MOSES LAKE — “It’s important to make a living, but it’s more important to make a difference.” 

That’s the advice Dr. Calvin Despain said his mentor gave him years ago. Despain is the owner of Skyview Dental Clinic in Moses Lake, having taken over Dr. Brent Jones’ practice about four years ago when Jones retired. The clinic is tucked away on Hunter Place just off South Pioneer Way, but it will be moving this year into a brand-new, larger facility on Yonezawa Boulevard next to Lowe’s. 

Despain, his wife Brooke and their two children broke ground for the new clinic March 14. Since then, they’ve added another baby to the family. The new clinic will cover 6,000 square feet and hold 10 treatment rooms as well as state-of-the-art equipment, Despain said. It will also have much better visibility, he added. 

“We've had patients who've come in, they've lived in Moses Lake 20 years, but they've never known this building was back here,” he said. “This building is well over 40 years old and it looks and acts like it is 40 years old. Having a bigger space where we can accommodate more patients, accommodate more emergencies, that's one thing that I'd like to be able to do. Right now, there's some limitation where when people come in; sometimes we're only able to do just a brief exam and then get them scheduled back for treatment. I'd like to have enough space that we can fit more people in and do more same-day treatment on them.” 

The new clinic is expected to be open and running in November, Despain said. 

Despain, who grew up in southern Idaho, said he always wanted to do something in health care, and dentistry was the field that grabbed his attention.  

“You do a lot of surgical (work) and a lot of diagnostics,” he said. “There’s just a wide range of things you can do. And it tends to have more of a balance in lifestyle and hours than some of the other medical professions.” 

Despain’s parents had moved to the area in 2019, he said, and after practicing for a while in Idaho he decided to do the same. He looked into buying a practice in a different part of the state but that fell through right when Jones’ practice became available. The entrepreneurial side of owning a practice carried a few surprises, he said. 

“It’s more work than you originally think it would be,” he said. “Managing staff and dealing directly with insurance companies and things like that. You know, when you get out of dental school they don’t teach you those kinds of details.” 

Despain has a staff of 12, he said, all of whom have come on board since he took over. They’re led by Melissa Garland, who started out as a scheduling coordinator and was made officer manager two years ago. The promotion meant she had to learn a lot of things very quickly, she said, especially in the Byzantine world of insurance. 

“I learn something new every day here, I’ll tell you that,” she said. “Dental (insurance) is different from medical. A lot of people don’t know that. Educating patients on insurance is something that we pride ourselves on in this practice.” 

Because not everybody has adequate dental insurance, Skyview maintains a membership club that sort of fills that gap, Garland said. For fees of between $42 and $67 per month, patients can get their routine dental care taken care of, including cleanings, X-rays and emergency exams. Patients in the membership club also get a 20% discount on some other treatments.  

“(Patients) can cancel at any time,” Garland said. “We don’t have them sign a contract … We allow patients (with other insurance) to sign up for the membership club after they’ve exhausted those plans, too.” 

One of the advantages Skyview offers patients, Despain said, is IV sedation dentistry, which he became certified to administer earlier this year. Many patients are nervous or even downright afraid of being in a dentist’s chair, which can cause them to put off treatment. Sedation dentistry takes the edge off that fear. Most dentists administer the sedative orally, in a pill, Despain said, but a few, like him, are able to do it intravenously. That allows a doctor more control over the dose and the patient a less tense visit. 

Despite growing, Skyview will remain a one-dentist practice, Despain said. 

“Before I came here, I worked in a large group practice (with) five locations,” he said. “I worked in three different locations … They didn't think that it was important for patients to see the same doctor every time they came in, but for a lot of patients, that is important. So when patients come here and they see me, they know that I'm the doctor they're going to see.” 

    From left: Extended Function Dental Assistant Esmie Tercero, Office Manager Melissa Garland and Hygienist Ann Breeswine in the waiting room at the existing Skyview Clinic. The new building is expected to open in November.
  

    An architect’s rendering of the Skyview Dental Clinic under construction on Yonezawa Boulevard. The 6,000-square-foot facility will have 10 treatment rooms and state-of-the-art equipment.
  

    The existing Skyview Dental Clinic on Hunter Place. The clinic will move to a new, larger facility in November.