The problem we solve: Affordable dental care is seldom available for most Americans. Many people would deny themselves restorative dentristy because of the financial cost.
About our solution: While visiting a friend in Costa Rica, I found myself with a painful tooth that needed attention from a dentist. It was the moment that I considered seeing a local dentist, overseas, the same way my friend would see a professional dentist locally. We would like to create a website that allows patients/consumers to rank and recommend dental clinics for restorative dentistry, which may include implants, bridges, and other procedures. Many consumers delay or avoid dental procedures because of the cost and uncertainty of the outcome from their dental visits. Our website would allow these consumers to interact with other patients so they may share their experiences in a comfortable setting. Given my friend’s trustful recommendation, I went to the dentist with confidence about the cost and the outcome. Our website would allow many consumers to receive the same positive result.
Progress to date:We are seeking seed funding to create our website based on the market research we have completed. We have registered the business, established the domain name for the website, and the trademark protection is forthcoming. There is market data to show that more and more Americans are ready to consider dental tourism. Our business seeks to help them identify the right service via sharing experiences with fellow patients.Creator: Anthony Hartley
Location: Georgia
Bio: Having created a successful business that delivers medical education to doctors and other stakeholders, I would like to further apply my international business experience in the area of health, a value and long term ambition. My direct personal exposure to dental tourism as well as the experience of other dental tourists leads me to the next phase in healthcare where others may benefit from this growing trend.
Title: Entrepreneur
Advanced Degree(s): MBA,MA
Benn Konsinski
Advisor, Ph.D.
Biography: Professor Benn Konsinski is a prominent member of the faculty at Emory's Goizueta Business School where he conducts research and provides executive education.
Title: Advisor
Advanced Degree(s): Ph.D.
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/benn-konsynski-2a4b001
Dental Passport
Location: 1437 Lively Ridge Road
Atlanta, GA 30329
Founded: 2016
Website: http://www.dentalpassport.org
Product Stage: Idea
YTD Sales: Working on it
Employees: 1-2
Our website would give more personal recommendations for dental tourists because the advice would come from other dental tourists based on their direct experiences as well as professionals who provide suggestions freely. Our website would help patients choose the dentist(s) who can treat their particular condition. Patients would benefit directly because they can identify options for dental tourism without biases from an agency or other third party source. Patients would get affordable care for restorative dental needs.
There is a shortage of dentists in the US and many dentists will retire in the near future when more prospective American patients will seek dental care. Dentists would not need to make patients wait or encounter difficulty in scheduling new or return patients. Dentists would be able to provide better service to patients who might be discouraged from visiting a dentist due to availability, cost, or other considerations. Dentists would benefit as they could specialize their practice further for those patients who cannot use dental tourism for their respective condition.
There is a shortage of dentists in the US and many dentists will retire in the near future when more prospective American patients will seek dental care. Dentists would not need to make patients wait or encounter difficulty in scheduling new or return patients. Dentists would be able to provide better service to patients who might be discouraged from visiting a dentist due to availability, cost, or other considerations. More Dental clinics in the US could specialize on emergency procedures while others could handle regular dental visits and returning patients who cannot select dental tourism due to their respective situation. These dental clinics and dental offices would become more specialized and efficient as more of their patients seek restorative dentistry overseas whenever their respective conditions allow.
Partners would be able to sell more of their dental devices, tools, and other relevant equipment in more dental clinics that would need to purchase items to keep up with demand of new dental patients. Insurance companies would benefit from an alternative coverage for their respective customers who pay them for insurance while gaining from the cost advantages.
Intellectual Property Summary
N/A
Clinical Information
We would like to receive support from the ADA and other dental associations that may confirm that the quality of service is at the standard that patients would expect. It would be the dental clinics that would need to demonstrate that they have a relevant certification and/or mark of quality for patients to have peace of mind.
Regulatory Status
How we will use the funds raised
The funds from our proposal would be used to create the website with the core functionality that resembles Yelp, albeit for our niche, dental tourism. Currently we have modest funds that can be applied for other tasks to support the business. We believe that we can obtain further funding after the website development is completed and proof of concept is demonstrated via the response from prospective consumers and stakeholders.
Thank You
While visiting a friend in Costa Rica, I found myself with a painful tooth that needed attention from a dentist. It was in that moment, I considered seeing a local dentist, overseas, the same way my friend would see a professional dentist. We would like to create a website that allows patients/consumers to rank and recommend dental clinics for restorative dentistry, which may include implants, bridges, and other procedures. Many consumers delay or avoid dental procedures because of the cost and uncertainty of the outcome from dental visits in unfamiliar places. Our website would allow these consumers to interact with other patients. Following the trusted recommendation from my friend, I visited a local dentist, confident about the outcome and the cost. Our proposed business seeks to help many others who would benefit a great deal as dental tourists. We ask you to donate to this cause.
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