Henry Schein One has released the 2026 edition of the Catalyst Index, its annual benchmarking report examining operational and financial trends across dental support organizations (DSOs), multi-location organizations, and private practices.
Now in its fifth year, the report analyzes data from tens of thousands of practices and identifies a recurring trend across practice models: organizations with stronger performance metrics tend to demonstrate higher levels of clinical consistency, patient communication, and case acceptance.
According to the report, top-performing organizations reported average case acceptance rates of 75%, compared with 45% among average-performing practices. The findings also indicate differences in production, collections, and patient engagement metrics between higher- and lower-performing organizations.
"Across the data, the pattern is consistent. Growth follows clinical performance. When clinicians are supported to deliver complete care and clear communication, patients move forward with treatment. That's what drives predictable revenue. It starts chairside and flows through the entire system," said Dr. Ryan Hungate, Chief Clinical and Strategy Officer, Henry Schein One.
The report also examines assumptions related to organizational scale and performance. Findings suggest that larger organizations do not consistently outperform smaller practices and that operational complexity may increase without proportional gains in efficiency or profitability.
"The idea that scale automatically creates better performance doesn't always hold up,” said Brian Colao, Director of the DSO Industry Group, Dykema. “What separates leading organizations is consistency in clinical care, patient experience, and execution across locations. That consistency is what ultimately enables scale to translate into performance."
In addition, the report notes changes in patient engagement trends. While some operational indicators, including scheduling efficiency, improved year over year, patient retention reportedly declined from 72% to 64%, and case acceptance rates decreased across segments.
The report includes separate editions for DSOs and multi-location organizations as well as private practices, with benchmarking data and operational comparisons tailored to each segment.
"We're using the Catalyst Index as a benchmark to understand where we're strong and where we need to improve,” said Amy Kaminski, Office Manager, Dawson Family Dentistry. “It helps us focus less on doing more, and more on doing the right things consistently—especially when it comes to patient communication and case acceptance."
The 2026 Catalyst Index is supported by several industry organizations, including the Association of Dental Support Organizations and the American Association of Dental Office Management.
Henry Schein One also indicated that findings from the report will be discussed during this week’s CDA Anaheim meeting, where the company plans to engage with dental professionals on trends related to clinical workflows, operational performance, and practice technology.
