 Dr. Dufurrena |
The Dental Group Practice Association, a nonprofit industry association representing more than 30 dental support organizations (DSOs), March 3 named Dr. Quinn Dufurrena its new executive director.
Through this role, Dr. Dufurrena said he seeks to bring awareness of the advantages of DSOs in hopes of continuing to increase the quality in dentistry.
“For the past 20 years, I’ve been interested in the DSO model,” he said.
A DSO provides support to affiliated dental practices with nonclinical functions, including accounting, human resources, legal and marketing. Today, DSOs support an estimated 8,000 dentists practicing in 5,000 dental practices.
“If dentists can spend more time and focus on dentistry and leave the administration and paperwork duties to someone else, I believe the quality of dental care will increase,” he said.
Dr. Dufurrena comes to the DGPA with about 30 years of dental experience in government, private practice and nonprofits. He replaces Dr. Ed Meckler who served as executive director since DGPA’s inception in 2007.
Dr. Dufurrena received his D.D.S. from the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in 1983 and a law degree from Concord Law School in 2008.
He served in the U.S. Navy Dental Corps and as an associate professor at the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine. In 2007, he was chosen for the ADA Hillenbrand Fellowship.
Most recently, Dr. Dufurrena served as the executive director of the Colorado Dental Association. He previously served as executive director of the Idaho Dental Association.
“I’ve been committed to promoting and providing affordable, high quality oral health care throughout my entire career. These are the same values shared by all members of DGPA and their supported dentists,” said Dr. Dufurrena. “I am honored to have been selected and look forward to working with all stakeholders at the state and federal levels to help them better understand the role and value a DSO plays in supporting quality dental care to millions of Americans every year.”