New Podcast lean and mean ➞ Get more details here
New Podcast lean and mean ➞ Get more details here
What do you want your life in dentistry to look like?
For Dr. James Parfitt, the answer includes meaningful patient care, ownership, time with family, and colleagues he can count on. Over more than two decades with Comfort Dental, those priorities have shaped both his career and the way he practices.
In this podcast conversation, Dr. Parfitt shares how he found Comfort Dental, what he learned about being an owner, and why serving patients at Comfort Dental Mile High in Denver continues to bring him back to the office. For dentists exploring a Comfort Dental franchise opportunity, his experience offers a personal perspective on the partnership model. For current Comfort Dental doctors, it offers an opportunity to reflect on the relationships and everyday decisions that make that model work.
Dr. Parfitt’s introduction to Comfort Dental started with a modest goal: earning a little extra money to take his wife out on weekends during his general practice residency at Denver Health. An invitation to spend Saturdays with a Comfort Dental doctor gave him a chance to see the practice firsthand.
What caught his attention was the opportunity to build a career within an established system while learning from experienced dentists. He had an entrepreneurial background and wanted to be an owner. He also recognized the value of sharing office resources, managing overhead together, and having partners to lean on.
“I didn’t have to invent it,” he recalls.
That support became especially meaningful as he moved from training into daily practice. Like many new dentists, he had more to learn than clinical technique. Managing patient flow, working with staff, and navigating complicated treatment conversations all required experience.
His partners helped him gain it. He remembers colleagues stepping in during a difficult extraction, helping prepare a patient when his schedule was full, or talking through a treatment plan when a patient’s needs and budget were difficult to reconcile. He also credits an early mentor, Dr. Phelan, with generously sharing his time and helping him get established.
Those stories give prospective owners something concrete to consider: the people alongside you will shape your experience of ownership. For doctors already practicing within Comfort Dental, they raise an equally useful question: how can you offer that same support to someone else?
The benefits of those relationships extended beyond the office. Dr. Parfitt describes attending his children’s sporting events and traveling to Canada to see family, knowing his partners would look after the practice while he was away. Having people he trusted made it easier to be present for the rest of his life.
He also speaks candidly about the responsibility that comes with ownership. Learning the business takes effort. His advice to a new Comfort Dental doctor includes arriving prepared, staying engaged, and understanding what happens throughout the office.
One of his most practical suggestions is to sit with the front office team and learn their work. Ask how they handle calls. Understand their responsibilities. Let them teach you. In his view, that willingness to learn builds both operational understanding and respect.
“Just be a sponge,” he advises.
That humility matters between partners, too. Dr. Parfitt emphasizes being comfortable working alongside other doctors and making decisions together. Dentists considering the model should think about how they approach collaboration, shared responsibility, and feedback. Current partners can use those same considerations to strengthen the way they work together.
Perhaps the most memorable part of the conversation is his description of serving patients at Comfort Dental Mile High, which he helped open in 2013. He describes a community where many patients face significant barriers to care, and a practice where charitable dentistry is part of everyday life.
One patient, a veteran experiencing homelessness, traveled from Fort Collins for treatment through a veterans organization. Later, he made the trip again to tell Dr. Parfitt that he had found a job and was in a relationship.
“That was a really great day,” Dr. Parfitt remembers.
He also shares his experience providing dental care in Guatemala, including the opportunity to serve alongside his son. The connection between those trips and his work in Denver is clear: helping people is central to what he enjoys about dentistry.
For a dentist considering Comfort Dental ownership, this conversation is a starting point for asking thoughtful questions about partnership, practice responsibilities, and personal goals. For current Comfort Dental doctors, it is an invitation to invest in a colleague, learn something new from a team member, or recognize the difference they are already making for patients.
Watch the full conversation above to hear Dr. Parfitt’s story. If you’re exploring a Comfort Dental franchise opportunity, connect with the Comfort Dental team to learn more and discuss whether the model fits the career you want to build.
