Dr. Michael Rhees runs a Comfort Dental office in a former Dunkin’ Donuts in Old Colorado City, Colorado Springs. The building is a local landmark. The irony isn’t lost on him.

In this episode of the Comfort Dental podcast, Dr. Rhees sits down with host Shawn Zajas to talk about what brought him to dentistry, why his practice sees 200 new patients a month, and how his team handles the reality that most of those patients haven’t been to a dentist in five to ten years.

Dr. Rhees grew up with a serious heart condition that pointed him toward medicine. But he wanted a career where he could work with his hands, help people heal, and still be home for his kids. Dentistry fit. A mission trip to the Dominican Republic during dental school sealed it. He treated a young girl whose front tooth was black with decay. She’d been hiding her smile behind her hand. After a filling that took minutes, she smiled normally for the first time. That moment shaped how he practices today.

His office in Colorado Springs sits in a part of town he describes as underserved for a long time. Patients come in with years of untreated problems, often scared, sometimes in pain, sometimes frustrated. His team’s approach is simple: meet them where they are. No judgment. No pressure. If a patient needs their hand held through the process, that’s what happens.

Dr. Rhees has a standing rule in his office. If someone comes in with an infected tooth and can’t afford the extraction, his team does it anyway. Last year, the donated care added up to nearly $300,000.

He walks through what a first visit looks like: you call, you get in fast (sometimes that same day), and the goal of that first appointment is to make a plan. Not to start poking. Not to pressure. The patient decides how fast or slow treatment goes.

He talks about why root canals have a worse reputation than they deserve. His favorite patient compliment: “Wait, we’re done? That wasn’t as bad as I thought.”

He explains why dental work doesn’t last forever, and why that doesn’t mean your last dentist did something wrong.

And he shares what makes him smile outside the office: the gym, camping with his three kids in the Colorado mountains, and the knowledge that the best years of fatherhood are still ahead.

When asked to finish the sentence “every patient deserves…” his answer is one word: respect.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction

00:28 Why dentistry? Heart condition, hands-on work, and wanting to be a good dad

02:45 Two-year-old daughter makes a cameo

03:37 Loving woodshop, science, business, and people

06:00 The prototypical dentist: scientist, artist, and high EQ

06:50 Mission trip to the Dominican Republic: the little girl who hid her smile

10:27 The office in a former Dunkin’ Donuts in Old Colorado City

11:45 200 new patients a month, most haven’t been in 5-10 years

12:15 The dirty dishes analogy for putting off dental care

13:42 Meeting anxious patients with compassion, not judgment

17:00 Building a team oriented toward love and service

19:20 High emotional intelligence across the whole staff

20:19 Full range of services: cleanings, root canals, implants, dentures

21:09 How the Comfort Dental model creates room for generosity

24:15 The office rule: free extractions for patients who can’t afford them

25:10 Nearly $300,000 in donated dental care last year

27:15 What Dr. Rhees loves most: connecting with patients one-on-one

29:05 Favorite compliment: “Wait, we’re done?”

31:13 What to expect at your first appointment

33:35 Patient is 100% in the driver’s seat

34:05 Same-day and next-day availability, even if your other dentist is closed

35:15 How he educates patients on treatment options without pressure

38:22 The one thing he wishes every patient understood: momentum matters

39:42 Biggest misconception: dental work doesn’t last forever

41:31 Message to patients thinking about scheduling

43:19 One word patients would use to describe him: nice

44:34 Outside the office: gym, camping, and Colorado adventures with the kids

48:03 Every patient deserves respect