Good Neighbor Podcast: Tri-Cities
Bringing together local businesses and neighbor of the Tri-Cities region. Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Skip Mauney helps residents discover and connect with your local business owners in and around The Tri-Cities.
Is your business serving the residents of Tri-Cities? Then, we need to talk! Visit gnpTri-Cities.com to schedule your free interview.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Tri-Cities
EP# 255: How Two Brothers Are Transforming the Dental Experience in Asheville with Hodges and Hodges
What makes Adam Hodges with Hodges and Hodges a good neighbor?
Fear of the dental chair is something many of us can relate to. But what happens when a dentist himself once resisted joining the profession? Dr. Adam Hodges shares his fascinating journey from dental skeptic to passionate practitioner in this enlightening conversation.
As co-owner of Hodges and Hodges, a family dental practice in Asheville dating back to 1960, Dr. Hodges brings unique insight into how modern dentistry has evolved. "The last thing I wanted to be was a dentist," he admits, describing his resistance to following his father's career path before recognizing his natural aptitude for the profession. Now practicing alongside his brother, he's transformed this family legacy into a patient-centered approach that's changing perceptions about dental care.
The conversation tackles common dental myths head-on, particularly the fear that dental procedures must be painful. Dr. Hodges explains how technological advancements and options like sedation have revolutionized the patient experience. Their practice employs cutting-edge tools from digital scanners to 3D printers, making procedures faster and more comfortable than ever before. But perhaps most inspiring is his philosophy: "My job is to educate you and help explain what options you have. Your job is to tell me what you want." This judgment-free approach empowers patients to make informed decisions about their oral health.
Beyond the dental chair, Dr. Hodges reveals surprising personal passions that showcase his multifaceted nature. A dedicated beekeeper who finds therapy in observing thousands of bees after a stressful workday, he also enjoys gardening and motorcycle riding. These diverse interests mirror his comprehensive approach to dentistry—versatile, engaged, and always learning.
Ready to experience dentistry differently? Connect with Hodges and Hodges at 828-274-8088 and discover how they're making dental care more accessible, comfortable, and even enjoyable for patients of all backgrounds.
To learn more about Hodges and Hodges go to:
Hodges and Hodges
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Skip Monty.
Speaker 2:Well, hello everyone and welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. So I am pretty psyched today because we've got a very interesting guest in our studio with us today and I'm excited to learn all about him and what his business is all about. And I'm sure you will be too, because today I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, Mr Adam Hodges, who is co-owner of Hodges and Hodges. Adam, welcome to the show.
Speaker 3:Thanks, Kev. Thanks for having me on. I really appreciate it. I'm excited.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Well. We're very excited to have you and, like I said, we want to learn all about what you do.
Speaker 3:So if you don't mind, why don't you kick us off by telling us about your business? Sure Hodges? Hodges is a general dental practice in Asheville, north Carolina. My brother and I practiced together. Formerly I practiced with my father and after a long career in the military he retired to Asheville and we both, after dental school, joined in separately and then my dad sort of retired after my brother joined us. So a pretty Swiss army knife general dental type of practice, meaning that we do a fair amount of diverse procedures. So the nice thing is that we can take care of a lot of things in office for people so they don't have to go elsewhere and we can maybe make those procedures a little more timely as well.
Speaker 2:Very good, that's very nice. So well, you kind of touched on sort of how you got into this business, what drove you to be a dentist.
Speaker 3:You know, interestingly, growing up the last thing I wanted to be was a dentist, because my father was a dentist and I didn't necessarily think my father was the coolest guy on the planet. So my concern was that I thought I wanted to maybe be a Top Gun or something different. But as time went on I realized that the skills that I had were probably well suited to dentistry. So my pursuit in college became more dental oriented and then ended up applying and going to dental school in Georgia and then coming to Asheville once I graduated.
Speaker 3:So you know kind of a long journey in terms of the mental aspect of getting where I'm at, but couldn't imagine another profession. I think I'm well suited to what I do.
Speaker 2:Very good. And you said your co-owner with your brothers. Your brother's a dentist as well.
Speaker 3:Correct. You know I have four brothers, so I'm the second of five. My younger brother, who practices with me, is the fourth of five, and so the two of us. You know. Likely we had similar paths of travel through school and I think it's kind of nice having family working together and I think for a lot of people the offspring of dentists become dentists and I think it's because, unbeknownst to those parents, they're training their children to think like dentists, which makes them well suited to the profession.
Speaker 2:Very good Family affair. For sure, for sure, for sure.
Speaker 3:There's only two of us in dentistry, but it's actually really nice to have somebody to practice with, and when it's your brother it's even better.
Speaker 2:Awesome. Well, what are some myths or misconceptions in the dental dentistry industry?
Speaker 3:You know, I think generally when people come into a dental practice they are a bit fearful and a lot of times that comes from early experiences they had with dentists when maybe it wasn't as easy as it is today.
Speaker 3:So a lot of people have fear that psychologists will say that if you have a certain trauma before a certain age in life it sort of imprints on you. So a lot of times where when we meet new patients we're actually dealing with past traumas that they've had in the dental office. And I think a lot of myths of modern dentistry is it doesn't have to be painful, or I mean, you know, I think it's a little bit of a stretch to say it's fun, but I think the experience in today's dental office is much different than it was before and we also have offerings like sedation. So if someone really does have a lot of anxiety, we have the ability to offset that with medication. So I think the idea that dentistry doesn't have has to be painful is no longer one of those ideas. And another one would be the technology. So we have technology to advance the treatment times it takes to do things, and also the efficiency and the experience. So we have a lot of great technology to make the experience a lot better.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that changes pretty quickly. The technology does right.
Speaker 3:Man, it's hard to keep up with and we actually have a lot of technology in our office, from digital internal scanners to 3D printers, to you name it. We've got a lot of different stuff guided surgery so it is hard to keep up when you're as broad as our office is, because you really have to love and want to have dentistry be your passion as well as your profession, because that's the only way you're really going to keep up with the changing environment of dentistry.
Speaker 2:That Absolutely Well. Who are your target customers and how do you attract them?
Speaker 3:You know, typically all of our new patients come from other new patients. Certainly, you could advertise to target towards what you want, but in general our patients who have been with our practice for a long time our practice goes back to 1960. So our patients who've been with us a long time send us patients. So we have a very busy schedule of patients that are coming from other patients and that's usually the kind of patients we're looking for people who value dentistry, value their mouth In terms of their fear. We can get past a lot of those things, but I want more people that want to make a difference, want to make a change and want to understand how to improve their oral health. There's some people who maybe aren't as concerned with that and it's really hard to connect with those people. So I think we're more looking for people who want to have a good oral hygiene and good mouth and want to have information about how to make that possible.
Speaker 2:Very good, well, outside of work, if there is time outside of work, what do you like to do for fun?
Speaker 3:You know, a lot of times when I'm at night, when I'm still kind of involved with dentistry, so I'm doing I use a lot of online software to be able to design crowns or smiles or whatever I'm working on at the time.
Speaker 1:But other hobbies include gardening.
Speaker 3:I do a fair amount of gardening this time of year. I'm also a beekeeper. I found believe it or not, that looking at a frame of thousands of bees in my backyard is somewhat therapeutic after a long, stressful day, so it's a way to kind of wind down and relax. I also have some motorcycles. I'm one of those people, just like in my dental practice, where I do a lot of different things. In my personal life I do a lot of different things, so it's a way to kind of just keep my mind active and interested.
Speaker 2:Plus you got honey.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for sure, I love, love. No better gift to friends than honey, for sure.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Definitely. That's expensive. Now too, if you buy it, it's organic, you know.
Speaker 3:Yeah, for sure, and it's nothing tastes better than a lot of times when people go to their grocery store, they believe they're buying pure honey, but often they're not because of the cost, of what it costs to get the honey. So if you go to a local beekeeper and get honey, it's usually the best honey you've ever had and it's because you're getting something straight from the hive that's unadulterated.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, absolutely Love it. So let's switch gears. Can you describe a hardship or a life challenge that you've overcome and how it made you stronger?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think that you know when I think about that, I think about my profession as a whole. I guess I envisioned when I was in dental school training to be a dentist. I thought when I get out I'm going to make it to where everybody loves coming to the dentist and it's going to be the most joyful procedure for them. And my mindset was just set on inviting and making an atmosphere that everybody loved.
Speaker 3:And I think probably the way and the shocking thing for me when I graduated was, no matter how hard you try, for a lot of people dentistry is just not something they want to do.
Speaker 3:So maybe I had to change my goal to be I'm going to try and make it the best dental experience I've ever had, because I think it's probably a little too much to think it's as enjoyable as a vacation. It's not that for people. But I think I had to reframe how I thought about my interaction with people and I think that's what makes dentistry tough sometimes is because you know I'm in a profession where people don't love to come to see me, so you have to be willing to understand that that's not personal and often they'll say I don't like being here, nothing personal, and it's kind of hard not to take that personal, but in general you reframe to learn that it isn't personal. It is the fact that for their history this may be a very scary place, but we have an opportunity to make it something that they really do enjoy, more than they ever thought they could. And I think that's the important lesson I learned is to understand where I fit and how I can improve things.
Speaker 2:Very good, get past the phobia.
Speaker 3:Correct, correct.
Speaker 2:Absolutely Well, Adam, if you could think of one thing that you'd like our listeners to remember about Hodges and Hodges, what would that be?
Speaker 3:You know, I think that in general for our office is that there is an opportunity out there to get rid of the fear you have of dentistry.
Speaker 3:And so in our office we are one of offices who are really trying hard to make sure that when we see patients, that we give them the experience that they're looking for.
Speaker 3:Not only that, that we treat people like they want to be treated, that we give them options for their care and understand, without judgment, that everybody's options are a little different. What they can afford, what they want, is a little different. So, without judgment, say, my job and I tell people all the time my fiduciary responsibility to you is to educate you and to help explain what options you have. Your job is to tell me what you want and then for us to meet together to figure out how to best give that to you. And I do that without judgment. So I think that's what we want to know is that that exists, that there is a way to get involved with an office, and whether your needs are cosmetic or you're in pain, or whether you want to put back teeth or whether you have a problem, you know we have that option. We have an ability to change the way people look at dentistry for the better and make it a profession that's a lot more fun than they think it could be.
Speaker 2:Very good thing to remember and for those that are maybe looking for a dentist or interested in checking you guys out, how can they learn more?
Speaker 3:So easy enough. I mean, you could call. We do have a website but to be honest with you, it's not something we utilize a lot to exchange with patients, and we also have a Facebook site which is Hodges and Hodges. But probably the easiest way is to call our office 828-274-8088, 828-274-8088. And just kind of begin that conversation. If you have questions, feel free to ask our staff. We're here for you to kind of be able to answer questions about dentistry and be able to help you on your journey, whether your journey is in with our office or somewhere else. We want to make sure that people out there understand that there's options.
Speaker 2:All right, very good. Sure that people out there understand that there's options. All right, very good. Well, adam, I can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule fixing teeth to talk with us and tell us all about your practice and wish you and your brother, your family and your business all the best, moving forward.
Speaker 3:Skip, thank you so much. It's been a real pleasure. It's great to have a local podcast that I can be on and share that with you, and I enjoy spending time with you.
Speaker 2:All right same here. We'd love to have you back sometime.
Speaker 3:Yes, sir.
Speaker 2:All right, thanks so much.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnptry-citiescom. That's gnptry-citiescom, or call 423-719-5873.