Unfortunately, no strategy will completely eliminate last minute cancellations and  no-shows. Howver, here are some strategies you can employ to keep downtime to a minimum.

During the month of March I will create one video tip each week and then write a little about how you can implement this and help keep patients coming back to your office.

This week I want to talk about one more tip that will help  reduce last minute cancellations.

Do you have an after-hours message on a voice mail for your office?

Most offices do have a message machine where patients can leave a message when the office is closed.

What does your voice message say to patients who call your office after hours?

Do you allow patients to leave a message to cancel their dental appointment?

Many times leaving a message about appointment cancellations is a scape goat for the patient.

State in your after-hours voice message “This voicemail does not accept cancellations. All cancellations must be made in during business hours.”

Also consider if you do feel it’s necessary for your patients to leave this type of message AND if you have your patients trained right…your patients will only cancel when they have an emergency situation. If you are the doctor, don’t you want to know about a personal emergency with your patients?

Your patients are most likely a friend and in the case of an emergency and they do need to cancel last minute, have your answer machine state that if there is an emergency situation that requires a change in their appointment they need to call doctor at such-and-such phone number.

Most patients will not call doctor UNLESS it really is an emergency.

My point here is:

• #1 do not allow patients to leave a message to cancel their appointment on your voicemail.
• #2 is if you MUST allow patients to leave messages on your voicemail to change an appointment at have your voicemail state that if the patient does need to change their appointment, they must call doctor personally. This will eliminate the scape goats from calling because (as I stated in last week’s video) too often patients value another type of appointment over their dental appointment and they will call last minute to cancel their dental appointment. Seldom do people call to cancel their massage, spa appointment or haircut! AND
• #3 if you communicate via text and emails with your patients, let me know these types of communication are not accepted when a patient needs to change their dental appointment. The must call to change an appointment during office hours.
• #4 is eliminating the word cancel and instead say “Change in appointment”.

What challenges do you have with cancellations in your office?

What has worked well to reduce cancellations for your office?

Please do share below.

I am certain that you probably have a protocol, but do you know what is truly said when a patient calls to cancel?

I was observing in an office last week and I saw and over heard the front office team member pick up the phone. She listened to the patient and her response was only to say “OK!” End of the conversation!

The team member then deleted the patient appointment from the schedule on the computer.

How many times has this happened in your office?

I imagine it happens every week that a patient calls to cancel last minute.

Today, I bring just one tip that may help to reduce cancellations.

Yes! There are true emergency situations that arise but how does the team follow up when someone calls to cancel?

Is that patient deleted from the schedule and that is the end of the story?

I see things like this happen all the time when I am doing an observation in an office.

The proper protocol to keep you patients coming back is to:

• Ask the patient what you can do to help them keep their appointment
• Offer to help solve their current situation that keeps them from coming in that day or week

> Does the patient need a babysitter or do they need a taxi?

> It does happen occasionally (GOD FORBID!) that there is a serious emergency. (In this situation, always call to follow up in 24 hrs. Check on your patient with an serious emergency!Never just delete them from the schedule – out of sight – out of mind!)

If your patient must cancel, be sure to schedule a next visist and if the patient doesn’t have a good excuse definitely do not reschedule them the very next day!

Patients who don’t feel dentistry and their oral health is important are the ones most likely to cancel last minute.

• Do you have a cancellation policy? And do patients read and sign this?

Add value to your patients about why they need to return to the dental office. Do they have high blood pressure, heart disease AND periodontal disease? Does this patient understand the link between their oral health and how optimal oral health will most likely halt systemic diseases. Much research is available to show oral health can reverse systemic diseases such as diabetes.(1)

One more system we have seen work well to keep patients from cancelling last minute is to offer Lifetime Whitening.

Next week I will provide another video to help reduce cancellations.

What type of challenges does your office have regarding last minute cancellations? Please comment below so I can provide suggestions to overcome this epidemic in the dental office.

Hearing patients say “Yes” to case acceptance begins with a patients first phone call to your office and in today’s world their first contact may be through a visit to your website. This is the place where trust begins.

Once they walk in your front door it continues and how you talk to them while first seated in the dental chair makes a huge difference. Do you put a patient bib on immediately or do you sit knee-knee and eye-eye with patients at the beginning of their appointment? This can only take one minute but makes a huge difference in patient rapport!  

When patients are in your dental chair provide a tour of their mouth to show them what you see. Use pictures in brochures, typodonts, posters, etc. when you explain what you see and when you explain the benefits iof “WHY” their treatment needs to be completed sooner than later. 

When patients leave your office to “think about it” many times they leave because they really don’t get it. There was something missing, their questions were not answered and maybe they didn’t feel comfortable asking.

If you have enthusiasm in your tone, and your attitude is positive, you will be more likely to have your patient feel enthusiastic about the treatment you present. Realistically, some patients will need to have a spouse or significant other help with their decision especially if that someone else is attached to paying for the treatment.

When patients leave without making their next appointment always ask when you can follow up and try to make this follow up call within 72 hours. The  longer you wait to schedule their treatment the less value their treatment will have. Urgency to complete treatment is key here and why would anyone want to wait if they can be healthier tomorrow?

This video is part of our 60 Day Dental Hygiene Profits Program. Did you like what you just read? Want to view more videos like this and learn innovative and proven methodologies to improve your dental hygiene department and profitability? Check out the 60 Day Dental Hygiene Profits Program. Our clients double their money spent on this program. If you purchase today and take advantage of the 2 coaching calls we offer you a  money back guarantee.

Most dental offices who retain our services are not efficient with scheduling patient appointment times. Most offices will say they are “busy” but when analysed they are not efficient. There is a big variable between being busy and being profitable. One important aspect of scheduling your perfect day is the timing of your procedures.

To thoroughly understand how much time to block in your schedule for various appointments means taking time to analyse how much time is spent on specific procedures such as a crown prep, implants and even scaling and root planing in the hygiene room. Chances are if your hygienist doesn’t have at least 50 minutes of dedicated patient time for a full quadrant to scale and root plane he or she will run behind. This type of procedure normally takes 50 minutes by the time you administer local anesthesia, scale, root plane, use antimicrobials, ultrasonics, as well as provide post-op instructions and then turn over the room.

Many dentists allow for sixty minutes for a crown prep when in fact it is over sixty minutes by the time the patient is dismissed and the room is turned around and ready for the next patient. (See video message in the picture)

BENEFITS OF AN EFFICIENT SCHEDULING SYSTEM:

• less stress
• patients can return for treatment in a timely manner
• production is increased dramatically without raising fees or altering the mix of the practice
• the practice becomes productive every hour no matter what procedure is being performed

Most people and especially children will perform (and respond to life in general) earlier in the day especially when scheduled for major dental treatment. The rest of the day becomes much easier for all when smaller procedures are scheduled. When you adhere to a blocked schedule, you are most likely guaranteed to produce your target production number for each day.

Take time to have one employee or your dental consultant analyse how much time is truly spent of at least three services that are completed daily. For example, have someone time a crown prep appointment. Start the stop watch from the time the patient is seated until they leave out the door. It may be a great idea to time at least one hygiene appointment from start to finish to see the reality of what even your hygienist needs per patient and for the various types of patients he or she sees each day. Is the child prophy really only 30 minutes? What does the provider really need to provide valuable patient care?

Without a strong scheduling system in place, the schedule will become like a clogged artery. When you plan to schedule your perfect you will experience productivity and profitability.

Do you have a schedule that works like a well-oiled machine? If you answered “YES” please let us know how you have accomplished this success.

ABOUT DEBBIE SEIDEL-BITTKE, RDH, BS

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS founded Dental Practice Solutions in 2000. Debbie has a strong background in academia working as a clinical assistant professor at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. She also wrote the accretitation for a dental hygiene program in Portland, Oregon in 2008.

Debbie has been known as one of Dentistry Today’s Top Consultants for 10 years in a row. She has spoken at most of the national dental meetings and serves dental practices worldwide through her proven systems proven to sustain dental practice profits for a lifetime.

Please contact our office for a complimentary Discovery Call today or email us today and take your practice to that next level AND without working harder!

It is very important that as a dental professional, you understand what a valuable role you play because we are helping our patients to live a longer healthier and happier life. Isn’t that right?

I sure hope you agree because my experience as a dental practice management consultant has proven to me that dental practices who embrace this philosophy are the happiest dental teams and the most profitable!

Do you currently enjoy what you do at your dental office? If you can share that enthusiasm with your patients it will spread great news throughout your community which is certain to bring more raving fans into your office! When you are happy and really value what you do for your patients, then you will experience not only personal joy but your patients are most likely to tell everyone about how much they love coming to your office! (Please view the 2 minute video on top left)

This is one of the easiest ways to have new patients coming into your dental office each and every day your office is open! The key is to share your enthusiasm. It spreads like a wild fire!

Tip number 1 is: Value

Value what you do professionally and then add value to your patients.

What I mean by adding value to your patients is about using words that add value. When you speak to a hygiene patient for example; if that patient has 4 and mm pockets and BOP what do you say when scheduling the patient’s next visit?

What many STILL, in today’s world say (you know all the research we do have about the mouth/body connection- right?!)is this.  I  hear the entire team say the word “Cleaning”. It’s a word I consistently have to work with clients to not use with their patients! We are no longer in the business of cleaning teeth. In today’s world we are all about creating healthier and longer lives for our patients. Let’s get that clear and speak about this value we add to our patients.

Have you ever met a patient who didn’t want to live a longer and healthier life?

Well neither have I!

When a patient is making their next appointment, create value around why they need to return. It may sound something like this:

“Mrs. Johnson, today we talked about and you remember that I showed you (imagine the hygienist showed the patient those areas by using her/his intraoral camera) those areas where you have 4 and 5mm pockets and we saw the bleeding when I was probing. It is very important that you maintain these areas at home with your power tooth brush and floss plus, I need to get in there and remove the bacteria at least every 90 days to keep those areas healthy. And this is what will also keep your body healthy. To maintain the health of these areas and your body I want to see you every three months (or state what the correct interval is for each individual patient), so I can see you on Wednesday May 13^th at 10 am. I know you like the morning appointments and I have the same time and day in three months available to see you then. Will that work for your schedule?”

Do you think Ms. Johnson is more likely to say “YES” to accept the dental hygiene appointment when you state it like this?

Many times I hear the scheduling coordinator ask something like this: “Mrs. Johnson, when would you like to come back for your cleaning?”

Which question do you believe has a higher level of confidence on behalf of the dental professional and adds value and benefits for the patient to return for routine care?

This is your schedule so take charge of it. You must feel proud of your office and the quality of care you provide your patients so OWN IT! Take control of getting patients back to the office and on time!

Tip Number 2:  The dental hygienist is the most important person to schedule all hygiene patien’s next visit.

 The hygienist is the one team member who was just with the patient (for about an hour) and discovered what the patients’ needs were. The hygienist knows exactly why the patient needs to return for their next dental hygiene appointment.

Imagine a patient hygiene preventive care appointment. Does your hygiene patient have disease in their mouth? Did the hygienist and patient discover areas of 4 and mm pockets with bleeding on probing? Most hygienists want to see this patient back in maybe six weeks or at the very most three months.

It’s in the hygiene treatment room that the hygienist is in the best position to explain to their patient WHY and when the patient needs to return for their next hygiene appointment.

Many offices are still sending a hygiene patient to the front desk to make their next appointment and by the time the patient arrives at the front desk, it is very possible, that the patient has already forgotten why (and exactly when) they need to come back see the hygienist AND many times the scheduling coordinator gets so busy that they forget to schedule the patients next hygiene appointment. Yes, I do see this happen ALL too often! At Dental Practice Solutions we review our client data weekly and it happens! No one really intends to let patients leave without a next appointment scheduled but for numerous reasons this happens.  It is something to look at each week to be sure these patients are not lost and without a next appointment.

Team members, all the dental auxiliaries, have so much to do in so little amount of time, that making the patients next appointment can be easily forgotten. This is when time and money are spent chasing patients down to get them back to your office. The end result is the patient spends more time and money in the dental office because their oral disease has become a larger problem by the time they get back to their dental office. Now, the patient is spends more money to care for an oral condition that could have been easily treated or better yet – prevented.

I hope these tips will be helpful to you in keeping your schedule full and experiencing your perfect day’s schedule at the office.

Enjoy your day at the office and next week I will provide more tips to schedule your perfect day!

Please be sure to click on the 2 minute video at the top of this blog.

Please feel free to comment below.

1.      Schedule in 10 min intervals

Using 15 minute increments on the schedule costs the practice approximately seven days of treatment time every year. This means the doctors are working that much harder and not smarter. When you change the practice schedule to 10-minute units you are able to schedule procedures with a higher degree of accuracy. When you utilize 10-minute units of time the practice can schedule a 20-minute procedure with ease. With 15-minute units, the procedure must be scheduled either with not enough time (15 minutes) or too much (30 minutes). Ten-minute units will now offer greater flexibility and result in increased productivity.

2.      Reverse engineer it

It doesn’t need to be a calculus equation or statistics but there needs to be a strategic mathematical formula to make certain the practice meets their goals. It is best to schedule an average daily level of production which will be equal to your annual production goal. For example, if you want to produce 1.5 million in 200 days, you need to schedule $7,500 per day. This will include the hygiene schedule and doctor’s schedule. It is not realistic to produce this same number each day. The important fact to look at is your daily practice production average.

Having “Perfect Day” schedules and daily production goals also be valuable in reducing practice stress because it will  allow doctor and their team to achieve a consistent day-in day-out workload.

This allows you to take control of your schedule and the schedule will not control you. When setting up your annual schedule template decide how much production you need to stay in the black. Decide what procedure blocks will be added and at what times on the schedule. Many practices make the mistake of scheduling by reactively filling empty time slots.

3.      Schedule more difficult procedures and patients earlier in the day

Most people during the day have more energy and as the day progresses they tend to run out of steam. For many people the time after a lunch break seems to create a decrease in energy. Try having longer, more intensive treatment options in the morning. This is the time to fill the schedule with longer procedures and high-production cases.

Check back next week for more tips about how to create your perfect days schedule.

Check out our courses/webinars coming up: COURSES

Grab Your 7 Day Dental Hygiene Program at no cost today: 7 Day Dental Hygiene Program

When you have a strong scheduling system in place you have increased productivity and profitability. When you create a schedule with production as a priority you create harmony, less stress and help the practice meet all the daily goals; production and otherwise.

When you have a productive and profitable dental hygiene department you will create success for your dental practice indefinitely however, there are a few important tools that every dentist must acquire to be successful and these are

1.   You must be dedicated to leadership,

2.  You must be continually dedicated to learning

3.  Never think that either of these is are “hit or miss.”

CREATING A SUCCESSFUL AND VERY PROFITABLE DENTAL HYGIENE DEPARTMENT

Part 1 and 2 discussed:

 1. Your Vision

 2. Create a Team Approach

( To learn more about Part 1 of this blog go here PART 1. Part 2 can be found here: PART 2)

3. Tap Into Your Recare Goldmine

4. Your Cancellation Policy

In Part 3 today I will focus on

5. KNOW YOUR GOALS

The twenty first century dental practice needs to have daily goals established before the beginning of a new year begins.

A sustainable and profitable dental hygiene department will produce no less than 30% of the total office production. Anything less, is not adequate to support and sustainable dental practice.

The purpose of the numbers discussed here today, are only an example and each location of a dental practice will be different based on their UCR fees.

If doctor’s production goal for the office is $10,000 per day, then the hygiene department production should equal no less than $3,000 per day.

Clients of Dental Practice Solutions are able to track the percentage of treatment plans coming from the hygiene department with our very detailed dashboard.

The treatment diagnosed in the hygiene department can be discovered by adding the hygiene department production which as an example will be $3,000 + to doctor’s daily production goal which is $7,000. This is where we come up with a $10,000 daily goal for the month.

In order for doctor to accomplish his or her daily goals for case acceptance in the hygiene department must be no less than 70% and a follow up plan needs to be in place if patients do not leave the office with a next appointment for restorative care or hygiene services.

Always schedule an end-of-year meeting with the entire team to establish your annual goals and number of days you will need to work to establish your goals.

If you have never scheduled this type of meeting your practice management consultant is a great resource to establish guidelines for this very important annual meeting.

Bottom line with accomplishing your goals is to write them down and review them often with you team. Each month track your goals and at your morning huddle report on where you are with at least your production and collection goals. Have team members report on how they can close the gaps in achieving your goals.

In number 6 I will share some simple services to close your gap on accomplishing your goals.

 6. SAME DAY SERVICES THAT CREATE PATIENT HEALTH AND SUSTAINABLE PROFITS

Same day services will add value to your dental hygiene appointments. Offering your patients services such as ViziLite^® Plus, VELscope^® Vx, or other technology available today for oral cancer screening, fluoride varnish treatments, impressions for night guards, sealants, etc. will save your patients time returning to the office but is also add profitability to the practice.

Take for example, 4 patients each day receive:

Oral Cancer Screening using ViZilite, VELscope             $ 50.00 X 4 = $ 200.00

Fluoride Varnish                                                                $ 35.00 X 4 = $ 140.00

Daily addition to Hygiene Production                                                       $ 340.00

If Your Hygienist adds these 150 days annually                                $  51,000

($340 additional daily production X 150 Days. Imagine your hygienist also adds sealants or night guard impressions. What will that $ amount be?)

The picture below shows how the hygienist can organize their 60 minutes when working with a patient and not feel like they are running on a treadmill. This is an example of how same day services can fit into the hygiene schedule.

CONCLUSION

Most successful dental businesses implemented most or all of these 6 tips. When you implement these systems and services into your dental practice no longer will you hear that the dental hygiene department is a “loss leader.”

Let us know about your dental practice in the comment section below.

What are your current practice challenges?

Do you know where you hygiene recare efficiency stands today?.

Is the hygienist in your office able to manage their patient time effectively?.

Let us know by sending an email if you want us to look over your hygiene department numbers. If you don’t know your numbers then you have a plan to only be “status quo” at best.

Success in the dental hygiene department today, involves both research and technology, within the legal scope of practice for a dental hygienist. These are the changes which have created a huge opportunity to achieve ideal preventive care for all of your patients.

Success and profitability for every dental practice means you will merge clinical excellence with solid business strategies.

In part 2 of this blog I will continue to discuss the goals, and roadblocks that you need to look at in order to make the department hygiene department productive and profitable. And please make note that today’s world of dentistry also means less is more. You should not feel that you are working harder or more hours but working the same hours or less but achieving more success and profits as well.

If you wish to have a productive and profitable hygiene department that will create success for your dental practice indefinitely, you must be dedicated to leadership, education and not think this process is “hit or miss.”

CREATING A PROFITABLE HYGIENE DEPARTMENT

Part 1 focused on these 2 areas necessary for success and profitability:

1. Your Vision
2. Create a Team Approach

To learn more about 1 and 2 refer to Part 1 of this blog here PART 1

This week we will focus on two more areas of profitability in your dental hygiene department

3.     Tap Into Your Recare Goldmine

As I initially analyze the current clients of Dental Practice Solutions most offices have not seen over 30% of their perio patients (Patients who have completed Scaling and Root Planing. Phase I Perio Therapy) in the past 18 months. This does not include patients who are due for routine preventive care.

98% of your hygiene patients should never leave without a next hygiene appointment. For more than 15 years we have known that you will work much harder to bring a patient back to your office if they do not preschedule their next hygiene appointment.

Let us know if you want to know your hygiene recare efficiency because this is one of the easiest areas in your dental practice to see profits soar!

If you want to know more information about how our clients have flipped this recare challenge and not only had hundreds of overdue hygiene patients return to their office but their new patients numbers improved alongside of this simple implementation. You can contact Carla@solutionreach.com to show you how this is done.

4.     Your Cancellation Policy

What is your cancellation policy? It is imperative that all new patients read and acknowledge your office cancellation policy.

Here are a few tips to make sure you implement and it is more likely that you will see your cancellations decrease:

a)      Have a written policy for all patients to read, sign and include with their patient file

b)      Do not allow patients to leave messages of cancellation on your answer machine

c)       Request all cancellations be made within 72 hrs. notice of their scheduled appointment

d)      Offer a benefit for those patients who do keep their appointment. Consider free whitening for patients who do keep their appointments

e)      Charge a cancellation fee that is appropriate to the time scheduled.

RECAP OF YOUR HYGIENE DEPARTMENT NUMBERS AND PROFIT POTENTIAL

What should your hygiene department numbers look like?

The hygiene department should bring in 30% of the total production. YES! Shocking? This is true!

Look at typical numbers our clients see after utilizing our services:

A Day in the Life of a Dental Practice Solutions Hygiene Department

4 Prophylaxis Appointments (4 X $95)                                         $  95

2 Scale and root planing Appointments (2 X $265)                 $ 265

Arestin^® (6 Sites X $40/site)                                                       $ 240

2 Periodontal Maintenance (2 X $110)                                       $ 220

6 Fluoride Varnish Treatments (6 X $30)                                 $ 180

4 Identifi^® Oral Cancer Screenings (4 X $60)                          $ 240

4 Patients X-rays (4 X $65)                                                          $ 260

Daily Production Total:                                                               $1,500

The fees used in this example are not a guide for you to use in your dental practice but are used only to show an example of what a typical dental hygiene day can look like for your dental practice.

CONCLUSION

Most successful dental businesses have implemented these systems. When you implement these systems into your dental practice no longer will you hear that the dental hygiene department is a “loss leader.” Begin implementing just these 4 tips to get on the path to where you want to be.

Let us know about your dental practice in the comment section below. What are your current practice challenges? Do you know where you hygiene recare efficiency stands today? Let us know by sending an email if you want us to look over this number. Also, if there is a topic you want to know more about please do share in the comments below.

Most people responded with a post that said “YES” and the woman who started this topic of conversation asked what their system included.

At this point no one responded. They all said “Yes” but it seems that no one was going to say what their specific system was. OR – – do they know what the system expected by doctor is AND does everyone on the team know and follow the vision of the doctor for his or her dental practice?

What does it take to create a clinically successful, productive, and profitable hygiene system within a dental practice?

During the twenty first century, research and technology in periodontics has created numerous, positive changes in the responsibilities of hygienists and the scope of technology available for practicing dental hygienists. These changes have created a big opportunity to achieve ideal preventive care for all of your patients.

Success and profitability for every dental practice means you will merge clinical excellence with solid business strategies.

Healthy profits should not only pertain to the dental hygiene department but we need to understand how this one department can support profits and sustain success for the entire dental practice. The dental hygiene department is only one component of success for a financially sustainable dental practice.

Over the next 2 weeks, I will discuss the goals, and roadblocks that you need to look at in order to make the department hygiene department productive and profitable. Also make note that while the hygiene department is more productive this does not mean “work more hours” or “work harder.” It simply means that you have created strategies and systems to work smarter and BE successful in all areas of your dental practice.

This week’s blog will discuss two important components to a healthy and profitable dental hygiene department.

Understanding and embracing these aspects of business in a dental practice will create a successful and a very profitable dental hygiene department

1: YOUR VISION

Today’s world, with the valuable science and research about oral health and its relationship to total health, creates an important reason to educate patients about WHY oral health and the purpose for routine preventive dental appointments.

Most dental practices have the words “excellence” or “optimal”, etc., as part of their vision and mission for the dental practice.

As healthcare providers and with this profound level of current research; understand that creating a successful dental practice will mean that you in the business of creating healthy and longer lives. A successful dental hygiene department requires a philosophy that includes the mouth-body connection that helps patients maintain and “keep their teeth for a lifetime.”

Embracing this thought process will create a successful and profitable dental hygiene department!

To begin building, restructuring or updating your dental hygiene department systems, both doctor and team must develop their own vision of what the ideal hygiene department should look like. Meet together as a team and have each team member give honest answers about what they believe are important for success. Ask for everyone’s input. Ask team members to come prepare with their thoughts. Now you can discuss as a team.

Your vision will include the purpose of the dental hygiene department and what the dental hygiene team hopes to accomplish for the patients, the practice, and themselves. Purpose is what leads people. Establishing your clearly defined purpose with guidelines will give your team the opportunity to set standards and to perform on principles not desire.

To begin creating your vision and your purpose for the hygiene department, consider developing and following the following essentials: goals of your dental practice, patient outcomes for periodontal therapy and healthy patients as well, thoroughly understand American Association of Periodontology (AAP. perio.org) guidelines for the treatment of periodontal disease, maintenance of disease remission, when to refer to the periodontist, use of adjunctive therapies, and thoroughly understand oral-systemic relationships.

2. CREATE A TEAM APPROACH

Lack of team is the main reason for low production in the dental hygiene department. A strong dental hygiene department will take a team approach to the preventive/periodontal philosophy of the practice. Everyone must be on the same page. To create a successful team approach every team member must have a clear understanding of their individual role as it relates to supporting and maintaining optimal patient oral health.

When you serve your patients to the best of your abilities, you will also serve the dental practice and the team at its highest level. The entire team must embrace the vision of the practice and the philosophy of care for all patients. When there is not a team approach patients will not completely understand the value of your services; especially the value of periodontal therapy which will create a healthier and longer life.

If you wish to have a productive and profitable hygiene department that will create success for your dental practice indefinitely, you must be dedicated to leadership, education and not think this process is “hit or miss.”

CREATING A PROFITABLE HYGIENE DEPARTMENT

If you will take a stand and focus on optimal care for your patients you will have a profitable dental practice.

The public is bombarded with media advertisements about health and beautiful smiles. With all the media attention to have the perfect body and smile, dentistry has never been in a better place to treat patients with smile enhancements and most importantly, create a healthy body.

People buy what they want not what they need. If you can speak to all patients at their level, understand what their hot buttons are and what is valuable to them, you will hear more patients say “YES!” to your care, schedule and pay for treatment. They will also continue returning to your dental office no matter who their insurance company tells them they need to see!

What should your hygiene department numbers look like?

The hygiene department should bring in 30% of the total production. YES! Shocking? This is true!

Look at typical numbers our clients see after utilizing our services:

A Day in the Life of a Dental Practice Solutions Hygiene Department

4 Prophylaxis Appointments (4 X $95)                                         $  95

2 Scale and root planing Appointments (2 X $265)                    $265

Arestin^® (6 Sites X $40/site)                                                          $240

2 Periodontal Maintenance (2 X $110)                                         $220

6 Fluoride Varnish Treatments (6 X $30)                                    $180

4 Identifi^® Oral Cancer Screenings (4 X $60)                             $240

4 Patients X-rays (4 X $65)                                                             $260

 Production Total:                                                                           $1,500

The fees used in this example are not a guide for you to use in your dental practice but are used only to show an example of what a typical dental hygiene day can look like for your dental practice.

CONCLUSION

The success of your dental hygiene department needs to include a vision that the entire team supports. Total team approach is required for your dental practice to be successful and sustain profits for the life of your dental practice.

Profitability in all successful dental hygiene departments is directly proportional to the billable services provided. This success will also include scheduling to goal, as well as elimination of cancellations and no-shows. Next week in Part 2 of this blog, I will discuss how to eliminate no-shows and cancellations as well as establish the correct hygiene department compensation.

Next time someone asks if there is a system for their dental hygiene department they can refer to this article for creating a successful dental hygiene department. Implementing all of these components is the easiest way to create success and get the entire team on the same page.

Does you dental practice have an established philosophy of care for perio patients?

Do you have a schedule that is strategically set up to accomplish your goals?

Let us know about your dental practice in the comment section below. If there is a topic you want to know more about please do share.

When the entire team can elegantly communicate with patients about necessary treatment, and the value it will add to their life,  it now becomes much easier for patients to say “YES” to your care.

As Dental Practice Management Consultants, our clients have great success because the dental teams understand exactly how to elegantly speak to their patients, show empathy, actively listen and then  are able to explain the outstanding value to the patients for accepting care.

Why will patients Say Yes to Case Acceptance?

The #1 reason patients why patients will say “YES!” to your care and continue returning to your dental office is trust.

In Steven Covey’s book, “The Speed of Trust,” he makes the case that when trust is low, the cost of business goes up, and the speed of business decreases.

If you ask most people why they choose a certain company to do business with they will say that it is because of a relationship they have with a person there or a past experience. I think of Nordstrom and why I love to shop there. They have good quality but why most people go there is because of the way they treat their customers. “Customer is King?”

Trust is not just a matter of quality but equally skills, competency and your knowledge.

In Covey’s book he points out that just because he trusts his babysitter to watch his kids but he would not trust her to run his business. She lacks competency to trust her with matters of his business.

How can you improve trust?

1. Trust occurs the minute a patient places their first phone call to your office
2. Trust occurs when they go to your website for the 1^st time
3. Trust occurs when a patient 1^st steps foot in your office as a new patient
4. Trust occurs with a dental patient even before you seat a patient of record in your dental chair

What Maybe Holding Back Patient Trust

• Do you take patients back late for an appointment?
• Do you smile when you answer a phone call? AND do you put a patient on hold before asking IF you can maybe call them back in a few minutes. Remember, we are all in a hurry these days so putting a patient on hold may not be convenient for them and a call back at a convenient time may work better for your patient

The list of trust building positive patient case accept are creating raving fans for patients which comes from oustanding customer service and a solid relationship you consistently build with your raving fans!

Do you have holes in your schedule?

Many dental practices, who call us to inquire about our services, call because business is slow and especially during the holiday’s business can die.

For this reason trust must be high with your patients for them to continue choosing your dental office over another office closer to their home, work or one that is on their insurance plan.

Trust must begin with a personal worthiness of character and competency. In an effort to extend and receive trust in your day-to day responsibilities, we can have a significant impact not only on our success but also on the speed at which we achieve it.

Doctors are reaching out today to improve their methods of patients saying “YES!” to their care. It is something I hear about every week.

What may close holes in your schedule and create sustainable profits:

• Do you know the dollar amount of outstanding treatment plans sitting in your patient charts?
• What is your plan to enroll them into treatment and will they pay for their treatment?

In Conclusion

For you to turn this case acceptance challenge into a successful outcome every player on your team most embrace the vision of your dental practice.

It takes only 15 seconds (MAX!) for people to judge your office especially, when they make their first call to your office. This means that your team who answers the phone must read persons’ personality and temperament quickly when patients call the office.

This has been a year of abundance for clients of Dental Practice Solutions. All of our clients have reactivated over 50% of their patients whom they may not have seen since the economic decline (Some offices reactivated patients from three to four years ago). Many of our clients are able to reactivate this 50% patient population back into hygiene appointments because of a specific system that we have in place. It is innovative and very strategically implemented.

Profitability will come when you can reactivate your overdue dental hygiene patients and then enroll them into necessary treatment.

These are only a few tips to get your patients to say “YES!” to your care.

Would you like to learn more about specific areas in your dental practice with the greatest promise the best outcome in 2015?

Schedule your no-charge Discovery Session with Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS or one of the executive team members at Dental Practice Solutions. This is a $500 Value and if you have DENTRIX it will take the click of a button to find out your current key metrics (We use DentaMetrix to measure your dental practice KPI’s) and what areas you need to focus on for the best success in 2015. Schedule your Discovery Session now by clicking on this link or you can email or office at: dentalpracticesolutions@gmail.com

You don’t need to have DENTRIX to schedule your session however, we will ask a few specific questions to find out your practice metrics and then we can easily create a plan for powerful areas of your practice and where the focus for success needs to be.

Let us know how your case acceptance and scheduling patients care is coming along by commenting below.