A dental cooperative in Montreal’s Little Italy is doing things a little differently than traditional dental clinics – they’re charging 10 per cent less for patient care than suggested by the Quebec Association of Dental Surgeons fee guide without having to take a penny from staff salaries to accommodate the discount.
“With this model, essentially, everyone has a say in the company,” said Dr. Cassandre Desjardins-Mallette, co-founder of Tite-Dent Coop de Solidarité.
“It allows workers to enjoy excellent working conditions and good pay because their level of responsibility here in the cooperative improves their quality of life,” she added.
At Tite-Dent, there’s no need for a receptionist or a manager as everyone does their part to chip in and help ensure the clinic runs smoothly, which Dr. Desjardins-Mallette said is what has allowed them to reduce their operating costs.
“We’ve also done a lot of research and surrounded ourselves with the right people to help us cut costs. For example, we use dental software and computer software that run on platforms that are somewhat inexpensive,” said Dr. Desjardins-Mallette.
In fact, it runs so flawlessly that they even have time to seek out patients in need from the organization Doctors of the World — an important aspect of the clinic’s mission, which they say has been made possible through the relationships they’ve made with various community groups in the past year.
“We really want to give back to the community because people in vulnerable situations —immigrants and undocumented individuals— are often overlooked, yet they have a tremendous need for dental care,” said Dr. Desjardins-Mallette.
“The cooperative’s most recent figures, basically, we were able to donate $175,000 for free through our own efforts — specifically, through our connections with these organizations as part of our work, we’re very proud to be doing this,” she proudly exclaimed.
Dr. Desjardins-Mallette says the model is so effective they’ve been able to help hundreds of patients from marginalized communities this way.
Further adding to the clinic’s success is the fact that staff have been able to welcome patients and communicate with them in a multitude of languages — eliminating barriers and allowing for patients from varied cultures to feel welcome and at ease at Tite-Dent.
“One of the strengths we have at the cooperative now is that a lot of people have joined the team, so, we speak French, English, Spanish and Arabic too,” touted Dr. Desjardins-Mallette. “Everyone is welcome!”
Apart from the social program, the clinic itself, has been able to reach around 2,000 patients in less than a year.
To keep up with the growing demand, they’ve already leased adjacent premises for an upcoming expansion.
“When we rented the space, we’d already made plans — maybe we were a little ambitious — but we were still hoping for success. Now that we have a space next door, we’re planning to open it within a year, and we’re currently seeking funding.”
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