Dentistry to Entrepreneurship: Dr Shweta Prabhu’s journey of ethical care and patient trust

What inspired you to transition from clinical dentistry and teaching to entrepreneurship, and what challenges shaped Precision Dental Clinic’s early years?

I went from being a clinician and teacher to an entrepreneur, blissfully unaware that running a dental clinic involves a lot more than teeth!

My husband, Dr Punit Thawani, and I started Precision Dental in 2016 because we wanted to practise dentistry on our own terms, ethical, conservative and patient-focused.

What followed was a rather expensive MBA in real life! Suddenly, I was learning about finances, recruitment, marketing and why the plumbing breaks down on your busiest days at the clinic.

Ten years and over 9,000 patients later, the biggest reward isn’t the numbers. It’s seeing families grow with us, sometimes across three generations. That’s something no spreadsheet can measure.

How have you built a successful dental practice around ethical treatment, patient education and long-term trust?

Here’s my rather unpopular business philosophy: Just because you CAN do a treatment doesn’t mean you SHOULD.

We’ve never believed in selling dentistry. My patients aren’t walking wallets with teeth!

We spend time explaining conditions, discussing alternatives and sometimes telling patients they don’t need the treatment they came asking for. Does that make us the fastest-growing business? Perhaps not. But it makes us one that patients trust. And when patients return year after year, bringing their spouses, children and their mothers-in-law, you know you’re doing something right.

How is growing awareness of the connection between oral health and overall well-being transforming preventive dental care in the UAE?

Somewhere along the way, dentistry became the forgotten cousin of medicine. Apparently, the mouth didn’t get the memo that it’s attached to the body!

As a periodontist, I see how gum disease and systemic conditions, particularly diabetes, influence one another.

I recently addressed medical professionals at a diabetes conference about this very connection and the need for better medical-dental referrals.

The UAE has a real opportunity to make integrated preventive healthcare the norm. We need to stop treating teeth as isolated accessories and start recognising oral health as an essential part of overall health.

As a mother, clinician and entrepreneur, how do you navigate competing priorities, and what leadership lessons have shaped your journey?

Balance? I’m still looking for it!

Between being a mother to a wonderful 12-year-old, running a practice, treating patients and my leadership commitments, I’ve realised that balance isn’t about giving everything equal time. It’s about knowing what deserves your attention at that moment. I’ve also learnt that asking for help isn’t a weakness. It’s a life skill! And I’m incredibly fortunate to have a supportive family that doesn’t just offer encouragement but actually steps in and shares the load.

That’s a blessing I never take for granted. My biggest leadership lesson has been learning to let go. You cannot build something sustainable if everything depends on you. I’ve learnt that leadership isn’t about being the smartest person in the room. It’s about building a team, trusting people and helping them grow into their potential. And motherhood? That’s probably my most humbling life experience. My daughter regularly reminds me that having an opinion doesn’t necessarily mean I’m right!

Ultimately, success for me isn’t just about building a thriving practice. It’s about building something meaningful, while still being present for the people who matter most.