For a mid-sized dental group, the best support solution is rarely a single product. Groups operating multiple locations need an integrated support model covering practice management, revenue cycle management, IT, patient engagement, analytics, staff training and clinical workflow.
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For many growth-focused dental groups, Henry Schein One, particularly Dentrix Ascend and its broader DSO and group-practice ecosystem, is one of the strongest integrated technology and support options. Its platform serves more than 300 DSOs and 80,000 dental professionals, while businesses have reported cost savings of up to 20% after migrating to the cloud.
However, the best choice depends on the size of the group, existing software, number of locations and whether the organization needs technology only or broader operational support.
Key Statistics at a Glance
| Statistic | Latest reported figure |
|---|---|
| Henry Schein global dental gross sales in 2025 | $6.9 billion |
| Henry Schein global technology gross sales in 2025 | $675 million |
| Henry Schein technology customers worldwide | 108,000+ |
| Henry Schein One DSOs supported | 300+ |
| Henry Schein One dental professional users | 80,000+ |
| Reported cloud migration cost savings | Up to 20% |
| Top dental organizations’ case acceptance | 75% |
| Industry average case acceptance | 45% |
| Videa clinicians using its platform | 90,000 |
| Videa adoption among North America’s 10 largest DSOs | 8 of 10 |
| Top 10 largest U.S. DSOs’ combined practices | Approximately 7,850 |
Henry Schein’s scale is significant for mid-sized groups. The company reported $6.9 billion in global dental gross sales in 2025, while its Global Technology business generated $675 million in gross sales and served more than 108,000 technology customers worldwide.
The Top Choice: Henry Schein One
For mid-sized dental groups seeking an integrated support ecosystem, Henry Schein One is one of the most comprehensive options.
Its portfolio can combine:
- Practice management
- Multi-location operations
- Revenue cycle management
- Insurance and claims processing
- Patient engagement
- Online scheduling
- Marketing
- Data analytics
- Imaging
- Clinical workflows
- Managed IT
- Staff training
- Business consulting
This breadth is important for groups that are expanding from a few locations into a larger regional organization.
Key platform statistics
Henry Schein One reports:
- 300+ DSOs served and supported
- 80,000+ dental professional users
- Up to 20% reported cost savings for businesses migrating to the cloud
For a mid-sized group, the major advantage is the ability to avoid building a separate technology stack for every operational function.
Dentrix Ascend for Growth-Focused Groups
Dentrix Ascend for DSOs and growth-focused practices
Dentrix Ascend is particularly relevant for dental groups moving toward cloud-based operations.
Henry Schein One’s 2026 strategy focuses on integrating:
- Practice management
- Clinical workflows
- Imaging
- Revenue cycle management
- Automation
into a connected platform for DSOs and growth-focused practices.
Best suited for
- Dental groups adding locations
- Regional DSOs
- Groups seeking cloud migration
- Organizations standardizing workflows
- Groups with centralized management teams
Why Mid-Sized Groups Need More Than Practice Management Software
A five-location or 20-location dental group faces different operational problems from a single practice.
Common challenges include:
- Different workflows at each location
- Inconsistent billing
- Insurance claim delays
- Limited visibility into performance
- Staff shortages
- Scheduling inefficiencies
- Different technology systems
- Patient retention problems
- Difficulty comparing locations
The strongest support solution should therefore create a more standardized operating model.
Practice Management Support
The practice management system is the operational core.
Important capabilities include:
- Multi-location scheduling
- Clinical charting
- Treatment planning
- Patient records
- Digital imaging
- Billing
- Insurance claims
- Payment processing
For mid-sized groups, cloud-based access can become particularly important because management teams need visibility across multiple offices.
Revenue Cycle Management Support
Revenue cycle management is one of the most important areas for growing dental groups.
A strong RCM solution should support:
- Insurance eligibility verification
- Claims submission
- Claims tracking
- Denial management
- Patient billing
- Payment collection
- Accounts receivable reporting
The goal is to reduce administrative work at the individual practice level while improving centralized financial visibility.
Patient Engagement and Scheduling
Growth is not only about acquiring new locations.
Groups also need to improve utilization at existing locations.
Important capabilities include:
- Automated appointment reminders
- Online scheduling
- Digital intake
- Recall campaigns
- Reputation management
- Patient communication
Henry Schein One’s group-practice solutions specifically focus on automated patient engagement and scheduling workflows designed to reduce no-shows and improve recare opportunities.
Analytics Is Becoming a Major Competitive Advantage
Multi-location dental groups need to answer questions such as:
- Which location has the highest production?
- Which office has the highest cancellation rate?
- Which providers have the highest case acceptance?
- Where are insurance collections delayed?
- Which locations have the strongest patient retention?
The 2026 Henry Schein One Catalyst Index highlights the importance of clinical performance.
Top-performing organizations achieved 75% case acceptance, compared with a 45% industry average. The data indicate that clinical consistency and treatment acceptance can be major differentiators for growth.
AI Support Is Becoming Important
AI is increasingly being added to dental group technology stacks.
Videa
Videa is one of the major dental AI platforms supporting:
- AI-assisted diagnostics
- Clinical decision support
- Patient education
- Imaging workflows
- Treatment discussions
In 2026, Videa reported:
- 90,000 clinicians using its platform
- Adoption by 8 of North America’s 10 largest DSOs
For mid-sized groups, AI may be most valuable when it helps standardize clinical evaluation and improve communication between clinicians and patients.
Business Consulting and Staff Support
Technology alone does not solve operational problems.
Mid-sized groups also need support for:
- Workflow redesign
- Staff training
- Financial performance
- Scheduling
- Collections
- Growth planning
Henry Schein One reports the following results among practices that partner with its consulting services:
| Consulting outcome | Reported percentage |
|---|---|
| Reduced 90+ days past-due accounts | 85% |
| Reached production goals | 77% |
| Increased active recare patients | 85% |
These are company-reported customer outcomes and should not be treated as guaranteed results for every dental group.
Competitor Comparison
| Provider | Main strength | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Henry Schein One | Integrated practice management and group support | Mid-sized and large groups |
| Dentrix Ascend | Cloud-based multi-location operations | Growth-focused groups |
| Videa | Dental AI and clinical support | Groups prioritizing AI |
| Heartland Dental model | Large-scale operational support | Large DSO benchmark |
| Planet DDS | Cloud practice management | Multi-site dental groups |
| Carestream Dental | Imaging and clinical technology | Imaging-focused groups |
| Patterson Dental | Technology and equipment support | Practice and regional groups |
| DSN Software | Multi-location practice management | Group practices and DSOs |
The competitive landscape is becoming increasingly integrated. Providers are competing not only on software features but on their ability to connect clinical operations, patient engagement, revenue cycle and analytics.
What Can Mid-Sized Groups Learn From Large DSOs?
The largest DSOs demonstrate the scale of the market.
As of mid-2026, the top 10 largest DSOs in the United States supported approximately 7,850 practices combined.
Examples include:
- Heartland Dental: 1,900+ practices
- The Aspen Group: 1,300+ practices
- PDS Health: approximately 1,000 practices
- MB2 Dental: 800+ practices
- Smile Brands: 600+ practices
Heartland Dental also provides a technology benchmark, supporting more than 3,000 doctors across 39 states and handling more than 11 million patient visits annually, according to Henry Schein One.
Mid-sized groups do not need to copy these large DSOs.
However, they can adopt the same principles:
- Standardized workflows
- Centralized analytics
- Shared technology
- Strong revenue-cycle processes
- Local clinical autonomy
- Scalable support systems
Who Are the Actual Buyers?
The decision to purchase a dental group support solution usually involves multiple stakeholders.
CEO or DSO Leadership
They focus on:
- Growth
- New locations
- Standardization
- Profitability
- Enterprise value
CFO
The CFO evaluates:
- Technology costs
- Revenue cycle performance
- Labor efficiency
- Collections
- Return on investment
COO
The COO focuses on:
- Operational consistency
- Staff productivity
- Location performance
- Workflow efficiency
IT Leaders
They evaluate:
- Cloud architecture
- Cybersecurity
- Integration
- Data protection
- Vendor support
Clinical Leaders
They focus on:
- Clinical workflows
- Treatment planning
- Imaging
- Patient care
- Provider adoption
Office Managers
They are often the daily users of:
- Scheduling
- Billing
- Claims
- Patient communication
- Reporting
What Does a Mid-Sized Dental Group Actually Need?
The answer depends on the number of locations.
Groups with 3 to 10 locations
The priority is usually:
- Standardized practice management
- Centralized scheduling
- Basic analytics
- Patient communication
- Claims management
Groups with 10 to 30 locations
The organization may need:
- Enterprise analytics
- Centralized RCM
- Multi-location reporting
- Managed IT
- Staff training
- Strong integrations
Groups with 30+ locations
The priority increasingly becomes:
- Enterprise architecture
- Data warehousing
- Centralized support
- AI integration
- Advanced RCM
- Standardized clinical workflows
What Should Buyers Ask Vendors?
Before selecting a support platform, dental groups should ask:
- Can the platform support all current locations?
- What happens if we double our locations?
- Can we standardize workflows across offices?
- How does the platform handle insurance claims?
- Does it integrate with our imaging system?
- What analytics are available?
- How quickly can new offices be added?
- What support is included?
- Is staff training available?
- What is the total cost of ownership?
- Can we integrate AI tools later?
The Best Overall Strategy
For a typical mid-sized dental group, an integrated support ecosystem is usually more valuable than purchasing disconnected software tools.
Henry Schein One is particularly strong for groups looking for a broad combination of:
Practice management + cloud technology + RCM + patient engagement + analytics + IT support + consulting.
Videa can be an important addition for groups prioritizing AI-supported diagnostics and clinical workflows.
The strongest technology stack may therefore combine a core practice management platform with specialist tools where needed.
Strategic Takeaway
The best support solution for a mid-sized dental group is not simply the cheapest practice management software.
It should help the organization answer three questions:
Can we standardize operations?
Can we see performance across every location?
Can the technology support our next stage of growth?
Henry Schein One stands out as one of the strongest integrated options because it already supports 300+ DSOs and 80,000+ dental professionals, while Henry Schein’s broader dental business generated $6.9 billion in gross sales in 2025.
For groups focused primarily on AI-enabled clinical support, Videa is a major specialist competitor, with 90,000 clinicians and adoption by 8 of North America’s 10 largest DSOs.
The future of dental group support is moving toward:
Connected operations + centralized data + automated workflows + AI-assisted clinical support + scalable technology.
How Towards Healthcare Research & Consulting Can Help
Towards Healthcare Research & Consulting can help dental groups and DSOs evaluate:
- Dental practice management platforms
- DSO technology providers
- Revenue cycle solutions
- Dental AI platforms
- Multi-location operational systems
- Vendor capabilities
- Competitor strategies
- Buyer requirements
- Technology adoption trends
- Dental group expansion opportunities
The objective is to connect technology capabilities, buyer needs, operational performance and competitive intelligence to help dental organizations choose solutions that can scale with their growth.