New Horizon Surgical Center, located in Tempe, Arizona.
It’s often said that in life, seemingly small decisions can have lasting, transformative impacts. And, for Dr. Justin Moody, a renowned implantologist, speaker and instructor, this concept rings true — on both a personal and professional level.
Growing up in rural Nebraska, he had always envisioned following in his father’s footsteps and taking over his family’s fifth generation ranch. Little did he know, a mentor would one day enter his life and guide him in an entirely different direction, encouraging him to apply to dental school, thereby changing the trajectory of his career from that point forward.
"He steered me on the path to implant dentistry,” says Dr. Moody. “I shadowed him a few times and I started taking classes and I couldn’t stop. I wanted to know as much as I could about implant dentistry. And in that process of learning and exploring, it took my skills and my passion to a totally different level.”
Now, Dr. Moody is an esteemed implantologist and practicing dentist at New Horizon Surgical Center in Tempe, Arizona — home to Implant Pathway — which is an education continuum dedicated entirely to teaching dentists from across the country how to place dental implants in their practice. It’s also home to New Horizon Institute, a 501(c)3 non-profit dental clinic designed to provide affordable dental work to the greater Phoenix community.
“Over the years, I realized that I absolutely loved the education part of dentistry,” says Dr. Moody of the center’s hands-on, live patient surgical component. “It really has been a case of, ‘whatever you want to do in life, you can go and do it.’ I found my passion for dentistry and decided to merge it with a career in education.”
Turning to the Experts
A long-time customer of Henry Schein, Dr. Moody knew exactly who to turn to when patient demand and limited space started to hinder New Horizon Surgical Center’s ability to provide the level of care and training his patients, staff, visiting dentists and residents needed. So, he relied on the experts: JR Jimenez, equipment sales specialist, James Kelly, field sales consultant and Henry Schein’s Integrated Design Studio (IDS) to transform one of the building’s suites down the hall into the ideal location.
“It was a smooth, easy process. What’s great is that they completely understand dentistry and what goes into a dental build,” he says. “I can’t think of any other word other than seamless. Buildouts are stressful enough without having to worry about the coordination aspect, and Henry Schein made everything seamless from start to finish.”
Each operatory features an identical look and feel to allow visiting faculty and staff to experience a consistent, efficient workflow.
To set the process in motion, Dr. Moody sat down with Mr. Jimenez and Mr. Kelly, along with the IDS team, to outline his vision, emphasizing the importance of needing more space, a consistent layout in each operatory and various equipment upgrades to allow for greater efficiency and workflow.
"As soon as we had the design we wanted, IDS created these amazing 3D walkthroughs to help us see how the practice would virtually look,” he says. “And once that was finalized, they then worked with the contractors, the engineers and my reps to put it all together.”
Expanding in Size — and Dedication
New Horizon Surgical Center, which provides thousands of dental implants and millions of dollars in donated dental services each year, now features eight operatories, including a dedicated, state-of-the-art surgical suite, one imaging area, one sterilization center and a closed off, lockable space from BioHorizons® — affectionately known as “The Vault” — that houses dental implants, biologics, bone grafting, membranes and other needed materials for dental implants.
Each operatory features an identical layout to allow for maximum ease of use from one operatory to the next, with various equipment and amenity upgrades ranging from A-Dec® cabinets and chairs to Acteon X-Mind® unity intraoral X-ray units. The practice also features an A-Dec sterilization center, an imaging area equipped with two Acteon X-Mind prime cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) units and several SprintRay 3D printers for printing surgical guides.
“Having the space and the technology in the rooms to be able to achieve what we need for our patients is incredible,” says Dr. Moody. “Anything the patient needs — or the doctors want to be able to do — is all right there.”
This is especially true for the practice’s surgical suite, which Dr. Moody has dubbed the “crown jewel” of the center. Equipped with a camera, LED lights and a big screen TV, the surgical suite allows the practice to record and livestream surgeries as part of the staff’s dedication and commitment to implant dentistry education.
The center features a robust imaging area, equipped with two CBCT units.
"We operate under three buckets at New Horizon Surgical Center: people, processes and technology,” Dr. Moody explains. “Our practice doesn’t run without having the right people and the right vision in place. Having the same layout in every operatory creates a workflow and a process that makes everything easier. And, all of our equipment is part of the technology aspect. Technology is only worth its cost if it makes you more efficient or allows you to perform your job better.
“IDS and my Henry Schein sales reps understood these goals and created a redesign that allowed us to keep these three buckets in mind.”
Fueling a Passion for Dentistry
For Dr. Moody, not only has the renovation allowed him to keep these three buckets top of mind, but it has also allowed him to continue doing what he loves: giving back to the community and inspiring a new generation of dental professionals to pursue their passion for implant dentistry — just as he experienced in the early days of his career.
“There’s only so many people I can help on my own. But if you think about the amount of people that can be helped by training other dentists to provide these kinds of services — it’s exponential. And that’s why I love what I do,” he says. “I get to help dental professionals find something in their career that’s hopefully as inspiring as it was for me. And, in the process, I get to help so many people in the greater Phoenix area receive dental care that they would have never received otherwise.”
And that, he adds with a smile, is what makes a career in dentistry so rewarding.
Simply put: “I have the best job on the planet.”