Through the Keyhole - Dr. Brian Trapnell

Dr. Brian Trapnell desribes his adventures in orthodontics and around the world

What can you tell us about your background?

I was born in Utah, raised in Arizona, and love adventure—riding motorcycles and snowmobiles, hiking, camping, hunting, traveling the world from the Cape of Good Hope to the Arctic. At the age of 19, I did a 2-year Mormon Church mission in Ecuador to teach and serve others. I also learned to be accepting and tolerant of others. It’s a pretty neat opportunity to get to know a different culture. Ecuador was a fascinating place. This was in the 80s—1985-1987. At that time, Ecuador was pretty remote—third world country would be an understatement. I decided to be an orthodontist during that mission. I had wanted to be a veterinarian, but decided working with people would be a lot more interesting. I love orthodontics. After Ecuador, I really got interested in travel. From the Andes Mountains to the coast to the Amazon jungle, I saw a lot of diversity, and it was interesting to see the various types of terrain and the different cultures. I learned to speak Spanish fluently. Utah has a large Hispanic population, and it’s been really helpful to them, to me, and to my practice to be able to communicate. In the United States, we’re really sheltered compared to the rest of the world in terms of language. In many countries, people speak four or five languages, depending upon their location and culture.

When did you become a specialist and why?

Orthodontics has played an important role in my life; I love working with people. I finished my orthodontic degree in 1996 at New York University. I was the first of five brothers to pursue orthodontics. We all went to different dental schools. Christopher graduated from Louisville, and the last three—Russell, Jeff, and Greg—went to Jacksonville, Florida, following one of our friends, Dr. Larry Jerrold. He is arguably one of the most amazing teachers in the world. He has the ability to encourage a resident to really think for himself and to train students in the many degrees and facets of orthodontics, using many different systems without prejudice. For so many program directors, it’s almost a requirement that they have something unique and push a certain system. He just trained his students in everything, all the different bracket systems. It’s been very beneficial for my practice. It’s allowed me to define what works for me, and it’s really a benefit when patients transfer into my practice. They don’t have to start from scratch just because they move to new state or city. You understand it’s a huge benefit later. Because of that experience, I’m a much better, more well-rounded orthodontist.

Why did you decide to focus on orthodontics?

I enjoy being skilled in a specific area. When I made the decision, I had just finished orthodontic treatment. That experience influenced me personally and demonstrated how orthodontics provides the ability to affect someone’s life, self-esteem, and how they look at themselves. I think orthodontics is such a unique specialty. Every time I finish someone’s braces, it’s always a positive experience. They’re happy, and I’m happy. In other specialties, it’s not always that way, especially in medicine. Generally, orthodontic patients want to be there, and they are excited about the results you provide them. The only downside is sometimes it takes a couple of years to get there! You have to be patient with it.



Do your patients come through referrals?

I see a balance of doctor referrals and patient referrals. Depending on their geographic location, orthodontists work very closely with other dentists. The pediatric dentist can be a boon. However, patient referrals can be even more important. The successful practice is very focused on where patients come from, and they focus marketing along that avenue. The one thing you have to do is provide really good care. You have to address the needs of the patient as well as the referring doctors. I think that the dentist really appreciates a good relationship, and an orthodontist who takes the time to communicate with them by letter and/or a phone call.

How long have you been practicing, and what systems do you use?

I’ve been practicing for 16 years. After being introduced to more than 25 different brackets systems, I am convinced that the 3M Unitek Mini Uni-Twin™ is the most efficient non-self-ligating bracket system available.

What training you have undertaken?

I did my undergraduate studies at Brigham Young University, went to dental school at Oregon Health & Science University School of Dentistry, and received my certificate in orthodontics at NYU College of Dentistry. I’ve also completed the Roth/Williams course.

Who has inspired you?

I have been so blessed to learn from so many great men—Drs. Larry Jerrold and Elliott Moskowitz, and many others at NYU, Drs. Roth and Williams, and Dr. Clark Fullmer during my first year of practice—however, there was one person that I will forever be grateful to for teaching me the “art“ of orthodontics. I was an understudy of Dr. Tom Creekmore, one of the top clinical orthodontists ever. I learned more from him than anyone else. He was, in my opinion, the greatest orthodontist I ever met. He was a true clinician. While many people theorized—he practiced. He didn’t read an article and just take what it said, he researched and found out what worked and what didn’t work. For example, he once collected thousands of ceph x-rays and after analyzing them, helped to develop the high-pull head gear. He was just like that. He would look at something and say, “Let’s improve this.” I completed my thesis project with him in graduate school, then worked with him over a period of 3 years before he passed away. I was never an employee or on staff, but I’d go spend a week or 2 weeks at a time studying with him.

What’s the most satisfying aspect of your practice?

Genuinely making a difference in people’s lives. It is rare to have the opportunity to do that.

Professionally, what are you most proud of?

Professionally, I’m proud of my brothers. I’m proud that together, we’ve been able to develop a good reputation, we practice well together, and we do a lot in the community. We’ve been able to find a way to be really efficient with our practices, to take the best that orthodontics has to offer and really fine tune that into a practice that runs extremely well and that people are interested in bringing their patients to. We’re all about good customer service. Between the five of us, we have a good solid reputation in the community for providing great care at a reasonable cost, quickly and efficiently. People are really dedicated to us; not just one office, but all five. It’s rewarding to me as the oldest brother, and it’s also exciting and fun for the youngest brother. We are all located in sequential towns, starting from Provo to Springville, Spanish Fork, to Payson. My middle brother, Russell, is in Albuquerque, NM.

Personally, I am most proud of my family. I have a wonderful wife, Susan, who helped me through dental school and orthodontics, and who has given me seven great children. Everyday I go from a house full of kids to an office full of kids! It works!

What do you think is unique about your practice?

One word…efficiency. There are many ways to skin a cat (and I’ve skinned a few), but there is only one most effective, efficient way. That’s one of the things I learned from Drs. Jerrold and Creekmore, that even if you find many ways that work, choose the most efficient way.

What has been your biggest challenge?

Balancing family, religion, career, and fun. In orthodontics, there’s so much to pursue professionally and academically. I love ortho, but I love other things equally, and my number 1 priority is my family. It’s so rewarding to see the kids grow up, and it takes a lot of time. My practice will take as much time as I give it, and I have a lot of hobbies. The flexibility is another reason I love orthodontics. Daily, I’m faced with balancing all those things, not that I always do it well. Luckily for me, my sweet wife, Susan, will often help remind me to keep that balance a little better!

What would you have been if you didn’t become a dentist?

A veterinarian or a business man, which orthodontics almost requires. When you’re working with certain kids, it’s not unlike working in a vet’s office! And, you have to have a lot of business talents to run a successful practice. The orthodontics is the easy part; managing your staff and making good business decisions can be more challenging.



What is the future of orthodontics and dentistry?

I think the future of orthodontics is bright if we as a profession tackle the obstacles facing us rather than skirt them. One of our biggest threats is within our own rank and file: how we respond to our dental colleagues “practicing” orthodontic procedures; our relationships with our orthodontic peers; especially how we handle ever-increasing second, third, and fourth opinions. Another issue is patient education. It is important that our patients understand that there is a difference between a cosmetic alignment and a comprehensive treatment. It is important that we don’t compromise the overall quality of our care simply because we are facing a tough economy. I feel that the future success of our profession will be determined by our abilities to keep our standard of care elevated and work together as orthodontists professionally and respectfully.

What are your top tips for maintaining a successful specialty practice?

Treat others as you would like to be treated. Watch the bottom line—you are a businessman as well as an orthodontist. Younger practitioners and pre-dental students should take some business classes and get a good business background. I could have used a lot more business training and would have studied that over biochemistry any day. There are a lot of hoops you have to jump through; and some are only hoops and have no application to everyday dental practice. If somewhere on the road we learned business, we’d make better decisions for our profession. A good business background would help us all, and would really improve our whole profession.

What advice would you give to budding orthodontists?

Professionally, never compromise your quality of care. Get to know and work professionally with the orthodontists in your area. Find out not only what works, but what works most efficiently. Also, you don’t hire the perfect employee, you create the perfect employee. This is huge. I see a lot of offices that have so much employee turnover. I actually can’t remember firing any one. Once I find someone, I learn what talents they have, show them how to function in the office, share my expectations with them, and teach them how to be the best employee. I look at their heart and their desire, because I can teach them everything else they need to know in my practice. They’ve been my best employees, working with me 7-10 years or more. I really love my staff.

Personally, don’t wait till the end of your life to do your bucket list. Start on it early. I feel I have lived more in 45 years than most people do in a lifetime. Orthodontics will provide for you to do it, so take advantage of it. There are so many neat things to do in the world, so many things to see.

What are your hobbies, and what do you do in your spare time?

I fly helicopters and airplanes. My friend Mark Patey and I broke the World Transcontinental Speed Record, from San Diego to Jacksonville, Florida. At one time the record was held by Howard Hughes. We beat the previous record by almost 45 minutes, making it in 6 hours, 11 minutes, flying 433 miles per hour. We built that plane, the LanceAir Legacy, a twin turbo 580. We donate a lot of flight time in our helicopter to Search & Rescue and to city events—a helicopter is the ultimate four-wheel drive vehicle. I also hike, mountain climb, and rappel. I love kayaking and river rafting, especially the Grand Canyon. Motorcycle riding—I’ve ridden down the Baja, Mexico, and backroads of the western United States. I built a cabin in Fairview, Utah, for snowmobiling. I’m also an avid hunter and have hunted all around the world: Marco Polo sheep in Tajikistan, crossing the border into Afghanistan; Polar Bear in Canada; the Big Five (lion, leopard, cape buffalo, elephant, and rhino) in Africa, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, Zambia, and Namibia, including a man-eating crocodile that had been killing people as they were doing their laundry in the lake (about 100 local villagers celebrated that event); moose and Dall Sheep in Alaska; and Mule deer in Mexico. I do wake surfing and snowboarding, and I built an underground shooting range on my property for long-range shooting. When not traveling, I am a volunteer with Boy Scouts of America, a church youth leader, and the founder of Giving Smile, which donates orthodontic braces and treatment to many patients in need every year.

Top Favorites

Besides family, friends, flying, hunting, rafting, kayaking, wake surfing, snowmobiling, and motorcycle riding:

3M Unitek Mini Uni-Twin™
OrthoTrac Practice Management Software (Carestream Dental)
Digital imaging
3M product adhesives and bonding materials
Thank heaven for NiTi wires and implants!