Echols graduated from the Alabama School of Dentistry in 2001. Three years later, he purchased a practice in Cullman from a retiring dentist. He started out slowly and though his practice wasn’t extremely busy, he was happy. Over the years, he had contemplated expanding his practice, building a new practice and possibly purchasing the patient list from the dentist next door who planned to retire. However, those plans never came to fruition. “I was never 100 percent interested,” Echols said. “Then came April 27, 2011, and everything changed.”

The disaster jolted Echols out of his comfort zone and forced him to make some difficult decisions. Would he rebuild his practice, which would take at least a year, or would he renovate an existing building, which would only take three months? Crane and Cooper sat down with the doctor to discuss his options. “I asked him, ‘Which choice is going to be the best decision for you, your family and patients, tomorrow and decades from now?’ He appreciated that our focus was on making the right solution, versus the quickest or simplest solution at the time,” Crane said.

Echols decided to purchase the patient list from the doctor next door, whose office had also been destroyed, and rebuild his practice where the previous office once stood. “I wanted to contribute back to the community to motivate other people in the area to rebuild,” Echols said. “Joe and Scott had a big part in helping me decide that.”

After helping Echols set up a temporary office in a local hospital, Crane and Cooper walked Echols through every step of creating a new, state-of-the-art office. First, they invited the doctor and his wife to the A-dec Educational Experience in Newberg, Ore., so they could experience the culture of the A-dec family and see firsthand how the equipment is made. There, Echols was able to test drive various chairs and delivery systems in more than 20 different working operatories, so he could compare and choose the best set-up for his new office. After the trip, going with A-dec was an easy choice for the doctor. “The equipment is really well made and it won me over,” he said.

Echols wanted his new practice to be as streamlined and efficient as possible, and his equipment and technology choices reflect that philosophy. A-dec 533 Continental Delivery Systems on 511 dental chairs put all of Echols’ accessories right at his fingertips, including his SoproLIFE intraoral cameras. This configuration ensures that Echols does not have to twist and turn to access the tools he needs.

A purified water system pumps fresh water to the sterilization area and operatories, reducing downtime previously spent changing water bottles and buying distilled water. “It’s a small thing but it makes a huge difference,” Echols said.

Though he had previously used a competitor’s digital sensors and practice management software, after seeing the dedication of his Patterson team and the integration capabilities, he decided to invest in Schick Elite sensors and Eaglesoft practice management software. “I wanted to call one number to service everything,” Echols said. “This was my chance to make a clean break and make my office the most efficient it can be.”