Two Greenfield dental practices announce merger

GREENFIELD — Dr. Ryan Frost and Dr. Taylor Schroeder confirmed the merger of Greenfield Family Dentistry and Nodaway Valley Dental this week to the Adair County Free Press.

Schroeder, who is based in Atlantic, said the move to sell Nodaway Valley Dental to Frost came out of a desire for a greater continuum of care for patients here.

“The other offices I have keep me away from Greenfield, which I don’t like,” Schroeder said. “Dr. Frost is a great dentist. He’s bought into the community and I think it’s nice he’s able to serve Greenfield and the surrounding towns. We just wanted more stability for the office, for Greenfield and for the employees.”

In a Facebook post on the Nodaway Valley Dental page, Dr. Kathryn Handtke, who will no longer be practicing here, was sad about how abrupt of a change this was.

“We wish we had known sooner that a change was taking place so we could have helped our patients with the transition,” Handtke said. She also said that her patients were the highlight of her 3 1/2 years in Greenfield.

Greenfield Family Dentistry said it would begin immediately connecting with Nodaway Valley Dental patients individually so that appointments are kept as normal as possible.

Frost took possession of Greenfield Family Dentistry from Dr. James Elliott of Winterset in November, who previously bought the practice from longtime Greenfield dentist Dr. Verlin Hockett.

Schroeder bought what was first Nishna Valley Dental from another longtime Greenfield dentist, Dr. Richard Kohler.

Frost, who resides in Waukee with his wife Jillian, a speech language pathologist in Des Moines, is a Waterloo native and a graduate of the University of Iowa’s College of Dentistry. In his time in Greenfield, he has come to love the community. In his spare time, Frost enjoys cheering on the Chicago Cubs and Iowa Hawkeyes.

Frost confirmed that the two remaining employees that were at Nodaway Valley Dental are being employed at his office.

“We will be seeing patients from that office out of the office on the square [at 242 Public Square] at this time,” Frost said. “Going forward, we’ll see where things go. There will probably be a need for more space at some point — either a renovation or an expansion — but as of right now we’re planning to merge the two patient bases into one and work out of one office.

“I think we’re going to be able to do some neat things within the community. I came to appreciate the people here and knew I was looking for a smaller community to practice in. Greenfield has just been a perfect fit and I decided I didn’t want to leave.”

“I came to appreciate the people here and knew I was looking for a smaller community to practice in. Greenfield has just been a perfect fit and I decided I didn’t want to leave.”

—  Dr. Ryan Frost, Greenfield Family Dentistry