Wall Street venture capitalists have become a presence more and more in the dental field. Corporate entities have begun buying up practices all over the place. Some of these transactions can deceive the general public, in that they may retain the name of the private practice with the doctor demoted to an employee figurehead with “no say” in day-to-day practice operations. The disadvantages of corporate ownership are the corporate owners are usually not dentists and their motives are geared more to maximizing profits rather than providing what’s best for the patient. In larger practices, patients will not usually see the same doctor visit to visit, which is a big negative if you are undergoing Invisalign or other orthodontic treatment. Patients lose continuity of treatment and technical excellence when doctors have different levels of technical ability in multi-doctor practices.Recommendation: Ask the office staff if the practice is owned by the doctor or someone else. This will give you an idea on whether your best interests may be compromised by monthly production quotas.