Clackamas Dental Consultant | Dental Practice Solutions

Does Your Dental Hygiene Schedule Include a Black Hole?

By: admin

June 20, 2019

Holes in the dental appointment schedule are a huge challenge in today’s world of dentistry.

How much does one hole in your schedule each day cost your dental practice over the next year?

The truth is that is costs your dental practice hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars over a year, if you have just one hole in your schedule.

Does your dental hygiene schedule include a black hole?

Does your dental hygiene appointment include a black hole?

How many times does a dental patient call your office to change their appointment and they tell you they will “Call you back when they have more time?”

In the video I share today, you may think, “this is not our office!.” Your’e saying to yourself we never let patients leave or change an appointment without scheduling their next appointment!

We hear this statement all the time.

THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE

Our team of consultants and dental coaches currently evaluates dental practice key performance indicators (important measurements of success in a dental practice) and I can tell you that it is all too common that we see a huge, long list of patients who left the office without scheduling a next appointment.

Until you look at your numbers, it may appear that you are scheduling every patient with a next dental appointment.

The administrative team is responsible for most of the patient schedule. It’s important that every team member who will schedule a patient appointment understands the dental practice system for scheduling patients.

Working together as a team to have strategic systems and protocols are a key component of every successful dental practice.

The best way a dental hygienist can help reduce the holes in your dental practice schedule is to create value around what is completed at a dental hygiene appointment.

● What does your scheduling system look like?

● Does your team know what is included in your scheduling system?

● What do you say when a patient does need to change their dental appointment?

● How can you reduce the number of patients who call to change a dental appointment?

Much of this relies on your verbal skills, the words you use to add value to the dental services your provide.

Words like “teeth cleaning,” scaling and root planing and even the word decay,” do not add the same value as words such as, “preventive care appointment, gum therapy or gum treatment and cavities or hole in your tooth.” Try using Portland Pothole or just the word “Pothole” next time you see a cavity.

Patients can relate to these words.

One important point to make is this, until your patients say, “Do NOT call me anymore,” continue to follow-up.

Let your patients know you miss them, that you care about them and that a healthy mouth more likely means a healthy body.

No one I know has ever complained because I told them I cared about them.

I must ask, what is your scheduling and change of appointment system?

Does a dental hygiene appointment ever go into a black hole?!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

DEBBIE SEDIEL-BITTKE, RDH, BS

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS is founder and CEO of Dental Practice Solutions. Debbie is also a former dental hygiene program director. Her expertise is optimizing the hygiene department by taking a total team approach; including the doctor as the leader.

Check out the Dental Practice University intended for dentists and the entire team.

The university has training video modules, forms and scripts for each department in your dental practice.

The video modules are created for doctor(s) and include information to create a culture to bring in new patients, keep your dental team (employees) the life-time of your dental practice, as well as re-create or create your vision and mission. Doctors receive a 90-Day goal setting journal.

The hygienists have their own training video modules that cover time management, caries risk, treating the gingivitis and perio-patient.

The front office has video modules on phone calls, new patient calls, we provide job descriptions and a lot of information for hiring and keeping employees long-term.

You receive 24 AGD CE Credits. Try the University for FREE the first 2 weeks. Then you pay $97.00 a month indefinitely. You are locked in at $97/month!

The training includes 24 AGD CE Credits over a 12 month time for one person. You can use the training for your entire team but for individual log-ins and the additional AGD CE Credits you pay $20/month for each additional employee.

Learn more about the Dental Practice University here.

Steps to Crack the Cancellation Code

By: admin

December 11, 2018

The holidays are here, and your patients have a lot of tasks, parties and Christmas shopping to do before December 25^th.

The last thing they have on their mind is a dental appointment.

Cancellations are at all time high; call it a pandemic!

In a normal day at your office, how many patients call to change their dental appointment?
How many patients are calling on the day of their dental appointment to let you know they can’t be there?
How many of your patients flat out, don’t show for their dental appointment?

The holes in your schedule are costing you thousands of dollars each week and these dollars add up to hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars annually. The lost revenue equals millions of dollars. during the lifetime of your dental practice.

Solutions

When you register for this 5-Day Free training you will view short videos of information you can implement right away.

Some of the important parts of reducing cancellations are:

Letting your dental patients know what you expect
Have a cancellation procedure in place
Procedure for voicemail messages
A system around value and benefits to your dental patients
What to say when patients DO call to “change their dental appointment

There is a wealth of information you can implement immediately when you do register for this free training.

You can’t lose. You only eliminate the holes in your dental schedule and lost revenue when you enroll now in the free training and implement what you learn over the next week.

Register for the Free 5-Day Training Here.

ABOUT DEBBIE SEIDEL-BITTKE, RDH, BS

CEO: Dental Practice Solutions

Debbie Seidel-Bittke is not only the CEO and founder of Dental Practice Solutions but she has been known for the past fifteen years as one of Dentistry Today’s Top Dental Consultants. She is the only consultant with expertise in growing the dental practice by implementing systems and processes to grow a dental hygiene department by Dentistry Today.

She has a background in academia as well as a former dental hygiene program director.

You will read many of her articles published in dental journals and she has spoken at most of the national dental conferences. She works with dental practices on a global level. Read more about her here.

Dental Consulting | Dental Hygiene Patients: Keep the Back Door Closed

By: admin

August 1, 2018

Written by: JoAnn Leon, Front Office, Insurance Credential / Reimbursement Coach

We hear this question all the time, “Can you help me get more new patients to my office?

The answer is, “Doctor, do you realize that you have 1,560 patients and 300 of these patients have not returned to your office in the last eighteen months?”

How to keep the back door closed when new dental patients come to your office.

The most effective plan you can have in place is to reactivate your over-due hygiene patients. If you have a program such as SolutionReach, you can very easily reactivate these 300 over-due hygiene patients.

STEPS TO KEEP THE BACK DOOR CLOSED

Step 1. Know Your Numbers.

The team at Dental Practice Solutions, recommends that you run a hygiene report, so you know how needs to return for a hygiene appointment in the last eighteen months.

Step 2. Send a Special “We Miss You Letter.”

Send this e-newsletter to over-due hygiene patients. SolutionReach has great template to send patients an eye-grabbing e-newsletter.

Step 3. Offer an Incentive to patients who receive your e-Newsletter.

We have created a system around reactivation of your overdue hygiene patients. Without a doubt it works well to offer patients a gift for returning. This is the WIIFM syndrome. You know what I mean by WIIFM? I mean the “What’s in it for me” syndrome.

What has worked well for numerous years is offering your patients free tooth whitening when they do complete their hygiene appointment, pay for the prophy or necessary treatment, along with appropriate x-rays (BWX, FMX, etc.) and doctor exam. At the end of the hygiene appointment the hygienist or a clinician will take impressions and the patient returns in a day or two to pick. Up their whitening trays and two syringes of gel.

You can also have your whitening gel syringes customized here.

Step 4. Call Your Overdue Hygiene Patients.

Each day someone in your office should be working on calling overdue hygiene patients. Not too many people actually answer their phone these days so if you don’t get ahold of your patient, your next step is to text your patient.

Step 5. Texting Overdue Hygiene Patients.

What do you text a patient, so they want to call your office and schedule their hygiene appointment?

First of all, let me say that it is important that you have two-way texting set up if you do have the ability to text your patients. In today’s fast-paced and technologically oriented world, it is important that you can text two-ways with patients of record.

Your text should only say this: Please give our office a call about your appointment.

“They don’t have an appointment,” you say!

That is correct, the don’t have an appointment and you do want them to call about an appointment………one they need to schedule.

This one sentence works in a phone message or text and…. btw, it works very well when you are calling to collect money. That is

another blog, another day.

Step 6. What You Must Say When You Do Talk to the Patient?

Before you pick up the phone to call a patient and even if a patient calls about an appointment, it is important to look at the patients record, if you have electronic patient charts.

You need to look at the patient’s ledger to see if they owe money, etc. Very important is to look at the patient’s clinical notes and read about the reason WHY they need to return.

Ask yourself before you call the patient:

When was the last time there were in our office?
What do they need to return for?
- Is it only (Not just lol) a hygiene appointment?
- Do they have outstanding/unscheduled treatment?
What do you know if valuable to the patient?
- For example, is money a possible concern and maybe a reason they have not returned?
  - Be prepared to overcome money objections by offering solutions and changing the loss of money into this appointment will help them save money
    - For example: Patients who have diabetes or high blood pressure, this is the perfect opportunity to talk about the mouth-body connection. Let them know that a healthy mouth means less money on medications and doctor/hospital visits

Step 7. Try Something Different Than You Have Been Doing.

You know what they say about insanity?

Doing the same thing over and over does not typically yield a good outcome. Take one or all of these steps and begin today implementing one. Just try one of these.

Go to your calendar and on today’s date write “Begin Reactivation.” Write down how many overdue patients you have on this day. Next turn to your calendar six months out and write a reminder to check the number of overdue hygiene patients.

The goal is for this number to be less than it is today.

And do remember to be patient with yourself (And the team) as you implement these new steps.

Each month you must run a hygiene report and reach out to your overdue hygiene patients. It still surprises me, the number of offices we work with. When we investigate a new clients reactivation process, it happens too often, that there is no reactivation system hence, hundreds, thousands of overdue hygiene patients.

Do you have an over-abundance of overdue hygiene patients? Does reactivating them seem like a daunting task? Reach out to use. Let’s create your strategy and close the back door for new patients as well as your current patients of record. Schedule a no-cost Profit Boosting Session Here.

You can also email us or call: 949-351-8741 to get this scheduled now.

ABOUT JOANN LEON

For many decades, Joann Leon, has worked alongside various doctors from international backgrounds she has obtained extensive knowledge in management, insurance contracting and clinical aspects of various types of dental practices. Joann is able to provide unbiased, objective advice on selecting the right insurance plans, maximizing fee schedules, and streamlining accounts receivable collections.

– Certified Procedural Quality Assurance Consultant Eagle Soft Setup
– Insurance Credentialing & Contracting Dentrix Software Setup
– Human Resources/Legal Compliance Easy Dental Software Setup
– Filing Grievances Insurance/Patient New Practice Startup/Established Practice Analysis
– Fee Schedule Analysis Loss Prevention/Staff Accountability
– Digital/Hard Copy Filing Front Desk Employee Training
– Purchase/Sale of Practice Audit Preparation of Charts

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her sons and grandchildren; serving her spiritual community as a lector and Eucharistic minister. She enjoys spiritual retreats at least twice a year, the beach, dancing, and going out on scenic drives.

Contact JoAnn: admin@dentalpracticesolutions.com

TIME IS RUNNING OUT!

Do you feel like your dental practice runs your life? Do you wish that you did not have to concern yourself with running the business of dentistry? Do you want to not worry about the marketing, deal with payroll, worry about open holes in your schedule and a bank account that does not grow?

I feel your pain and I have created an all-day live CE Event in Portland, Oregon. Plan to join Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS, CEO of Dental Practice Solutions, along with Doug Fettig of Aldrich Advisors.

We have planned a life-changing event so you don’t need to worry about your dental business but you can focus on your clinical dentistry.

Plan to bring your team so they can learn and begin implementing what they learn. This will leave you feeling like you have a new lease on life!

You get 6 AGD Credits, breakfast, lunch, snacks, coffee, tea, soft-drinks plus we will give away prizes all throughout the day: valued at $50-$1,500. You will walk away with your customized blueprint.

More information and Register Now. Early-bird Pricing Expires August 21, 2018.

Growing Dentist Podcast | Connect With Your Patients

By: admin

July 12, 2017

Take the Time to Connect with Your Patients

Episode 37: Debbie Seidel-Bittke, Founder of Dental Practice Solutions, discusses with GrowingDentist the importance of the doctor’s leadership role; taking charge and identifying team players.

Getting to know the person in the chair, spreading positivity, follow-through . . . in this episode of GrowingDentist, Debbie Seidel-Bittke talks about a team approach to connecting with patients.

Subscribe in iTunes!

Dental Appointment: When Will You Know What is Valuable To Your Patient?

By: admin

March 29, 2017

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXW-wGS-z8E&w=560&h=315]

Dental Appointments. Your Patient’s Reason to Return

By: admin

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXW-wGS-z8E?rel=0&controls=0&showinfo=0&w=560&h=315]

How do you know what is valuable to your patient?

What is the benefit to your patient if they complete their dental treatment or return for their dental hygiene appointment routinely?

What is your patient’s reason to return?

Let’s think about when you will learn what is valuable to your patient.

When will you know what is valuable to your patient?

For new patients you will (or should) discover what is valuable to them during that first phone call to your office.

It is important to listen closely to the words your patient is saying and the way they say what they are saying. Do they speak loud or soft? Do they speak fast or slow? What is their tone as they speak?

Do they say things like, “Money is going to be my reason for completing this treatment I know I need.”

BTW: This is a comment from a walk-in new patient for an office (a client office) I was working with today.

Most of the time your patient will make their decision based on their value around time or money. These are the two main factors that come into play when patients are making a decision and it is your job to overcome these objections before they even are a stated objection.

Why many patients will not return to a dental office is due to fear of anxiety from a previous bad dental experience. This is another topic of conversation.

Patient Discovery

When is the best time to discover what is valuable to your patient?

Answer: The first 2 minutes will be the most valuable time with building rapport and understanding your patients’ needs, what’s important to them and even how their day is going (ex: If they are rushed for time or having a stressful day!).

In fact, the first “Hello” and a handshake can tell you a lot about what kind of day your patient is having. This is where you can first begin to build (or re-establish) rapport.

This conversation can be as simple as “What are you doing this summer?”

If you were to ask me this question, I will tell you that I am going to an important high school reunion.

The topic of my conversation (If I am your patient today) will center around meeting up with old friends and wanting to look my best!

Now, it’s your turn as the clinician to open the door for me to look my best.

Do you have a special laser whitening offer going on?

YES?!

Now is a great time to ask “Debbie, if there is one thing that we can do to make you look better than ever for you high school reunion, what would that be?”

Great question! And if I am your patient here is what I will tell you:

“I would love to have my teeth look youthful again. I want them whiter and also longer.”

Does your office have a special smile makeover process?

If so, now is a great time to talk about this process and how it can make me look my best for the summer high school reunion.

Complete the scheduled appointment, do an “initial” smile evaluation and then have me back for a 20 minute consultation later this week. At this consultation appointment you will have your treatment (or financial) coordinator discuss the smile makeover and work out the financial arrangements. Now you will schedule the treatment.

This special consult adds value to your patient appointment. The initial patient value you discovered is why this patient wants to return ASAP for the consultation and find out more information about how you can help her meet her needs.

Do you see how simple that can be to have your patient understand “their” important reason to return to your office?

When you think back to the last day of patients in your dental office, can you think about each patient’s personal reason to return to your office?

This is not a reason around what you “found” in their mouth. This important reason to return has to be a reason important to your patient. This is a value to your patient.

In closing today I want to ask you, “Do you know each patient’s important reason to return?”

We teach this system with our clients, their team and it becomes a part of every patient appointment. This is what we call the R2R and it becomes a part of each patients record.