Dr. Mark Murphy has spent nearly 40 years navigating all aspects of dentistry, from working chairside to consulting with dental supply laboratories and manufacturers. Along the way, Dr. Murphy has become a leading expert and voice in dental sleep medicine and currently serves as the Executive Director of the International Academy of Sleep.
Tell us a bit about your background and what led you to where you are in the dental sleep space.
It was my time at Pankey Institute that set me on this path towards sleep. I made my first sleep device while teaching at Pankey with Keith Thornton – one of the original pioneers of oral appliance therapy. I had several good role models when I was younger who pointed me towards dentistry, but Pankey was the turning point.
What was the “aha” moment that inspired you to pursue innovation in this industry?
Being able to practice outside the dental reimbursement model had perhaps the most significant impact on my professional career.
I did sleep for a number of years, and then moved away from it because I felt that we were not practicing in accordance with true medical guidelines. I came back to it in 2012 when I was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea myself.
What have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a leader in this space?
I think the hardest thing has been getting dentists to not think like dentists, but rather to think like physicians in the broader healthcare model.
How has the dental sleep industry evolved since you first got involved?
Many more physicians trust and respect it now than ever before. Devices used to be large, bulky, and clumsy. They were hard to keep clean and full of side effects. Today, design and manufacturing have been streamlined and devices are smaller, offer a more precise fit, lead to better results and have fewer side effects. They even require a lower dose and have a better patient safety profile.
What gaps or inefficiencies in the dental industry are you most passionate about solving?
If physicians shifted just 10% of their prescribing pattern to oral appliance therapy there would not be enough dentists trained in sleep to meet the need. The reason there are not more dentists practicing this discipline is because of its inefficiencies. That is why we are working at International Academy of Sleep to bring training, effective software, and concierge billing services together under one banner. Creating efficiencies for the practice of sleep dentistry will change its effectiveness and availability.
What role do AI, automation, or data analytics play in your company roadmap?
Everything we are doing currently sits at this intersection. Artificially intelligent design and robotic manufacturing has been a big part of the industry being able to progress. Now being able to apply these tools to claim processing and insurance reimbursement makes implementing dental sleep medicine into a practice easier than it ever has been.
How do you stay ahead of regulatory changes and data privacy concerns in dental tech?
I don’t think you can stay ahead of regulatory changes. They happen so quickly and are often poorly communicated. It becomes instead about informing yourself and anticipating inevitable shifts. One of the keys to real success in this industry is learning to be flexible and nimble.
What’s your leadership philosophy?
I always try to remind myself that management is about making sure things get done right, and leadership is about making sure you’re doing the right things. All too often we lean too heavily into the management model and not enough into true leadership.
What’s one piece of advice you wish you’d gotten early in your career?
I wish I’d learned to take advice earlier. You don’t have to make every mistake yourself. You can learn a lot by watching others.
If you weren’t in dental, what do you think you’d be doing?
Teaching something.
What’s one prediction you have about the future of dental care that people might find surprising?
I think oral appliance therapy will supplant CPAP as first line treatment for obstructive sleep apnea in 10 to 15 years.
Learn more about what Dr. Murphy is doing with International Academy of Sleep and Restfull by visiting https://iaos.com/ and https://restfull.com/. Follow him on LinkedIn for his thoughts on leadership, the dental industry, and life in business. Send him an email: mark@IAOS.com.
