Many of the parents of our current patients will remember Dr. Matlof from the days when they came to our office to get their teeth straight. Dr Matlof passed away much too young and is still missed. I found this note which expressed his (and I hope our) dedication to our practice:
“I would now like to tell you, perhaps for the first time, my philosophy of orthodontic practice. With all due respect to the well paid, if not well intended, practice management consultants, the one ingredient that gets overshadowed by the superficial glitz is the genuine caring for the patient.
Everything we do, from the great letters we generate from the front office to the latest colors in elastic chains we put on in the clinic are peripheral to the one purpose of our being; to treat our patients with the utmost of our professional skill and with the utmost concern for their sense of well-being.
All the "gimmicks" in the world will not accomplish this, but genuine caring will. Our office doesn't have to look like the Taj Mahal or a submarine; it just has to be clean, orderly, and comfortable. Our patients don't have to be entertained by video games, if we show them we care about them. Talk to them; not around, above, or through them. Compliment them when they’re doing well, and be critical in a friendly and constructive way when they're not.
I'd be an idealistic fool not to realize that work is a means to an end, the end being that which money can buy. If you let it, work can also be an end in itself; the end being that which money can't buy - - - the self satisfaction in doing the best job you possibly can and seeing the results of your labor. No matter how seemingly ordinary the deed, it can be done extra-ordinarily well.
Be friendly and attentive to our patients, for without them we would have neither of these ends to enjoy.
I'm thankful for a lot of things in my life. High on the list is having you on our staff and feeling close enough to bear my soul.
Dr. M. “
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