Young Alumna of the Year Award

Sarah H. Blair, D.D.S., Dent ’13
Panama City, Panama

Sarah Blair has always loved working with patients, especially in her own dental practice, Third Coast Family Dental, which she purchased from a retiring dentist in 2015. But Blair finds particular joy in the practice-management side of dentistry. “Nothing gets me more excited than creating an effective scheduling system or a beautifully written job description, or analyzing an accounts receivable report,” she says.

Blair realized she could use these skills to aid other dentists. “I found that many excellent clinicians sometimes struggle in business due to a lack of confidence or knowledge about running their practices,” she explains. So, she and her husband Mark Ketterhagen, Grad ’12, launched Indie Practices in 2018 to coach dentists through the process of developing their own practices. One of their goals is helping young solo dentists, especially female dentists, “gain the confidence to take on the challenges of private practice ownership,” Blair explains, “because I know how rewarding it can be.”

In 2020, Blair and her husband relocated for his work to Panama City, Panama. This has offered new opportunities to embody the Marquette values of leadership and service. They currently offer community outreach to a small village on the Caribbean side of Panama, an area with no dental providers. “The facilities are currently inadequate for much more than giving home care instruction and supplies and applying fluoride,” Blair says, “but we plan to help establish a clinic there and eventually do service trips for urgent dental needs.”

Fun Facts:

Name someone you’d like to have dinner with.
Dinner with Tina Fey and Kate McKinnon would be incredible.

Name a Marquette faculty or staff member who had an impact on you, and how.
My group leader, Dr. Thomas Smithy, had an incredibly calm demeanor and spoke to students with respect and humor.

Leave a congratulatory message for Dr. Blair!