MEDIFIT CASE STUDY
Infinite Dental
PROJECT TYPE: Dental LOCATION: Victoria MEDIFIT SERVICES: Design & Construction
After travelling around Australia and the world and working in a variety of dental settings, Dr Negar Jamshidi decided to set up Infinite Dental, a private practice in her home town of Melbourne.
“After several years working both in various dental surgeries across Australia and Japan in a plethora of settings from prison to a psychiatric hospital and the Royal Australian Air Force, I finally decided to settle in Melbourne close to my family,” Dr Jamshidi said.
“My practice philosophy has been to offer exceptional gentle oral care with the best possible team and technology. For this reason, I always had a certain image of how my practice would be perceived and presented to the patients and none of the existing surgeries for sale fitted that vision or they were simply located too far from my family.
“I started looking for a suitable area to set-up practice and it was at this point that a friend suggested Point Cook, located south west of Melbourne. I had been in the area a few years before when it was still barren land with very little development but to my surprise, there had been a population explosion.
“There were only a couple of dental practices in the immediate vicinity which suggested there was an absence of adequate dental services. Already new schools, shopping centres and other facilities were completed or in progress and it seemed a very logical place to set up. The demographic of young families also suited the preventive and family dentistry which I enjoy practising.”
The first obstacle faced by Dr Jamshidi was locating and establishing suitable premises. Given it was largely a residential zone, the local council was quite restrictive on zoning and her search was proving to be futile.
“About the same time I was actively searching to secure premises, I heard about a new building to be erected next to the existing medical centre at the corner of two major roads. After discussions with the developer, it became apparent that the addition of a dental practice within the building which would also house other allied health professionals would be a welcomed addition.”
Hence began the enormous task of planning the fit-out in the building which was due to be completed in 6 months time. Not being a technically orientated person, Dr Jamshidi knew that the best solution was to engage professional help.
“At the time, I was working in Townsville on a contract basis and after asking around, one of my colleagues, Dr Colin Priestland, suggested I contact Medifit as they had a very good reputation in Queensland with very positive feedback from the dentists concerned. They all stated that the quality was excellent and that they offered a very professional service.
“The initial discussion with their managing director, Sam Koranis, was so impressive and full of anecdotal information that I abandoned further searches as this was the design and construction firm that would be able to transform my vision into reality.
“From the onset, Medifit made me feel confident that the pro- ject would be handled with the utmost professionalism with careful planning and all the details would be taken into account without a great deal of investment of time or energy on my part. From the outset Sam spent time with me preparing realistic budgets, thus taking away any surprises upon completion.”
Dr Jamshidi wanted a warm and comfortable feel with a sophisticated edge. In effect, an unintimidating environment, making otherwise unnerving trips to the dentist, a pleasant experience for everyone.
Her wish list included a waiting room, three surgeries a sterilisation area with ample bench and cupboard space, a stock room for storage, a practice manager’s office, a large staff room and a toilet/re-refresh room for patients.
The warm yet sophisticated feel is achieved from the moment the patient steps into the waiting room with neutral shades of cream creating a nice backdrop for contrasting elements such as a feature timber reception recess with a slick metallic fascia wrap to the reception counter. It is the additional design features that give the waiting room its individual stylish appearance, such as a custom magazine rack to match the reception recess.
The waiting room includes a space for children to play and a wall mounted plasma screen which is ideal to occupy visitors.
The surgeries have been designed to reflect the same warm, comfortable feel which is throughout the practice. This is ensured by the dark timber-look laminate cabinetry with neutral laminate bench tops in combination with a light timber-look vinyl flooring. A small consult table was also worked into the design for surgery one with space enough within the room for a book shelf and promotional display cabinet.
The steri area was tailored to the equipment used with plenty of room for cleaning and storage which aid in the efficiency of the daily running of the practice. The staff room with a functional kitchen, positioned away from the working area, makes a well deserved retreat for hard working staff.
“The design of the surgeries was very clever,” Dr Jamshidi said. “Every available space was utilized effectively with future expansion in mind.
I was amazed how Medifit was able to design three surgeries in the limited space provided and yet managed to allow for practice ergonomics without any cramping of style. The initial concept drawings provided were able to capture glimpses of my mental creation and started to animate my thoughts into reality. Slowly a clear vision of a calm, homely and friendly practice started to emerge.
Medifit interpreted my vision seamlessly through use of colours and features that gave that warm inviting feeling.
“The high standard of workmanship and commitment of the Medifit team to the project was astounding to say the least. What amazed me is that throughout the whole project, despite time constraints and various issues arising, I was continually appraised and reassured of all the intricacies of the project with a great deal of patience.
They constantly injected positive energy into the project and boosted my confidence that it would finish on time. Medifit’s high standard of care and service and display of professionalism throughout the entire project was simply unparalleled and remarkable.
“Not only was the project completed on time, but the new practice far exceeded my expectations. The site supervisor also remained on site after completion of the project for an entire month to ensure that the fitout was functional. Now to me that is total commitment! The joinery was also fantastic with a high quality of materials being used.
“The Medifit design utilized fabrics and materials that complemented the colour scheme of the environment and suited the demographics. The designers used modern laminates for the reception area and soft lighting in the waiting room which gives you this warm friendly feeling.
“After much debate and research, I selected Anthos chairs based on two major factors - superior quality and ergonomics and service. Mr Phil Pagliuso from Anthos in Australia was gen- erous with his advice and guidance on choice of equipment, surgery technology and also took into account my budget con- straints. The most impressive part was that after installation, Anthos contacted me on regular basis to make sure the equip- ment was running smoothly and was functional.
“The project was completed through concerted efforts of first and foremost the Medifit team who proved to be a reliable, trustworthy and highly competent team of professionals.
They also coordinated the IT contractor and surgery equipment installation from Anthos in a timely fashion.
“Finally, this project deserves a mention for the finance provider as without Medfin support and customer service, none of this would have happened.
“To this end I was fortunate to have my practice set up and fitted out by what I consider the best team that made me realize my dream. If I had to set up a practice again, I would not hesitate to employ the services of Medifit. It is at times like this that I wish words were adequate to express my sincere appreciation and gratitude to the wonderful caring team of Medifit. Thank you.
