BizTalks Presents: Doc. Louie Orosa for Orosa Dental Clinic

Kindly share with us a brief history of Orosa Dental Clinic.

The Orosa Dental Office was established in 1965 by my parents. My mother, Lydia, started her practice in Kapitolyo Pasig, while my father, Luis, opened a practice in Olongapo, a lucrative city at that time. He was then invited to be the dentist for the Subic Naval Base, where he learned the trade secrets of dentistry. The thought of expanding in Metro Manila was decided because my father wanted more family time with us. My parents rented a place along Shaw Blvd and with luck and hard work, eventually bought a permanent and bigger location along Meralco Avenue in 1984. The demand from their patients from the Makati and the South areas increased so they opened a third office in Makati Medical Plaza. Traveling from Pasig to Makati became tedious and being the traditional dentists of having no associates and assistants, they had to sell the Makati practice. They thought that “loyal patients will be willing to travel where they were.” Well, that was during the days where Metro Manila was not traffic stricken. Fast-forward to 1991, Olongapo was hit hard with the Pinatubo eruption and to add more damage, the naval base’s closure in 1992 that ended the American presence. It was very timely that the Orosa Clinic in Pasig was doing well.

After my brother and I finished dental schooling, we were sent abroad for our specialization and when we came back, The Medical City invited us to set-up and open a clinic in their new Ortigas Avenue location.

Currently, we are maintaining the Meralco Avenue and Medical City offices. Plans of expanding for the new normal and current market are being discussed by the family since the next Orosa generation is also considering pursuing the profession.

As a doctor of dental medicine, are there types of treatments you specialize in, and can you tell us more about it?

I am practicing general dentistry for 26 years and been practicing implant dentistry for 23 years. artificial teeth.

What were the biggest challenges brought about by the current pandemic?

We had to invest in new machines and PPEs suggested by CDC to control aerosol/covid contamination but there is still a stigma of fear from patients, which is the biggest challenge in our practice. Our Medical City practice is put to halt as of this writing because patients do not want to be exposed in the hospital. To add, patients are not eager for cosmetic treatment at the moment and seek only for non-elective, emergency and urgent dental care.

With the current pandemic still in a state of unending flux for the foreseeable horizon, what measures are you taking, or have taken to ensure the stability of your practice?

Dentistry, being service oriented, is still an essential despite the pandemic’s economic impact. Patients still come for basic dental services while the profit-making procedures are set aside. Our present situation goes back to the basics of old school dentistry. 7/10 patients seek for palliative care to alleviate pain and discomfort at the moment. But there is still 3/10 who take the opportunity for beautification and cosmetics since they have more time now. Even the number of patients we see pre covid has been cut down in half to ensure a thorough and rigorous disinfection and sanitation in between patients.

Can you share your opinions and viewpoints of the current business landscape?

Although the practice of dentistry cannot be remotely and virtually offered, teleconsultation may be feasible at a limited capacity. It is really difficult to do a diagnostic and clinical assessment without the patient present in the clinic. With upgrading the office with covid-deterrent equipment, the dental team (dentists, assistants, and office staff ) need to continually update and educate our knowledge and skills with protocols regarding infection control.

Looking ahead, what steps will you be taking to stay more competitive?

If this pandemic has taught me anything, it’s that I have no control of the future of my practice. It is still a question to how I will bounce back to my pre covid procedures. I have gone back to how I started with my practice by seeing less patients and reducing treatment visits to discourage patients to be out of their houses. High quality dental care still tops regardless of the pandemic. Continuing dental education, which I attend at least twice abroad yearly, has stopped although I diligently attend online classes to update myself with knowledge and current trends. While, excellent and advanced dental treatments will remain to be the focus to be competitive, personal relationship and open communication with the patients still make a difference to keep and maintain my loyal clientele.