Message Boards
Today's Active Topics Today's Active Cases Browse Forum Categories My Recent Activity My Messages Private Groups My Marked Threads My Subscriptions
Today's Active Images Today's Active Polls Most Active Topics Global Townie Map Advanced Message Board Search Message Board Terms of Use

Office Visit: Community Service by Sam Mittelsteadt

View Comments (3) More by this author (30)
Categories: Practice Management, HR and Accounting;
Office Visit: Community Service 

This young D.C. dentist worked in public health for years to fund the purchase of his own practice location, which aims to make every patient feel not just accepted but appreciated

by Sam Mittelsteadt
photography by Kirth Bobb

Dentists spend most of their working hours inside their own practices, so they usually don’t get many opportunities to see what it’s like inside another doctor’s office. Dentaltown’s recurring Office Visit profile offers a chance for Townies to meet their peers, hear their stories and get a sense of how they practice.
This 2020 dental school graduate began building his Washington, D.C., practice long before he even had his own building! At first, Dr. Robert McKernan worked weekdays as an associate and spent Saturdays treating his own patients in a chair in the same office, rented on a per-diem basis. From there, he moved to a full-time position as the only dentist at a public health clinic location in Southeast D.C. For the next two years, McKernan continued to treat disadvantaged and unserved patients at the clinic on weekdays and spent weekends building up his private practice patient base—a dedicated balance between giving back to his community while saving money to fund the purchase of a commercial space.

In our exclusive Q&A, McKernan discusses more about his path to private practice—including how Dentaltown’s message boards and a well-known Townie mentor helped him plan, design and construct his office, which opened this summer—as well as why it’s so important for him to run a practice that fills his soul with “love and purpose.”
Office Visit: Dr. Robert McKernan




Office Highlights
NAME:
Dr. Robert McKernan

GRADUATED FROM:
Touro College of
Dental Medicine,
Hawthorne, New York

PRACTICE:
Big Gay Smiles
Washington, D.C.

PRACTICE SIZE:
684 square feet

TEAM SIZE: 6
1 dentist, 1 office manager,
2 dental assistants, 1 hygienist, 1 communications director (contract employee)
You graduated from dental school in 2020. How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect your plans to practice?

Initially, I had planned to go to rural Minnesota to work for Aspen Dental. They had wonderful student loan incentives, but because of the pandemic, plans changed and I decided to move to Washington, D.C., to be near my family in Virginia. I got a job at Dental Dreams in Southeast D.C. and had a wonderful experience serving that community.

Then in 2021, I transitioned to an associate in a family group practice and began renting a chair from them on Saturdays. The associate position at the family group practice lasted just over a year.


What were the logistics like for that arrangement?

Pretty straightforward! I was an employee of the practice Monday through Friday, and on Saturdays they charged me a per-diem to rent a chair from the office. I was responsible for all my materials and equipment, which I managed with a Home Depot tool cart. My now-husband would manage the front desk.

In the beginning, I ran ads in LGBTQ2IA+ newspapers and on dating apps to build up our patient base. I also dropped off business cards at my favorite LGBTQ2IA+ bars and restaurants my husband and I would frequent, and they’ve all been incredibly supportive. The best way to reach new patients, however, is through excellent dentistry and word-of-mouth referrals from existing patients, which have proven incredible for us.


You spent several years working in public health to save enough money to buy your own practice.

After I left the family practice, I joined the Whitman-Walker Health (WWH) public health center at their Max Robinson Center in Southeast D.C. WWH is a leader in HIV care and has been open for more than 50 years. It began as the Gay Men’s Center for Venereal Diseases and has since evolved into a comprehensive health center, serving some of the most disadvantaged members of our community. WWH’s mission and values aligned with mine, and I had volunteered at a Ryan White clinic previously, so the decision was easy.

When I started at WWH, I was the only dentist at its Max Robinson location, which was a small two-chair practice in a former firehouse building that had been converted into a health center. I and a dental assistant treated patients alongside physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants. There, I gained experience treating medically complex cases and patients, and could pull primary care providers readily for consults if I noted abnormal HIV presentations, palpable lymphadenopathy or other abnormal pathology related to the oral cavity, head and neck.

After I had worked at WWH for two years, the construction on the new Max Robinson center was concluded. The new facility is a state-of-the-art clinic with more than four times the space, and now features a dental staff of 11. It was incredibly rewarding to assist the center’s growth and provide quality patient care, and I still volunteer there on alternate Fridays.

In the end, I had the privilege to work there while simultaneously purchasing a commercial space—all while building up our own private practice during the evenings and weekends.

 How did you find your practice location?

Through a friend I met in a bar! His friend was selling a retired dentist’s built-out dental space that had been closed during COVID. The space was well-seasoned and was built in 1981, with the thickest shag carpet I had ever seen. But everything worked well, so we closed quickly on the commercial space. The seller was kind enough to throw in all the equipment and about 150 patient charts with the sale of the office.


What was the construction timeline like?

My husband and I quickly got to work with renovations. Using our income from our day jobs and our own hands, we worked on renovations ourselves in the evenings after work. We also couldn’t have done it without the help from our family, friends and co-workers from WWH who helped us with some real heavy lifting— sometimes literally, like our dental treatment chairs! All of it really came together, and within three months, our vision was complete.


You relied on Dentaltown a lot during this stage.

Absolutely! Dentaltown helped me tremendously during the renovations. Posters on the message board forums helped me decommission my older dental chairs and decide on floor plans for our break room, and I found dental supplies in the online classified ads. Furthermore, the wealth of knowledge on Dentaltown serves as a wonderful resource for all new dentists. The easily accessible information can really help those who want to learn.

Even before that, I found my mentor, Dr. Artie Volker, at the Townie meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona, and shadowed him in his New York office when I was in dental school in Hawthorne. Artie has always been one of my most vocal supporters—before the soft opening of my practice in 2021, he even let me film a commercial in his own office! I highly recommend that every dental student and new grad find a real-life mentor, someone who has the character and virtues you want to have.


It’s a bold move to name your practice “Big Gay Smiles.” Were you concerned that name might limit the number of patients who’d want to be treated at your practice?

I gave it some thought, but in the end I wasn’t concerned. Back in 2015, while attending Brigham Young University, I was outed and asked to leave a dental office I was shadowing in Provo, Utah, because of my sexual orientation. That experience changed me and my vision of what a dental office could and should be—my practice would be a sanctuary for the queer and gender-diverse community as well as our allies.

Also, I chose the BGS name to reflect my life’s dream. Because of my Mormon upbringing, I was raised to believe in giving back to the community via tithing. After my faith transition, I still strongly desired to give back to a cause bigger than myself, and this gave way to the dream to help cure HIV by helping people smile and donating 10% of BGS profits to national and local HIV/AIDS nonprofits.
Top Products
Ivoclar OptraSculpt modeling instrument
The composite shaping capabilities of this tool are unparalleled. I finish resins quickly that are well adapted to existing tooth anatomy, and voids are nonexistent when used properly.

Cerec OmniBeast lab system from CAD/CAM Miami
This full lab package is a huge practice builder. When patients travel to see us, it’s important to be able to offer same-day crowns and restorations, and this Cerec system has proven to be a workhorse. The warranty and customer service have been phenomenal; Santiago and the team at CAD/CAM Miami have really created something special.

3M RelyX Luting Plus Automix Cement
When I use cement, I look for high bond strength, moisture tolerance, sustained fluoride release, minimal postoperative sensitivity and a quick tack light cure for easy cleanup. RelyX is my go-to cement for just about every fixed restoration.

Biolase Waterlase MD laser
Removing old crowns and veneers is a breeze thanks to my all-tissue laser. I love using my laser for tissue retraction around preparations, doing drill-free fillings, disinfecting root canals, and even frenum releases and gingivectomies. The cuts are quick and clean, and bleeding is minimal or quickly controlled at the touch of a button.

Teflon tape
Isolation, isolation, isolation—it’s one of the most important things in dentistry to have quality dental work last a long time. When doing deep-margin elevation, crown and bridge cementation, or preserving canal space after a root canal, having Teflon tape ready to go is a no-brainer.


Are most of your patients LGBTQ2IA+?

Funnily enough, we’re a family practice and only about 35% of our patients are LGBTQ2IA+. We are sought out by a lot of people because of our mission and the quality dentistry we offer, as well as people who have had negative dental experiences in the past and want something different. We also see quite a few patients who found the practice on TikTok or searched for LGBTQ-friendly dentists. Parents of LGBTQ2IA+ children have also been incredibly supportive.

Additionally, we see quite a few Native American and Alaska Native patients. We receive referrals from Native American Lifelines, an urban Indian organization in Baltimore that works with Indian Health Services to provide health care and dental services for tribal citizens and their descendants in the greater mid-Atlantic area.


Beyond the IHS connection, do you take insurance?

Big Gay Smiles is fee-for-service but works with every insurance company to ensure our patients are reimbursed for the care they receive. We made that decision early on because WWH is in-network with most insurances, which would cause headaches from having two billing sites a day submitting claims. Another mentor of mine, Dr. Sheila Samaddar, heavily encouraged me to stay fee-for-service to maintain better relationships with patients and to be able to provide the best dentistry I can to my patients.


After years of planning and saving, you finally opened your practice full time this summer! What did that first week feel like?

It sounds cliché, but it’s been surreal. Our part-time systems transitioned easily into full time, and the employees who have been with us since the chair rental have been incredible. It’s really a special feeling I get when I walk into a place that fills my soul with love and purpose, and it’s all ours.

It’s also been nice to cut back! I’ve gone from working upwards of 80–90 hours a week to roughly 40. I’m back to volunteering on my own schedule, and I’ve been able to spend more time with family and friends. It’s also going to give me time to pursue my other life’s passions, like Ironman races, competitive swimming and traveling with my husband.

More In Practice Management, HR and Accounting
3 Signs You’re Ready To Buy a Dental Practice
3 Signs You’re Ready To Buy a Dental Practice
by Dr. Jason Cellars
New Grads Edition 2022
Get Off the Dental Roller Coaster... Filmed Live at Townie Meeting
Get Off the Dental Roller Coaster... Filmed Live at Townie...
Dr. Bruce Baird and Ms. Vicki McManus
CE Credits: 2
Hidden Treasures: Finding the Buried Profit In Your Practice
Hidden Treasures: Finding the Buried Profit In Your Practice
Ms. Heidi Mount
CE Credits: 1.5
Howard Speaks: Get the Picture(s)
Howard Speaks: Get the Picture(s)
by Dr. Howard Farran
September 2023
Dentaltown Magazine
September 2025
Dentaltown Magazine September 2025 Read Current Issue Read Archived Issues
Sponsors
Townie Perks
Townie® Poll
Who or what do you turn to for most financial advice regarding your practice?
  
Related Articles
Ethical and Legal Obligations To Treat a Tooth for Free
Ethical and Legal Obligations To Treat a Tooth for Free
December 2022
Professional Courtesy: The How, Why and When of Retirement
Professional Courtesy: The How, Why and When of Retirement
by Dr. Thomas Giacobbi
August 2024
Professional Courtesy: The Magic of Mentorship
Professional Courtesy: The Magic of Mentorship
by Dr. Thomas Giacobbi
October 2022
Site Menu
Message Boards Magazine Continuing Education Podcasts Blogs Classifieds Dental News Events Townie® Poll Ebooks Townie Choice Awards
Company Info
Contact Us Advertise With Us Howard Farran DDS, MBA Policies and Agreements
Site Help
Sally Gross, Member Services Specialist
Phone: +1-480-445-9710
Email: sally@farranmedia.com
©2025 Dentaltown, a division of Farran Media • All Rights Reserved
9633 S. 48th Street Suite 200 • Phoenix, AZ 85044 • Phone:+1-480-598-0001 • Fax:+1-480-598-3450