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What Is the Profit Triangle™ in a Dental Practice?
The Profit Triangle™ is a proprietary DentPulse framework, created by founder Shishir Khadka, that measures and optimises practice profitability across three core levers:
- Associates – who delivers the dentistry (APEX™)
- Chairs – where dentistry is delivered (PCPT™)
- Treatments – what type of dentistry is performed (Treatment Profitability Index™)
Together, these three dimensions give practice owners a 360° view of profit performance — turning vague “revenue growth” into precise, actionable improvement areas.
Why Does the Profit Triangle™ Matter for Dental Practice Owners?
Most dental practices measure revenue but not profitability at the right level. This creates blind spots:
- Associates who look busy but contribute little profit
- Chairs that sit underutilised despite high fixed costs
- Treatments that erode margins due to lab creep or poor pricing
The Profit Triangle™ solves this by breaking profit down into its three drivers, showing owners exactly where to optimise.
What Are the Components of the Profit Triangle™?
| Component | DentPulse Tool | Purpose |
| Associates | APEX™ (Associate Performance Excellence Index) | Measures profit contribution per associate, adjusting for pay splits and lab costs |
| Chairs | PCPT™ (Profit Centre Performance Tracker) | Tracks profit per chair hour, factoring in occupancy and utilisation |
| Treatments | Treatment Profitability Index™ | Analyses margin by treatment type, highlighting high vs low-profit procedures |
How Does DentPulse Track the Profit Triangle™?
| Feature | Function |
| Integrated Dashboards | Shows associate, chair, and treatment profit in one view |
| Red–Amber–Green Alerts | Flags underperformance at any level |
| Benchmarking | Compares profit drivers to top practices by size, stage, and structure |
| Scenario Modelling | Tests changes in pay splits, pricing, or utilisation |
| Profit-to-Pocket™ Sync | Connects Triangle outputs directly to owner take-home |
The Profit Triangle™ turns profitability into a repeatable system, not a guessing game.
DentPulse Tip™
“Revenue doesn’t build wealth —
Associates, Chairs, and Treatments do.
That’s the Profit Triangle™.”
Related Glossary Terms
- APEX™ – Associate profitability benchmarking tool
- PCPT™ – Chair-level profit tracker
- Treatment Profitability Index™ – Profit margin by treatment type
- Net Profit Margin – Bottom-line profitability
- Profit-to-Pocket™ – Connects the Profit Triangle™ to owner drawings
Glossary Summary Table
| Term | Meaning |
| Profit Triangle™ | Proprietary DentPulse framework linking associates, chairs, and treatments to profitability |
| Purpose | Diagnose and optimise the 3 core drivers of practice profit |
| Created by | DentPulse founder, Shishir Khadka |
| DentPulse Advantage | Automated dashboards + benchmarks + real-time owner-level insight |
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shishir Khadka