Anh Wu, Chief Financial Officer

Role: Chief Financial Officer, Smile Solutions

What the role covers

The chief financial officer holds responsibility for the financial management of the practice as a business:

Financial planning, budgeting and reporting
Billing systems, and the accuracy of what patients are charged — the published starting points are in the Price Guide
Payment plan and financing arrangements offered to patients
Health fund arrangements, including on-the-spot claiming and Bupa Platinum provider status
Purchasing and capital investment — equipment, technology, premises
Statutory and tax obligations, and financial governance
Payroll and the financial side of employment

It is a non-clinical role. A chief financial officer does not diagnose, treat, or influence what treatment is recommended.

Why the separation matters

That last point is worth stating plainly, because it is a reasonable thing for a patient to wonder about in a large private practice.

Under the Dental Board of Australia's Code of Conduct, clinical decisions must be made in the patient's interest. Recommending treatment on financial grounds rather than clinical need would be a professional conduct matter for the treating practitioner, and it is one of the things AHPRA exists to address.

Section 133 of the National Law also prohibits advertising a regulated health service in a way that is misleading, that creates an unreasonable expectation of benefit, or that encourages the indiscriminate or unnecessary use of health services. Those are legal obligations on the practice, not aspirations.

The practical protections available to any patient:

Ask for a written, itemised treatment plan with item numbers, before agreeing to anything — see Understanding Your Treatment
Ask what happens if you do nothing, and what the alternatives are, including the cheaper ones
Ask why this option rather than the alternatives — the answer should be clinical
Seek a second opinion for anything major. This is normal, and a good clinician will not object. See Second Opinions and Corrective Dentistry
Check the item numbers with your health fund independently

Why dental treatment costs what it does

A fair question, and one that is rarely answered directly.

Dentistry sits largely outside Medicare. Unlike a GP visit, there is no universal government rebate for adult dental care, so the fee is the cost of delivering it. This is the single biggest structural reason Australians report cost as their main barrier to dental care.

What sits inside a fee:

Clinical time, usually the largest component. A crown preparation is an hour of a dentist's and a nurse's time, not a transaction.
Laboratory costs for anything made outside the mouth — crowns, dentures, splints, aligners. This is a real external invoice, and where the work is made materially affects both cost and quality.
Materials and single-use items, much of it discarded per patient by design.
Sterilisation and infection control — equipment, validation, consumables and the staff time to run it.
Equipment and its replacement cycle — chairs, radiography, scanners, milling units.
Premises, which in the Melbourne CBD is not a small number.
Insurance, registration, and continuing professional development, all of which are mandatory.

There is no schedule of set fees in Australian private dentistry. Fees are set by each practice. ASDS item numbers — the Australian Schedule of Dental Services and Glossary — describe what was done, not what it costs. That is precisely why they are useful to you: the item number lets you compare one quote against another, and check your rebate independently.

The cost articles work through this treatment by treatment:

How health funds actually work

The part that causes most of the confusion at the front desk:

Extras cover, not hospital cover, pays for routine dental. They are different products.
Annual limits reset each year, usually on 1 January. Unused limit rarely carries over.
Waiting periods apply to new policies and to upgrades — commonly a short wait for general dental and a much longer one for major work. Upgrading a policy the week before a crown usually does not work.
Orthodontics typically has a lifetime limit, not an annual one. See Is having Invisalign as an adult worth it?
‘Preferred provider’ arrangements mean the fund has negotiated fees with particular practices. It can reduce your gap. It does not mean the practice is clinically better or worse, and it is not an endorsement of quality.
The gap is the difference between the fee and the benefit. Ask for it as a number before treatment, not after.
Percentage-based benefits are calculated on the fund's own schedule, which is not the same as the practice's fee.

If a fund dispute cannot be resolved, the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman handles complaints independently and free, through the Commonwealth Ombudsman.

Payment plans: what to check

The practice offers payment plan arrangements — see Payment Plans.

Payment plan options are available. Where a plan is advertised as interest free, that describes the plan term only — a deposit may be required, an establishment fee and ongoing account fees may apply, and charges can apply if the balance is not cleared within the agreed period. The applicable terms depend on the provider and the amount financed, and are set out in writing before you commit — ask what the deposit and the establishment fee are, in dollars, and what the total will be by the end. Payment Plans.

Whatever the provider, the questions are the same:

Is it genuinely interest-free, and for how long? What rate applies afterwards?
What are the fees — establishment, monthly account-keeping, late payment?
What happens if a payment is missed?
Is it a regulated credit product, and will it appear on your credit file?
Can I pay it out early without penalty?
Ask for the terms in writing and read them before signing. This is a finance contract, not a formality.

For the industry background, see Patient Dental Payment Plans: the next big disruption on the dental horizon.

And the more important question first: is there a cheaper clinically acceptable option? Financing a larger treatment is not the only alternative to not having it. Sequencing work over time, treating what is urgent first, and choosing the more conservative restoration are all legitimate clinical decisions — and a practitioner who knows the constraint can plan around it.

One option that is not a saving: treatment bought on price overseas. Overseas dental work could cost you more in the long-term sets out what the follow-up work tends to cost.

If cost is the barrier

Say so. It is common, it is not embarrassing, and it changes the plan for the better.
Victoria has a public dental system through community dental agencies and the Royal Dental Hospital of Melbourne, with eligibility-based access. Emergency care is triaged by clinical urgency — say clearly if you are in pain. For urgent problems here, see Emergency Dentistry.
Eligible children may be covered under the Child Dental Benefits Schedule; see Child Dental Benefit Schedule and How does the Child Dental Benefits Schedule operate?
For financial hardship generally, the National Debt Helpline on 1800 007 007 is free, independent and confidential.

Billing and payment questions

For anything about a quote, an invoice, a health fund claim or a payment plan, the practice's reception and treatment coordination teams are the first point of contact rather than the CFO directly. They can produce itemised quotes, health fund estimates, and explain payment plan terms. Contact Us.

If a billing issue is not resolved there, practice management is the next step, and external avenues remain open — the Health Complaints Commissioner in Victoria for service complaints, your health fund and the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman for claiming disputes, and AHPRA for practitioner conduct.

Common questions

Does the Chief Financial Officer provide clinical advice?

No. The CFO is a non-clinical administrative role. Diagnosis, treatment recommendations and consent discussions belong with the registered practitioners providing care.

Who should I contact about a quote or invoice?

The page directs patients to reception or treatment coordination first. They can provide an itemised estimate, explain invoices and payment timing, and direct unresolved matters to practice management.

Is a health-fund estimate guaranteed?

No. Benefits depend on your policy, waiting periods, limits, item numbers and previous claims. A practice estimate is helpful but the fund makes the final benefit decision, so confirm directly before treatment.

What should I check before using a payment plan?

Ask for the deposit, establishment and account fees, repayment schedule, total amount payable, late-payment consequences and what happens if treatment changes. Credit approval and terms belong to the finance provider.

Can treatment be staged if I cannot afford the full plan immediately?

Sometimes. Tell the clinician about the constraint and ask which work is urgent, which can safely wait and whether a more conservative option exists. Staging is a clinical decision as well as a financial one.

What can I do if I cannot access private dental care?

Ask about the Child Dental Benefits Schedule for eligible children and Victoria's public dental services for eligible patients. Pain or swelling should be described clearly because emergency public care is triaged by urgency.

What if a billing concern is not resolved?

Escalate it through practice management and keep the quote, invoices and correspondence. Depending on the issue, external options can include your health fund, the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman or Victoria's Health Complaints Commissioner.

Registration

Chief financial officers are not registered health practitioners, which is appropriate to a non-clinical role. The Dental Board of Australia registers dentists, dental specialists, dental hygienists, dental therapists, oral health therapists and dental prosthetists — it does not register dental technicians, dental assistants or nurses, practice managers or administrative staff.

The registrations that matter for your care are those of the clinicians treating you — listed on Our Team, and for those holding specialist registration, on Dentists and Registered Specialists and under Specialist Care.

Practical details

Registration of treating clinicians can be verified free on the AHPRA public register at ahpra.gov.au, or by calling 1300 419 495.

Smile Solutions, Level 1, 220 Collins Street, Manchester Unity Building, Melbourne VIC 3000. Phone 13 13 96, or theteam@smilesolutions.com.au. Monday–Friday 8.00am–6.00pm, Saturday 8.30am–1.30pm, Sunday by appointment. Location and directions.

This page records a staff role as published by the practice. General information only — it is not financial advice, and fees, health fund terms and payment plan conditions change. Confirm current details with the practice, your fund, and the credit provider. Payment plan terms are set by the credit provider and change; confirm current terms directly before you commit.

Smile Solutions trades under ABN 28 193 514 103.