FYI

Each quarter, we highlight dental professionals and office staff who have been nominated by their peers in recognition of their exceptional work for both their patients and their communities. This quarter, we’re proud to announce our latest winner, Dr. Ali Alijanian.

Dr. Alijanian is an oral surgeon and dental implant specialist, and the owner of a private practice in Walnut Creek, California. Dr. Alijanian’s life has taken him from Iran, to Germany, and finally to the United States.
 

Thank you for your time, Dr. Alijanian. Let’s begin by hearing about you. What would you want someone meeting you for the first time to know about you and your practice?

I’m an immigrant, so when I was 16, I moved to Germany because of the Iran-Iraq War. When I was in Germany, I had a really traumatic tooth extraction that had big complications, and that began my interest in dental care.

After I spent my teenage years in Germany, I moved to the United States without a dime to my name. With financial aid, I was able to attend university. Originally, I wanted to be a periodontist, but I met my wife and we started dating when I was still in dental school. I didn’t want to go to a graduate program that’d be far from her, so I limited myself to applying to schools in California. I didn’t get into the programs I applied for, so I opted to do advanced general dentistry at University of the Pacific and got exposure to the work surgeons do in the hospital. That helped me realize that dental surgery was what I was really interested in doing.

I graduated from the UoP School of Dentistry in 1994 and did my residency at the Highland Hospital surgery program in Oakland. Once I got out, I started my practice in 2000. For the first five years, my wife ran the front of the office. Truthfully, it was kind of scary starting things from scratch!
 

What does a typical day look like at your practice?

We do mostly wisdom teeth and implants, so we set ourselves up to make sure that each day goes as smoothly as possible and that our patients leave with big smiles on their faces. In the afternoon, we do mostly consultations and emergency treatments on patients who want to have their teeth out under local anesthesia.

Our typical day has a very busy schedule, so we start each day making sure that team communication is clear and that everyone’s roles for the day are planned out. We’ve created a lot of systems and done a lot of organizing to make sure that the patients are taken care of and get the best care possible.
 

Let’s talk about your charitable work. As a Smile Star, you’ve been identified as someone who doesn’t just deliver great care to your patients, but who also makes a difference in increasing access to care within their community. What kind of causes do you support?

We’ve made large donations through programs that we’ve done to the California Dental Association’s care programs for underserved patients. Over the years, we’ve done about $50,000 in donations.

I talk to my team about the causes they’re passionate about, and we do those, too. “One Warm Coat” is one we’ve done. We collected 350 coats and raised cash. We’ve done walks to raise money for cancer research. We’ve collected toys for Toys for Tots and raised money to help local kids have a safe and fun Halloween. We’ve treated Veterans pro bono in the past. This is my 23rd year being in practice, and we’ve done more than I can remember!

Recently, we partnered with Trinity Homeless Shelter to do work for candidates who are clean and trying to build a life for themselves and get jobs. We do pro bono work, and since I’m an implant specialist, I’ll replace missing teeth with implants and help to give them back their smile. Our motto is, “Changing lives one smile at a time,” and when you follow the candidates, it’s amazing to see how the treatment really helps to change their lives.

My goal is to make a difference in people’s lives. To find the things they can’t afford to do or aren’t able to do, and to help them find the confidence to build their life and move forward, that’s really where my interest lies. It makes the whole practice happy to see the difference we make, to hear the feedback and the satisfaction from patients.
 

That must be a busy schedule with all the charitable work you do! Do you find time for hobbies?

Back when I was starting my practice, I got involved with the local dental community and joined a club called the Dental Society. That was a great experience and it gave me the opportunity to learn the ins-and-outs of our profession and to begin giving back. That also allowed me to meet a lot of colleagues and begin making friends within the profession. I actually got very engaged with them and even became the president for the Contra Costa county branch and was active as a delegate.

Some of us Dental Society members started a study club together, and we’re now in our 21st year! There’s about 50 dentists of all kinds of specialties in the study club at this time. We do a lot of education, but we have a lot of fun with it, too, including retreats and group trips with our families. It makes private practice a lot more fun to enjoy your peers and the people you work with.

I’ve got a 17 and a 19 year old, and my time with them is very valuable, too. We take a lot of family trips. We love traveling, skiing, cycling and staying active.

My practice keeps me very busy, but something I love to do is teach. We opened a training center downstairs from the practice we call the Centurion Training Center for dentists who want to learn specialized procedures. I’m inspired by the growth I see in myself and my Study Club peers over the years, and I want to be able to share some of that wisdom with younger dentists.
 

Speaking of younger dentists, what advice would you offer a recent dental school graduate?

So I mentioned that I started from scratch, but so did one of my co-residents. He started his practice in Hayward and I started in Walnut Creek, but we stayed close. It was really crucial when we were starting out to have that sense of community. We could bounce ideas off of each other and ask for help with problems, and we didn’t have to feel isolated as we were starting out. Being able to talk to somebody and know that your peers are facing the same kind of challenges you are helps to take some of the concern and anxiety out of the day-to-day. It’s a road you’ve never been down before and there’s stuff you just don’t know.

My recommendation is to create a network or join a group you feel comfortable with. Don’t center your ego or be competitive. Don’t feel like you need to recreate the wheel on your own. Grow together, help each other out. There are enough patients to go around for everyone.
 

What do you think the future holds for the dental industry? Are there any trends or technologies you’re keeping an eye on?

I’ve been in practice for 23 years, and it’s amazing how much the technology has changed. When I started, implants were outside of the mainstream. Now, patients are informed enough to come in and ask for them themselves. Heck, we just had a program at the training center that demonstrated how a robot can place implants.

We’ve gone from doing everything analog with x-rays and impressions, to digital radiographs and scanners. It’s very exciting, but the important thing to remember as a dentist is that you have to understand the shortcomings of new technologies. Nothing is foolproof, especially as a brand new technology. But if you focus on learning and improving and educating yourself, you’ll know what’s out there and how you can use it in the way that’s best for your practice and your patients.
 

Thank you, Dr. Alijanian! Is there anything else you’d like to talk about before we wrap up?

Yes. I thought of some more advice for dentists who are just starting out. I would also say that it’s really important to recognize and invest in your team and have them believe in the vision. Your team makes your practice successful. I have a great team that’s grown with me over the years. I call them the A-Team. We’ve done a lot of team training together, and they’ve grown on their own, as well. For example, my practice administrator formed a study group for the American Dental Association of Office Managers called the Contra Costa Study Club. I have team members who have become fellows and attended graduate programs and risen through the ranks, and all of that has really helped my practice shine. Remember, it’s a team effort, not an individual effort.

Thank you, Dr. Alijanian, for taking the time to sit for an interview and for all that you do for your patients and your community. Congratulations on being chosen as a Smile Star!

You can visit Dr. Alijanian's personal website for more information on his practice.

Do you know someone who should be a Smile Star? Email us at smileaward@delta.org with their contact information and the reason your nominee should win this award.