Cissy Furusho, DDS, MS — Loves family, loves practice, loves life!

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We continue our focus on women dentists. This month, we feature Dr. Cissy Furusho, a pediatric dentist in Chicago.

Dr. Margaret Scarlett — WDJ focuses on creating balance in our personal and professional lives. As a specialist who treats children in Chicago, you have a broad array of patients from the city. You give back and provide service by being the vice president of AAWD. How do you create balance for yourself?

Dr. Cissy Furusho — It's tricky to balance your life and dentistry! Now, many dental schools have 50 percent women in their incoming freshman class. That's happening at the University of Illinois, my alma mater, and we think that is great!

It's also important to realize that women work and think differently. How am I going to balance my life, have a child, own a practice, have a household, and still have a life with my husband? Dentistry allows us to make choices that keep our lives happy and balanced.

Mrs. Vicki Cheeseman — What is your mission and vision for your practice?

Dr. Furusho — When we first purchased the practice, my partner and I developed a mission statement. We wanted our practice to be a happy place to work, and to provide a home for our patients. We want patients not only to know that they get the best care in this practice, but we want them to feel welcome by the whole team. It's all about making everyone feel special, like they do when they walk into your home. We greet our patients and their parents and treat them as friends. We always say, even to the little children, "We're welcoming you into our house." That makes dentistry the easy part.

Mrs. Cheeseman — That has to put scared little kids much more at ease.

Dr. Furusho — Sure. We say, "Come play with our toys! Make yourself at home!" And they do. We had something funny happen in the office recently that illustrates that. Joanna, the assistant, went to the reception area and called for a patient, who had gone to the restroom. When he came back, he just walked through the reception door, sauntered to the back of the operatory, and asked, "OK, where am I supposed to go?"

That shows how comfortable the children are. They know the routine and who everyone is. They feel comfortable enough to say, "Can I sit here? This is my chair." By this, we know that we are making our patients feel welcome.

Dr. Scarlett — What are your practice goals?

Dr. Furusho — We don't focus on how much money we make each month, but we do monitor our numbers and our practice is successful. We work with our team on scheduling issues so as not to waste anyone's time — our team members' or our patients'. When there is a hole in the schedule, we all take responsibility — the assistant, office manager, receptionist, and dentist — and work to fill those gaps.

Mrs. Cheeseman — It is evident that you care about your patients and your family. The mission of WDJ is to share with readers that you can customize your dental practice and your way of practicing to fit your specific lifestyle.

Dr. Furusho — That's important; women need to know that they can tailor their practice to fit their needs and still be successful. Success is what you perceive it to be. If you feel that you have attained what you wanted, then you are a success. There are no set rules.

Networking is also important to assure success; women dentists and students need to know that AAWD can be a support group for them. AAWD is there for us to help each other and lift each other up so that we all can become leaders in our profession. It's a women's group that is also available at the local level. You can start by being a leader in your local AAWD study club. But we don't isolate ourselves from the men. AAWD is here to provide support and encouragement and to give us the opportunity to lecture and lead without feeling intimidated. The organization welcomes women and wants to be responsive to their needs. That's what we're here for — to give you that boost to achieve your goals.

I have been organizing small groups of women in the Chicago area for some time, and it's extremely valuable. Students may not realize it because so many in their classes are women, but once they're out of dental school, they will value belonging to AAWD. I know: In 1996, I received my DDS degree and finished my pediatric dentistry residency in 1998, with a master's in oral biology in 2000. During my last years of dental school, I worked part-time for Dr. Mary Hayes, an established pediatric dentist and leader in AAWD. After dental school, Dr. Marvin Berman offered me a position in his pediatric office and offered me the possibility of buying into his practice in the future. Dr. Hayes gave me a green light of encouragement! Sure, some days I walk into the office and wish I didn't have to worry about the details of a practice, but, ultimately, I'm glad I have this practice, because I own it and I can customize it.

I worked for Dr. Berman for two years during my residency after I passed my board exams. On Saturdays, I treated the patients who would eventually be part of the practice. I was introducing myself to the patients and team. Once I finished my residency in 1998, we started the process of buying into the practice. We finally signed the papers in 1999, and that's when I became a partner.

Dr. Scarlett — You obviously determined that you were going to become a partner and you bought into the practice. Did you feel confident approaching a banker with your business plan?

Dr. Furusho — Yes. I told him that I needed money and why this is a good investment. We had to prove ourselves by showing the practice history and showing that the owner was going to stay for a short time during the transition. That's important to bankers.

Dr. Scarlett — So compared to dental school, it was easy?

Dr. Furusho — I wouldn't say the whole negotiation was a breeze, because it was a long process. Even though I finished my residency in 1998, we didn't sign the contract until the end of 1999. Business is business and the person I bought the practice from was my dentist as a child; I've known him since I was two-years-old. I worked for Dr. Berman as an office assistant and as a dental assistant during my high school and college years. That gave me the opportunity to validate my desire to become a dentist. So I had to establish another kind of relationship as a competent professional with that office.

Working in different offices was enlightening. I realized that for every dentist, there is a different way of running an office. There is a different way of working with your team and patients, even if the dentistry is much the same. I always encourage dental students to visit several offices. It helped me to know what I wanted by the end of dental school and know which systems I liked and which ones I didn't.

Dr. Scarlett — One of the biggest mistakes a lot of us made U I certainly did U was not going to the bank and asking for living expenses and payments to pay dental school debt. Did you ask the banker for living expenses?

Dr. Furusho — No, I didn't.

Dr. Scarlett — If you had it to do again, would you ask for that?

Dr. Furusho — I probably would — only to hopefully get a better interest rate. It might have been better than dishing out different checks every month. It never occurred to me.

Dr. Scarlett — How did you become confident?

Dr. Furusho — It had more to do with mentoring from the women in AAWD that I knew and other successful women. Dr. Hayes was a big influence on the business side. She owned a pediatric dental practice that she started. She had worked in a general dentist's office, too, and Dr. Trucia Drummond was also a successful dental practice owner. Seeing that they were able to do it made me confident that I could do it too.

Dr. Scarlett — That's a model for young women getting out of dental school who may be concerned about borrowing money to set up a practice. How much time do you spend in your practice?

Dr. Furusho — Right now, I probably spend too much time there — about 9 to 12 hours a day, but I think that's because I'm still learning. I feel the need to be hands-on; to know about everything that is happening in the office. I have to let go of that notion. With every mistake, boy, I learn. And with every mistake that my friends make, I learn from that too.

I work Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and half a day every other Saturday. I am at the office at 7:00 a.m. and our first patient is at 7:30. The last patient is at 3:45 p.m., but sometimes I don't leave the office until 7:00. There's always so much to do. Sometimes I wish I were able to come to work, do the dentistry, and then go home. But then you don't get the satisfaction of knowing that the office is yours. The hard work that I put into it is very satisfying — knowing that the patients know it's your practice, you are the woman business owner, and that you're working toward making it better for everyone.

My husband and I are talking about having children. When that happens, I'll want to cut back on my hours. I've already talked to my partner about what the schedule might be. That's what makes women practice owners different--planning to have a family and looking to the future — i.e., length of maternity leave and how the pregnancy might progress. I may want to find an associate so that the office continues to be busy.

The arrangement with my partner works out well. We do different things in the office, so we complement each other. Even with buying an existing practice, we've changed things. We are now buying new computers and software, and that requires a transition.

Dr. Scarlett — You have a partner at work and a partner at home. It sounds like you are planning and making decisions together.

Dr. Furusho — Definitely. My husband and I are thinking about the future, so I consult both of my "partners" and we'll go from there. There's a saying that you should work to live not live to work.

While you're working as a dentist, you have to make sure that you remember what's most important in your life. Dentistry allows women to be doctors, business professionals, and practice owners. You can be involved in your community and still have a family and a life. And you can set your own hours and not feel like your work is consuming you.

Dr. Scarlett — What kinds of fun things are you planning?

Dr. Furusho — Right now, one of my husband's and my major hobbies is working on our house! We do it together, and we really enjoy it. Both of us grew up in the city, so neither of us had ever lived in a house until we bought ours in 2001. Since we grew up in apartments, neither of us had mown a lawn. We didn't know how to change electrical outlets, and we're now doing it all. We just fixed up our garage this weekend. We enjoy working on the yard, and getting our house the way we want it.

We just came back from vacation. My husband has family in North Carolina, so when I had a meeting there, we took extra time to visit them. We honeymooned in Japan, and next year we would like to go to Hawaii, because I have relatives there. My dad and his family are native Hawaiians. We had a family reunion last summer and all met in Las Vegas.

My husband and I decided that every year we're going to vacation in at least one place where we have never been together. It's fun to discover new places with someone you really care about and develop new memories. We're going to the San Francisco meeting in October. We plan to stay an extra week.

Dr. Scarlett — As healers, we have to take care of ourselves in order to take care of others.

Dr. Furusho — Well, I just had a massage today! I try to take care of myself. I don't need a lot of downtime; I relax by doing things that make me happy.

For example, this weekend I baked and decorated a cake for my friend's baby shower. It's relaxing; I enjoy doing things for other people. My other hobby is scrapbooking. I love to sit down with my memories. I'm still working on my wedding album.

Dr. Scarlett — Was it difficult to plan a wedding with your practice demands?

Dr. Furusho — I have two good partners! My dental partner helped so I could take time off to plan the wedding. I do the same for him, too, when he needs me to. That's what's great about having a partner — you can back each other up. The same goes for my husband. He was great in helping me plan the wedding.

Dr. Scarlett — It sounds like your attitude and self-confidence were factors in your success. Sometimes young women say that they're concerned or anxious, but you have the confidence to go out and do it.

Dr. Furusho — It's important to have good friends too — not just your partner and your husband, but also your support group, female and male. When you have good people around you, it improves your attitude. Then you can go for your dreams!

Dr. Scarlett — Dr. Furusho, you are an inspiration! You've figured out a way to balance your life. You show how young women can start a practice, have a life, and have fun!

Dr. Furusho — We can't do it alone. Our support group is so important. I have many really good friends and strong female role models. We share our experiences so everyone can learn from them. I'm always learning; that's why they call it a practice, right? Practice makes perfect.

I'm excited about so many women getting into dentistry. I think it's going to improve the profession. Women have a different perspective, and we can maximize everybody's potential in our practices.

I don't want to make it seem like I'm perfect and balanced! I am not. It's a goal, not always attainable. There are days when I'm tired and just want to stay in my own world. But responsibility drives me. I want to empower women so that they see it's all possible ... that they can do whatever they want if they have the goal in mind. Don't let anything get in your way. When you reach your goal, you just move on to the next thing, and the next thing. You just keep going.