bogdan Ciucu: “We always encourage our colleagues to participate in courses, seminars or conferences”

How do you invest in the training and continuous improvement of the medical team?

Learning is not a one-time event, but an ongoing process. Those who attend external courses come back and share the information with the rest of the team so that the know-how multiplies. In addition, we regularly organize interdisciplinary medical meetings, where we discuss real cases and exchange experience. We always encourage our colleagues to participate in courses, seminars or conferences.

What a role it plays knowledge sharing in a medical organization and how do you specifically encourage it?

Knowledge sharingis essential for the quality of the medical act. We encourage it through regular medical meetings, interdisciplinary discussions, and a setting where doctors are encouraged to ask for and give feedback.

When several specialists analyze the same case, the treatment plan is more robust and safer for the patient. Basically, we work as a team, not individually, and this is directly reflected in medical outcomes and the patient experience.

About Dental Elite Dental Clinics

Dental Elite is a network of dental clinics with a presence in Bucharest and Brașov, founded in 2018, which offers complete dental services, from general dentistry and dental aesthetics to implantology, oral surgery and orthodontics. The network operates on a multidisciplinary model, where complex cases are analyzed and treated by teams made up of doctors with different specializations.

Dental Elite dental clinics use modern digital technologies for diagnosis and treatment, with an emphasis on medical predictability and patient comfort. Currently, the network counts 4 clinics and 28 dental units, after starting from a single clinic with 4 units, opened in Brașov. In the next 5 years, Dental Elite aims to expand to more than 20 clinics nationwide.

In the current medical activity, Dental Elite uses internationally recognized dental implant systems and technologies for which it holds certifications, including: the use of the Sky fast&fixed implant system (Bredent), certified clinics for implant systems such as Zimmer Biomet and MegaGen, certification for dental whitening procedures with the Zoom lamp.

The operating model of the Dental Elite network emphasizes collaboration between specialties, continuous training of the medical team and a patient pathway that integrates both the medical act and non-medical support through dedicated patient care teams.

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