THE EDITOR'S CORNER

A recent report called attention to what was described as a new economic index--The Cost of Nothing Index. This is the sum of costs that go on whether you use the service or not. Thus, there is a minimum telephone charge each month, and the same applies to rent, electricity, water, depreciation, and salaries.

Most orthodontists and auxiliaries seem to disagree that salaries should be included in a Cost of Nothing Index. They point to the value of full-time employment for retention and contentment of employees and to various activities for employees while the doctor is away. This is undoubtedly true in many practices. However, costs are increasing in orthodontics. Salaries are the largest category of overhead cost, but they are one overhead cost that can be related significantly to use.

Many offices have gone to the hourly wage for full-time as well as part-time employees, with the stipulation that the office may be closed when the doctor is not going to be present and that there may be some flexibility with regard to the number of hours of employment a week.

Part-time employment is an attractive arrangement to many excellent potential employees, works well in many places, and offers the orthodontist numerous advantages in terms of flexibility of staff usage. It relates the size of the staff at a given time to what is going on in the office. It maximizes the investment in salaries by employing auxiliaries only when they are needed and by eliminating the substantial fringe benefit costs of full-time employees.