A lifetime of learning with HighFive Healthcare

Dr. Christopher Cook discusses the benefits of being supported by a large group of like-minded practitioners

When I graduated from dental school in 1995, our Dean had these parting words for us: “We’ve given you enough of an education to be dangerous. Now go out there and continue to learn for life.” Twenty-eight years later, those words still ring true. Though we walk across that stage and get handed a diploma, there is no end to our education as people or as endodontists — not if we truly want to achieve success for ourselves, our families, and our patients.

Learning isn’t a solo act. Even reading a book in quiet solitude involves at least two people, an author and a reader — someone with knowledge and someone to pass it on to. That’s why it’s so important to surround ourselves with people who are better than us at their craft. One thing that has always served me well was surrounding myself with people who are the best in their respective industries. Being a jack of all trades in any vocation doesn’t make sense. We can’t be experts at everything. And trying to be that person only takes us away from our calling, hampering our ability to do what we were trained to do. So when I had the opportunity to join a larger group of like-minded practitioners with HighFive Healthcare, it was a no-brainer.

It’s easy for most practices, including my own at the time, to end up going on autopilot after a few years and losing efficiencies along the way. Keeping up with insurance reimbursement, fee schedules, consumable prices, and credentialing, just to name a few, are burdens that take away from clinical care. By partnering with HighFive, I was able to entrust those important elements of my practice to a team of experts dedicated to just that, freeing me to focus on patient care and things I love doing.

What I love doing is continuing to learn and get better at endodontics. I wish HighFive was around in 2003 when I started my practice, but now I have over 85 like-minded doctors available to meet as a group or one-on-one to learn from and get support in that endeavor. It’s a priceless comradery I can only compare to my time in the Navy. If I have a question about a case, I’m a text away from multiple perspectives from peers I know and trust. It’s the next best thing to having them standing beside me in the office. Our regular Zoom lectures bring the best and brightest in the industry to present to us and keep us all at the top of our game.

I look forward to our group’s yearly, in-person get-together more than I can say. It’s in those moments of shared learning, support, and friendship that I truly realize HighFive is more than a company — it’s a family. And a family is what every endodontist needs. A diverse group of people, each bringing their unique expertise to bear, to provide the very best care for our patients.

This article was provided by HighFive Healthcare.