It is in the lively city of San Antonio, Texas where Dr. Joshua Austin decided to set up his restorative dental practice several years ago with MacPractice. 

“When I decided to start my own practice, I knew that practice management software was one of the biggest decisions I was going to have to make,” Dr. Austin explained. “It was really something I took a lot of time and effort to examine and study and research...That's what started the ball rolling as far as me doing research and finding MacPractice and then coming to the decision I did.” 

Starting out in dental offices as an associate, Austin was not always surrounded by a fully comprehensive electronic health records (EHR) system. While some offices were filing insurance claims electronically, a majority were still using paper charts and regular film x-rays.

“I just remember thinking to myself, there's got to be a better way to do this,” Austin recalled. “The idea of a completely chartless, paperless office was a reasonable thing.” 

What also struck Austin as an annoyance was the constant maintenance required for PC-based computers. 

“Being the sort of younger guy at all the offices I'd been at as an associate, I was always the one roped into doing tech support and trying to troubleshoot Windows.” 

Upon researching and finding MacPractice, Austin got in touch with his local area sales representative, Lance Keith, and decided to view a demo of what the software had to offer. 

“The ‘a-ha!’ moment for me, when I decided that MacPractice was right for me, was actually the day that I did my demo.” Austin said. “He [Keith] started showing me the different features and immediately when I saw it, the layout just made sense to me and everything was laid out logically and the different sections of the software were very easy.

It didn’t just make sense for Austin, but it made sense to his staff as well. By coupling the ease of a Mac with the user-friendly layout of MacPractice, staffers could smoothly navigate the software with minimal training or explanation. 

“The staff really enjoys working with MacPractice. Everything's really well laid out. It makes for a simple day,” Austin said. 

In MacPractice, abilities can be added as needed to customize the needs of the office. Some of the abilities include electronic claims, charting, timeclock, contract billing, and iPad applications. What Austin finds most helpful though is the digital radiography section. 

“My favorite thing about MacPractice is the way that it handles images. It looks at x-rays and photographs the exact same. When I'm in treatment planning a complex case, I look at x-rays and photographs and I don't have to jump between different sections of the software, which makes it really, really nice,” Austin said. “It [MacPractice] helps me run a successful, happy business. It keeps my staff happy, it keeps my patients happy, and all that stuff keeps me happy.”