A rural Pennsylvania practice gets a new look and takes its existing technology to new heights when it expands in a big way.

William A. Howland, DMD, took the reins of his current practice in 2004 after his partner, Dr. Jan Gulden, retired. The practice is located in Lehighton, Pennsylvania, a picturesque rural enclave outside of Allentown. In 2012, Howland chose to expand his building with the help of Patterson Dental. The improved office opened its doors in March 2013, and about the same time associate dentist Meredith Traube, DMD, joined the practice.

He also needed more operatories than his three-chair office provided. At one point while still in the old office, Howland was booked out 16 weeks. This discouraged patients who had long wait times for appointments. It also meant that Howland stayed late most nights to accommodate his regular and emergency patients' needs.

Now Howland's office has eight operatories with the potential for 12. He chose to “go big” because he wanted to build an office that would be large enough to serve his patients for many years to come. “I didn't want to do this twice,” Howland said, recalling his decision.

Howland graduated from New Jersey Dental School in 1997 and completed his general practice residency at Harvard, where he was invited to spend a second year in the program as chief resident. He then joined Dr. Gulden's practice in 1999.

It was in early 2010 that Howland began mulling over his options for expanding his practice. The practice was growing from year to year, and with the small space and overextended schedule he realized it would be difficult to grow and serve the community if he didn't physically expand the business and take on a partner.