926: Part 1: Why Separation of Duties Is So Important With Money in Your Dental Practice – David Harris

About 70% of dentists will be embezzled at some point in their career. About 80% of them can be prevented just by having the right systems. In this episode, Kirk Behrendt brings back David Harris, embezzlement expert and CEO of Prosperident, to share three rules that will deter future thieves and reduce your risk of embezzlement. If someone is going to steal from you, make it extremely difficult! To learn how to drastically reduce your risk of embezzlement, listen to Episode 926 of The Best Practices Show!

Learn More About David:

• Give David a call: (888) 398-2327
• Follow David on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidharris9406
• Join David on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/davidharrisprosperident
• Learn more about Prosperident: https://www.prosperident.com

More Helpful Links for a Better Practice & a Better Life:

• Subscribe to The Best Practices Show: https://the-best-practices-show.captivate.fm/listen
• Join The Best Practices Association: https://www.actdental.com/bpa
• Download ACT’s BPA app on the Apple App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/best-practices-association/id6738960360
• Download ACT’s BPA app on the Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.actdental.join&hl=en_US
• Join ACT’s To The Top Study Club: https://www.actdental.com/ttt
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• Please leave us a review on the podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-best-practices-show-with-kirk-behrendt/id1223838218

Episode Resources:

• Watch the video version of Episode 926: https://www.youtube.com/@actdental/videos

Main Takeaways:

• Break up the duties of the revenue cycle. No one does more than two of the six tasks.
• Only clinicians who were in the operatory should enter treatment into the software.
• Anyone is capable of a dishonest act given the wrong set of circumstances.
• Get a PO Box. Dentists should be the only ones with access to the mail.
• Don't try to monitor everything yourself. Delegate more to your team.
• Use cross-training as a way to transition into dividing up systems.
• Have multiple sets of eyes on tasks to catch discrepancies.
• Embezzlement does more than just financial damage.

Snippets:

0:00 Introduction.

1:11 David’s background.

2:05 Embezzlement affects more than just finances.

4:14 Why division of duties is important.

5:51 The revenue cycle and the six tasks, explained.

7:46 Rule 1) Treatment should not be entered by the front desk staff.

11:46 Why rule number one is important.

13:10 Rule 2) Nobody does more than two of the six tasks.

14:45 Why dentists should be the ones taking care of the mail.

17:57 Rule 3) Have different sets of eyes on tasks.

19:24 How to transition into separating duties.

21:05 Don't try to do this on your own.

24:06 Final thoughts.

25:14 About Prosperident.

David Harris Bio:

Under David’s leadership, Prosperident has expanded over the past three decades to become a team of more than 20 highly specialized fraud investigators, forensic accountants, IT specialists, and support staff. David’s vast investigative experience, coupled with his youth-filled misadventures and his past military service, have given him a unique insight into embezzlers’ mindsets and actions. He is passionate about sharing his wealth of knowledge with dentists and dental specialists.

David is a much sought-after speaker and an accomplished author on the topic of dental embezzlement. Dental Embezzlement: The Art of Theft and the Science of Control is his most recently published book.

David’s professional qualifications include Certified Fraud Examiner, Certified in Financial Forensics, Forensic CPA, Chartered Professional Accountant, Certified Management Accountant, and Licensed Private Investigator.