As Lara Nader got closer to her appointment, waiting to get into that chair, she was anxious. Who knew what the outcome would be? Any dental patient can understand the feeling. But in this case, Nader wasn’t a patient. She was a dentist herself. And the 2003 appointment was with her banker.

“I was feeling stressed — my career was depending on it,” recalls Dr. Nader, who runs a practice in Terrebonne, Quebec, just north of Montreal. Dr. Nader was visiting Royal Bank of Canada to discuss a choice that every dentist faces. Should she buy an existing practice? Join an existing group? Or start a practice from scratch?

In Dr. Nader’s case, she had been an associate in a practice for six years when she approached the bank. With their guidance, she bought an existing practice and doubled its income in just one year.

In this article, you'll learn about:

• Things to consider when joining an existing group
• Considerations for buying an existing practice
• Starting from scratch
• What’s best for you
• Dentistry is a business too