Let's have a real conversation about rural vs. urban

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Official Townie

I have attempted to look through past message board content for a frank discussion about the benefits of rural vs. urban and have not found a complete thread that addresses this line of thought. As I have just looked through the usual threads of new graduate debt, I keep seeing the same old, tired cliche of "just go rural. You'll be fine." Yet, I remember reading more than a few of the Townies on here saying they have triedrural and it is not all it is cracked up to be nor is it the panacea to student debt as the old timers seem to flippantly toss out there as a solution to all of modern dentistry's ills.

So let's be honest and try to address this rather than push new students out into the wilderness. What constitutes rural? What would their demographic likely be? What would they reasonably believe overhead would be? Would you really have a monopoly on all dental services in a geographic area and as such be rolling in the Benjamins?

My initial thoughts: if you live out in the middle of nowhere chances are you are dealing with people who have little to no money and as such would not seek services as much as an area which has an economic engine. Yet, there are some areas where oil, mining, and other such lucrative jobs can possibly feed patients to the practice that are willing and able to purchase dental services.

I understand the philosophy of "go where you are needed" but it is just as much about location in an urban environment as it is in a rural environment. Also, there are a few Townies on here who have said that rural hasn't been that lucrative to them or that they struggled out in the sticks as much as an urban Townie.

I think it would be beneficial to new grads and others considering a practice if we can put it all out there on the table and discuss the pros and cons of going into the wild.

Also, it would be nice to hear some of the more rural types telling us how things roll out there and what their experience has been.

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Report AbuseRevisions: 0Posted: 10/13/2016 3:48:45 PMPost: 1 of 12

toneloc: Location I am in Australia, so not everything will convert. When i graduated in 2004, i worked in a city as an associate 3 days a week in a regional area (approx 250,000 people, about 80 minutes drive from centre of Sydney) and 2-3 days in an inner city suburb. In 2014, after a couple of years search, i ended up buying my own practice in a regional town (approx 20,000 people in the shire). I initially wanted to buy a city or suburban practice, but found that the asking prices were astronomical compared to the profits being produced. After a couple of years, decided to start looking further afield and eventually found the practice i am in now. The asking price for this practice, compared to one in the city, with same equipment and level of production was much cheaper.The town i am in has two practices (mine and another), and a public clinic. There is a practice in a town 10 minutes away, then it is 45-60 minutes to the next practice. We are about 3 hours drive from a major city, and large regional centres within 60 minutes or so. Luckily, the town i chose has a thriving tourist industry (we are on a river, so lots of watersports), a decent agricultural industry, a major hospital, plus a small manufacturing industry. The are is mostly dairy farms though. The local council has definitely thought about the town, as they run music festivals, food festivals etc to help the tourists keep coming. It means we have a decent selection of restaurants, cafes etc. I definitely would not have made the move if the town was "dying", or was too reliant on one industry. I have a partner that i have been with for 9 years, so am pretty settled home wise. I wouldn't have made the move if i were single. But if you think about it, most days after work, you go home, maybe go to the gym, maybe do some grocery shopping, spend time with family or kids. I don't really think it matters if you are in the city or the country. I am within reach of a major city, so i can do a weekend in the city for concerts, sports etc. I am Asian, and gay, so i was slightly worried about racism, homophobia etc. Luckily, so far i haven't come across any. Although it is predominantly a white/caucasian area.

The town is big enough so not everyone knows your business, but small enough that everyone sort of knows who i am. (This can be good or bad, depends on your personality - do you like seeing patients at the supermarket?)

Dentistry wise, i feel you can make your practice whatever you want it to be. Don;t judge by appearances, farmers can be some of the wealthiest patients you will ever see. I probably do more extractions here, make more dentures then i do in the city, but i know the previous owner did a lot of major cosmetic work, so each to their own. We are a bit isolated from specialists, and we often get charged extra freight for deliveries etc. It can be hard to get someone out to service things if they break. One of the main drivers to move rural was all the competition in the city. I was so tired of marketing and trying to drum up sales, etc. Not that there is anything wrong with that. I just wanted to do a good job and let the word of mouth spread.

Other random thoughts

- people are nicer in the country. Also more patient. We close over Christmas, no Saturdays. No one blinks an eyelid

- i have lunch with the owner of the other practice in town about once a month. It helps to keep civil relationships

Its only been 2 years in, but i have had absolutely no regrets at all. Am planning on staying for the long haul