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Your Dental Practice Profitability Compass

By: admin

November 29, 2017

How much time did you spend planning your last vacation?

Did you map it out?

Or, did you just throw some clothes in a suitcase and take-off in your car headed in what you thought was the quickest path to your destination?

I bet that you took many hours to plan your last vacation and you started packing probably the week before you left.

In today’s world of technology, you pulled up your map using your mobile device and maybe you printed the directions on your laser printer.

How much time do you spent planning your day at the dental office?

Does your team have a practice profitability compass?

Your Compass

The compass we provide our clients is what you probably know as a “team huddle.”

Once you have this system in place, it should take about ten minutes to plan your day.

The entire team will audit their area of expertise.

Here are a few suggestions to organize your team huddle:

Begin with the financial coordinator (Office manager or similar position) reporting on production/ collections: Monthly goal and your current month-to-date production/collections. Talk about what went well the previous day and what did not go well, etc.
Scheduling coordinator reports on open holes in today schedule and in the near future. Let the team know about ER patient availability. Provide doctor with a list of new patients for him/her to call before their 1^st (Yes! This is something different and you will stand out among other dentists in your community if you do this one thing!)
Hygienists come to this meeting with an understanding and communicate to the team about which patients need: new medical history, Oral ID™ FMX/BWX, doctor exam, perio charting, outstanding restorative needs, family members who also need a hygiene appointment or restorative care, post-op call update (For all patients who received local anesthesia), etc.
Assistants audit their schedule to share and inquire about patients with special needs, local anesthetic needed, type of impression needed, results of post-op calls from the day before, which patients have family members who need a hygiene or restorative appointment, etc.
Yes, even doctor has a part in the morning team huddle. We suggest that our doctor call all new patients scheduled during the week prior to their 1^st appointment. Doctor will report on the outcome of this quick call to welcome the new patient.

When everyone takes time to look at their schedule and review their patient needs as listed above, you will discover adjunctive and necessary services your scheduled patients and their family members need.

When you look at your practice profitability compass you can work together as a team to close various gaps in meeting your goals. You will also be able to serve your patients at a much higher level.

Closing the Gaps

Maybe you are still scratching your head. Some of you think meetings are a waste of time.

What I am suggesting is that everyone let the team know what is needed to make the day profitable, efficient and provides the best care for the patients.

Your morning team huddle will help navigate your day and eliminate any un-necessary bottlenecks which might occur.

This compass is what makes a day that has a smooth landing without turbulence.

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS is a dental consultant, coach, speaker and author. She is also CEO of Dental Practice Solutions. Debbie is a world-class leader in creating profitable hygiene departments. She is well-known as a former clinical assistant professor at USC in Los Angeles and a former hygiene department program director. Dentistry Today recognizes Debbie as a Leader in Dental Consulting.

Be sure to grab this free 3-part hygiene video department training, webinar on the Gingivitis Code plus flowchart on training the patient with gingivitis and Strategic Planning Session: http://www.dentalhygiene.solutions/

You can reach Dental Practice Solutions to schedule a complimentary strategic planning session by calling 949-351-8741 or you can send an email to: admin@dentalpracticesollutions.com

You can also go to the website: www.https://dentalpracticesolutions.com

More compliance. Less defiance. Innovative model for case acceptance by patients…the path of least resistance.

By: admin

November 22, 2017

By Steven Ury, DDS, Periodontist
Randy Nolf, DDS, Periodontist

Dentists and hygienists are using a simple to complete analytical software making discussions with the patients easier…making the progression to treatment compliance easier… and enabling a practice to substantially increase case acceptance for periodontal therapy. This technology makes available a single language, with everyone “on the same page”, to discuss periodontal disease, and the necessary treatment.

The software allows for thoughtful and readily understandable discussions with patients thus improving the progression to treatment acceptance through a path of least resistance.

Implementing innovative technology into the practice, using risk and disease severity health scores as clinical support, will no doubt increase patient compliance.

PreViser™ Corporation www.PreViser.com provides their web enabled Oral Health Information Suite (OHIS) software for free. The use of the technology provides three (3) numbers, or scores, indicating patients’ risk of future periodontal disease, existing disease state and their ongoing oral health stability. With these 3 scores, patients then have a clearer idea of the severity and comprehensiveness of their problems. In other words, they know how things are going.

A nice feature of the OHIS is that it allows practitioners to recalculate the risk scores, just as if the patients had completed the advised treatment. So, a patient can visualize what will happen without treatment compared to what will occur with the recommended care. That’s when the fun begins. These scores predict whether the treatment plan will be working. Outcomes are the key.

Dental practices are utilizing this powerful method to impact a patient’s decision to proceed with care for a lifetime of oral health. Case acceptance is markedly improved providing more treatment for periodontal disease by the dentists and hygienists including any necessary subsequent restorative care.

Why now? Well, there’s a new sheriff in town. Patients and practitioners, as well as insurance companies and employers, are relying less on subjective findings to determine if periodontal care is working. Welcome the new law of the land – objective findings derived by an analytical software. Practitioners are accurately communicating with patients about their risk of disease and the outcomes of treatment. Everyone’s “on the same page”. We’re talking Evidence Based Practice here; the integration of clinical expertise, patient values, and the best research evidence into the decision-making process for patient care.

Instead of dentists and hygienists potentially disconnecting on a diagnosis, a treatment plan or a prognosis, they can agree and provide an easy to use, objective and reproducible way to measure, understand and communicate patients’ risk and disease level as simple numeric scores.

People relate to scores and knowing their numbers gets them involved. Physicians supply blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes numbers to their patients to follow their progress. Now dental patients will know their periodontal disease scores and look for improvement in the numbers.

More and more dentists in the know are advocating the principles of a medical model of healthcare for dentistry. Less repair and more interception and prevention. Consider the PerioCentric™ practice, defined as a best practice in which treatment revolves around sound periodontal diagnosis and treatment, utilizing metrics to evaluate treatment outcome. It employs a simple step by step, reproducible, algorithmic approach to care we call the PerioBlueprint™.

When implemented it provides dental professionals the knowledge and tools to discover undiagnosed and untreated periodontal disease in an existing practice. The appropriate care for these conditions will result in improved health for patients as well as production and revenue for the dental practice that may prove to increase exponentially.

Dentistry is adjusting to a new paradigm that is better for patients by shifting focus away from procedures for repair of disease… to a model of interception and prevention of disease.

There is unprecedented demand for increased care for periodontal disease. The most recent data from the Center for Disease Control revealed that 47.2% of adult Americans exhibit periodontal disease and the disease increases to 70.1% of adults over 65 years. Contemporaneous insurance company data reports only about 7% obtain periodontal treatment…Only 7%.

Dentistry has a busyness problem. Nationally, approximately 1 in 3 dentists say they are not busy enough. Imagine the increase in production and revenue when discovering that perhaps 50% of patients require some form of periodontal care. And not just code 1110 “prophy” care – we’re talking anesthetized scaling/root planing, pocket reduction and tissue grafting surgery. LANAP, and more. Of course, when maintenance starts, using the obligatory code 4910 will result in more comprehensive visit than a code 1110 “cleaning” and thus, improve hygiene production.

We are in a time of transformational change in healthcare and tremendous opportunities for enhanced collaboration among healthcare providers exist. Dentists have a chance to fundamentally rethink their role within the healthcare system and take advantage of these new opportunities. It would not only help peck away at dentistry’s busyness problem but would also allow dentists to contribute much more significantly to whole-body health. And really, isn’t that what it’s all about.

Dr. Steven Ury, Periodontist
Dr. Randy Nolf, Periodontist
PreViser Corporation and AdViser Corporation Co-Founders
Directors, The Synergy Academy (www.TheSynergyAcademy.com)
UryAdViser@gmail.com

About Dr. Ury

Dr. Steven R. Ury, Periodontist

Academic Faculty Director, The Synergy Academy

An entrepreneur at heart, Steve Ury altered his career from engineering to focus on the potential of the burgeoning dental industry. He earned a degree in dentistry, owned a general practice and then became a periodontist with an office in NY.

During his leadership of dental study groups and as past president of the largest periodontal organization in the northeast United States, Dr. Ury interacted with other dental professionals. He foresaw the changing landscape of periodontal care and referral.

As co-founder of PreViser Corporation, he witnessed the development of analytic software to help expose undiscovered periodontal disease. More disease revealed equates to more treatment rendered resulting in more healthy patients.

Lack of busyness is problematic in dental practices. Realizing periodontal disease concerns approximately 50% of the adult population but only about 7% have related care, he considered the possibilities. Dr. Ury believes that dentists could easily increase production and revenue by administrating in-office, non-surgical and basic surgical periodontal treatment.

About Dr. Nolf

Dr. Randy Nolf, Periodontist

Clinical Faculty Director, The Synergy Academy

As a periodontist, Randy Nolf has witnessed the changing dental industry as an opportunity is expanding for general dentists and specialists alike. Dr. Nolf believes that the same is true for dental education which is at the dawn of a major shift to less centralized, more affordable, and rapid practice adoption model of delivery.

He has continually been involved with teaching since he received his advanced certificate in Periodontology from Temple University in 1981. His outstanding credentials include a certificate from the gIDE Master Clinician program and as co-founder of the PreViser Corporation.

Dentistry is adjusting to a new paradigm, better for our patients by focus shifting away from repair to interception of disease. Interception as a treatment model is possible through sensitive artificial intelligence permeating into our practices. Randy is gratified to witness this evolution in part through software he created and now being adopted throughout the Us and UK.

Dr. Nolf has been an advocate of supporting general dentists with in-office training as well as on-site surgical procedures his entire career. 35 years integrated into dentists’ offices has led to a new system of training called “Synchronized Dental Learning™” facilitating rapid adoption of new surgical procedures into general practice.

Newport Beach Dental Consultant | How Do We Bill It and Get Reimbursed?

By: admin

November 3, 2017

Please join Founder of Dental Practice Solutions, Debbie Seidel-Bittke and Consultant, JoAnn Leon
for the course
“How Do We Bill It and Get Reimbursed?”

JoAnn Leon will walk attendees through the correct treatment and billing sequence for reimbursement to occur is a timely manner.

Proper sequence must occur for many services so patients insurance will reimburse the service rendered.

The following topics and challenges offices often face will be covered at the upcoming course:

Extractions – Routine or Surgical: Why you may not be getting paid.
Bone Graft at the Time of Extraction: What is your billing sequence and information submitted to insurance co.?
Ortho Extractions: Are you getting paid? JoAnn will share exactly how these need to properly be submitted to insurance for expedited insurance reimbursement.
Dry Sockets: Are you getting paid? JoAnn will discuss the proper method for reimbursement.
Offices with Invisalign: How are you billing? Steps to expedite reimbursement.
Emergency visits: How to use the after hours code.
Proper Billing for Occlusal Adjustment.
And so much more!

Course Information

Course Date: November 30, 2017
Dinner Begins at 6:00 PM
Course: 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
2 CE Credits

Click Here to Register

**Limited Seats Available**

We ask that those attending bring their billing challenges as JoAnn will take time to personally work with you to ensure these claims are reimbursed.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Master Your Success Game Plan: Your Team and Your Dental Coach Included

By: admin

April 20, 2017

For the last 14 months I have had the great pleasure to work with the team at Evolve Dental healing; the office of Dr. Rachel Hall.

Dr. Rachel Hall hired Dental Practice Solutions to create systems for her hygiene department.

We had a few hurdles in the beginning because in order to soar, it is important to have the right team players on board if you aspire to become one of the top emergency dentist in Perth. It took a lot of time to find the right fit to lead the hygiene department at Evolve Dental Healing.

They say “Timing is everything” and finally one month ago a new graduate applied for the position and the rest is history!

Starting 2017, Dr. Rachel decided to “Go Big!” The downside, so “I” thought, (lol) was that her year did not begin until January 11th. Dr. Rachel took an extended holiday. One would think that it is not good to begin the year in their business a week into a new year.

But……………not Dr. Rachel! Remember, I mentioned her goal for 2017, was to “Go Big!” This is exactly what happened once the year at Evolve Dental Healing began on January 11, 2017. Doesn’t matter that the office lost about 8 days in January 2017.

Let me share with you how they have mastered their success game plan. You can learn from this situation and master your own success game plan.

Here are a few steps to include in your success game plan:

The Number 1 Fact here is: MINDSET.

Dr. Rachel put her mind in success mode.

Number 2: She created a 90 Day Success Game Plan.

Let me explain that we outlined 6 goals for the practice to achieve and not only doctor but with her team by her side they accomplished these goals in 45 days NOT 90!

Number 3. Team Work

Number 4. Collaboration

You must collaborate with colleagues, study clubs and experts. AKA: A Dental Practice Management Consultant.

Two weeks ago I spent three days with the team continuing with their success plan. On day three I not only worked with the entire team to commit to the next level but in the afternoon I had time to work hands-on with the new graduate-hygienist.

Working hands-on with Elise, the new grad hygienist, proved extremely helpful to her and the future success of the practice.

The diagram below shows you were they are as of April 1, 2017.

I just spoke to Elise and the front office team before writing this. I was told that they had to add two extra days of hygiene this month because Elise and doctor are diagnosing a lot of perio therapy. I was told that 100% of the patients in the last two weeks have accepted treatment for perio therapy.

Below is a chart showing you where they were in 2016 and where they are as of April 1, 2017.

*Areas of Improvement*	Beginning of Consultation Process: 2016	April 1, 2017
*Perio Percentage*	8%	50%
*Days of hygiene*	4/week	Added 2 days/month
*Hygiene Openings*	2 daily	April 2017 No Openings
*New Patients*	Average 17	Average 27
*Office Production*	Average $93,870	Average $125,252

I feel blessed to work with this awesome team! I feel honored to do the kind of work I get to do in fact, because I love what I do so much, it is not a J O B but such a pleasure! It’s truly a pleasure to do what I get to do! And…I never have to work a day in my life because I enjoy this so much.

Do you have a success game plan? Do You?!

Contact our office to schedule a time to discuss your dental success game plan: mail://vanessa@dentalpracticesolutions.com or call: 949-351-8741.

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS One of Dentistry Today’s Top Consultants

ABOUT DEBBIE

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS is a dental consultant, coach, speaker and author. She is also CEO of Dental Hygiene Solutions, powered by Dental Practice Solutions. Debbie is a world-class leader in creating profitable hygiene departments. She is well-known as a former clinical assistant professor at USC in Los Angeles and a former hygiene department program director. Dentistry Today recognizes Debbie as a Leader in Dental Consulting. She can be reached at (888) 816-1511. Send an e-mail to info@dentalpracticesolutions.com or go to her website: https://dentalpracticesolutions.com

Check out the Free 3-Part Hygiene Department Training: http://www.dentalhygiene.solutions

3 Steps to Create Efficient and Profitable Doctor/Hygiene Exams

By: admin

June 25, 2014

Do you feel stressed knowing there is going to be a patient exam in the hygiene room? Are you concerned the exam is only going to keep you waiting and running behind? Do you wish this process could be quicker yet more effective? As a practice management consultant, this is one of the most common complaints I receive from hygienist’s and doctors.

The hygienist’s tell me doctor keeps them waiting. Some hygienists tell me that doctor chit-chats for what seems like 20 minutes. They tell me “doctor wants to talk about my patient’s personal life and I don’t have time for this.”

The doctor tells me that when they get to the hygiene room there has been no conversation about the patient’s teeth. They say that when they arrive to do the hygiene exam there is no conversation –nada. They tell me their hygienist says nothing when they enter to complete the exam. Some doctors, who have never met the patient, don’t even get a proper introduction to the patient. BTW: Doctor should at least say a brief “Hello” to all new patients before any services begin. AND… doctor will be known as THE EXPERT and very well respected if he or she can let the new patient know they are making an individual diagnosis for a specific type of x-rays before hygiene treatment begins. This makes new patients really feel like they are King or Queen, like they are a VIP. This is only one-way to gain Raving Fans for the life of the dental practice! Continue reading to learn the 3 steps to create efficient and profitable doctor/hygiene exams.

Step 1 is to create a strategic plan for the exam.

Break up every routine prophylaxis and periodontal maintenance appointment into three areas. These three areas (Shown in the photo above) are: 1) data collection 2) case presentation and 3) the hygiene treatment and doctor exam.

Step 2 is discovery and explanation.

Before the data collection, decide what you must know to treat your patient at the highest level of care. Much of your information needs to be pre-determined prior to the patient’s arrival.

Every hygienist should take time at the very beginning of their day – before the morning team huddle (usually about 10-15 minutes prior to the morning team huddle a chart audit should be completed by the hygienist), to review all patient charts, patient routing slips, previous x-rays, previous chart notes, etc. It is important to understand each patient’s current oral health/systemic health status, past dental and medical history, etc., before the patient arrives.

When the hygienist reviews each hygiene patients chart they will check to see if the patient needs to complete a new health history (It works best if you anticipate the need for a new health history prior to the patient’s arrival). The hygienist needs to be aware of patient’s medications; including herbs, vitamins, and even OTC medications that the patient is currently taking.

Once the patient is seated in the chair spend a few minutes (no longer than 5 minutes) reviewing the patients up-to-date medical history, asking if the patient is taking any new medications. Other important questions to ask are if they have had any recent hospitalizations, surgeries, etc., etc. All providers need to ask these medical history questions prior to beginning any treatment. Always review the chart before the patient has arrived for their appointment and understand if they have previously diagnosed treatment that is still unscheduled.

Are there other family members who are overdue for a hygiene appointment? The routing slip (if set up properly in your computer software) can provide valuable patient and family information. This is valuable patient and family information for the hygienist to report on at the morning team huddle. Also the hygienist will report on any outstanding treatment that needs to be scheduled at the morning team huddle (email our office for a morning huddle protocol you can use).

Once the patient has arrived for their appointment you will inquire if they have a chief complaint. Take blood pressure annually, and record in the patient’s chart. Refer patients to their physician if they appear to have a blood pressure that is not within normal limits. You will be saving a few lives when you discover patients who have need to see their physician and have their blood pressure checked by their physician. Many patients return to future hygiene appointments now taking blood pressure medication that would have gone undiagnosed if a dental professional did not stop to check this. This is a great way to be a hero in your patients mind!

Ask all patients: “Do you ever experience a dry mouth?” (Indicates they are at high risk for caries or at least need a rinse for dry mouth, etc.) Ask about frequent headaches, clicking of their jaw or if they have pain in their jaw (A possible sign they may need a night guard).

Annually complete an oral cancer exam using the latest technology to screen for any precancerous lesions (ViziLite, VELscope, IDENTIFI, etc. can identify a precancerous lesion versus look or palpate and find a lesion that may already be malignant). Oral cancer is on the rise due to HPV in young adults. (Read some of the research: http://1.usa.gov/UC2tlT) Many insurance companies now pay for this important screening annually.

It is very important to annually provide a full-mouth periodontal screening exam. This will include a six-point probing along with documentation of recession, bleeding points, mucogingival involvement, furcations, mobility, suppuration, etc. When you explain to the patient (before you begin the exam), about the numbers you will be calling out, you will have the patient involved with their treatment, Begin by explaining what the range of numbers mean: health or disease. Always explain this before you pick up a probe or recline the patient back to begin your screenings.

Involve the patient by asking them to listen for the highest and lowest number you will call out. Let patients know that once you are done with the exam you will sit them up in the chair and ask them to report back to you the lowest and highest number they heard you call out. This will help patients to become involved in their treatment plan.

Explanation before reclining patients back in the chair, as well as sitting them up to explain your findings, will help you to establish great rapport with your patients. In return this will help to get the patients buy-in to schedule and pay for treatment in the very near future.

If you do not have another team member available to write down the periodontal probing while the hygienist calls out the numbers, use a recorder to talk into and later go back, listen to your probe readings, and you can quickly document in the patient’s chart. This may take a little more time but the benefits to the patient and practice are huge!

Before the patient arrives you should know if they need bitewings or a full mouth series of x-rays. In fact, the chart audit by the hygienist that morning should only be to double check to be certain that everything in the patients chart and on the schedule are correct. Usually patients will be pre-scheduled for future x-rays before the end of their current hygiene appointment (Don’t wait until the day of the patient’s appointment to decide what x-rays they need).

Step 3 is complete the doctor exam sooner than later.

There is no need for doctor to wait until the end of the hygiene appointment to complete the hygiene patient exam. At approximately thirty five to forty-five minutes into the sixty minute hygiene exam, doctor’s assistant should be able to give doctor a nudge to move into the hygiene treatment room and complete the hygiene patient exam. The assistants should have a timer or be aware of the time on a clock so they can lead doctor to the appropriate rooms at the best time.

The hygienist does not need to get up or stop what he (or she) is doing to notify doctor about a hygiene exam. Having doctor arrive at a specific time frame during the hygiene appointment to complete the exam should be standard procedure for every routine hygiene preventive care appointment. If there is a change in the patient’s planned treatment, then the hygienist can notify doctor or the assistant of this change and adjust the hygiene patient exam as necessary.

As a Dental Practice Management Consultant, I have worked with hundreds of offices who use this doctor/hygiene exam protocol and it has been a great tool to de-stress many hygienists and doctors. It also creates thousands of happy patients who feel like they are provided optimal care without having to sit and wait for doctor.

Using this strategic plan for Doctor/Hygiene exams will create a stress-free day for the entire team and your patients will leave your office feeling like you are the world’s best dental provider. This plan will create efficient and profitable doctor/hygiene exams.

Want more RAVING FANS?

Here is a little secret tip to decrease anxiety and the dreadful fear of the dental office: Wait to put on the patient bib until you have reviewed the patient’s health history and have explained the treatment you will provide. Now you are ready to put on the patient bib and recline them back in the chair. Sit down when speaking to your patients. Face the patient: knee-to-knee and eye-to-eye. Watch how this will create a more positive patient-experience. You patient’s may not notice what is different about their experience in your office because this is just a subtle change in the way things are usually done in the dental office. This also leaves patients feeling like you really care about them!

Would you like more ways to increase profits in your dental hygiene department? Get your complimentary subscription to our weekly Dental Profits Newsletter. You will also receive our 7 Day Dental Hygiene Profit Tips when you do subscribe here: http://bit.ly/12zpg2D

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS, is founder of Dental Practice Solutions, a full-service dental consulting, coaching, and speaking business, focused on increasing profitability through your dental hygiene department systems and services. Dental Practice Solutions will guide you and your team to provide a profitable, patient-centered dental practice that is team driven not micro-managed. Email or call Debbie to schedule a complimentary look at your profit potential. Ms. Seidel-Bittke, can be reached by email at: dentalpracticesolutions@gmail.com or by phone: 503-970-1122. Website: www.https://dentalpracticesolutions.com

Treatment Planning Creates Your Own Economy

By: admin

August 13, 2013

In today’s world of dentistry there seems to be a focus on what to present to patients and how to present it to patients. As a Dental Practice Management Consultant I am consistently asked “Debbie, how can I get more patients to…?” Today I will write about treatment planning and how to create your own economy.

Here is a small list to explain why dentists call to speak to me:

Dentists ask me about treatment planning and improving case acceptance.

Dentists ask how they can get an increase production numbers without working more
Dentists ask me how to get overdue hygiene patients back on the schedule
Dentists ask me now to get more patients to say YES to treatment plans
And so many more questions to keep their dental practice alive in today’s challenging economy!

Recently I posted this quote on Facebook. Not sure where I found it:

“Those who believe they can move mountains DO! Those who believe they can’t cannot. Belief triggers the power to do so. PERIOD.”

It is what I believe and what has come true in my life. PERIOD!
I hear dentists say “This economy…” My response to this is “Create your own economy.”

Treatment Planning Creates Your Own Economy

Let me preface this by telling you a story I recently heard about in the media.
This is a story about Oprah Winfrey. Many of you may not know who Oprah Winfrey is so let me explain briefly. Oprah Winfrey is s an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer, and philanthropist. She is also African American. Last year she made 77 Million! (USD) YES! That much!

What does Oprah Winfrey have to do with treatment planning? Well…she was recently in the media because she attended Tina Turners wedding in Zurich, Switzerland. While she was in Switzerland she walked into a shop where a beautiful handbag caught her eye.

The handbag just happens to cost $40,000. When Oprah asked to see the handbag the clerk in the store told her “I am sorry but that handbag is too expensive for you.”

One more time she tried to ask the lady to see the handbag “No, really I just want to see that one.” The shop keeper told her “I don’t want to hurt your feelings” Oprah kindly and very politely told the shop keeper “You’re right, I can’t afford it.” Then she walked out of the shop.

So how does this relate to treatment planning? You may be asking “Why are you talking about this woman Oprah Winfrey?!”

My reason is because so many offices prior to working with me and/or my team, only talked to their patients about treatment they “thought” their patients could “afford”.

You may have read my story about this before. This is a fact: Many years ago I worked for a dentist (As a dental assistant) who looked out the window of one of the treatment rooms and he would check out what type of car the new patient arrived in. Then he would prepare what type of treatment plan he could present according to what type of car they were driving. Would he discuss a $200 (USD) treatment plan? Or would he present a $20,000 (USD) treatment plan? Well, I can tell you that most patients only heard about the $200 treatment plan.

This Oprah Winfrey story reminded me of this situation. AND today, I still hear dentists say “It is the economy that doesn’t allow me to present comprehensive care to my patients.”

I need to ask you:

Is it fair for you to pre-determine what type of care you will offer your patients?
Is it fair to base your treatment plan on what you “think” they can afford or what their response may possibly be?”
Can you honestly pre-determine what answer your patient will give you before you show them what is happening in their mouth?
What would your patients think if you didn’t tell them the truth about their disease or oral condition that may affect their health and enhance their appearance?
Is it fair to your patient to “look the other way” when you see disease, BOP, a missing tooth, etc?

Tell Them the Truth

Have you ever thought of NOT telling a patient about a necessary implant or veneer because you knew their insurance would not pay for it? What if you thought your patient could not afford the treatment you know needs to be completed – would you neglect telling them what they really need?

Maybe you told your patient you could do a 4 or 5 surface restoration instead of a crown thinking, “I know their insurance won’t pay for this so blah, blah, blah..”

Would you present the realy picture for a perfect smile and improved health if you knew it was your mother, your wife, your husband..? Why would you offer your patient something less?

I do hear these stories all the time!

How do you decide on a treatment plan?
Do you think that “This economic crisis is so bad I will only diagnose for single tooth dentistry?”

I know some of you will answer “YES” to this question. You believe that due to this economy you must go easy on your patients.

We do have an ethical obligation to tell our patients the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

That shop keeper didn’t believe Oprah Winfrey could afford a $40,000 handbag because of her appearance.

We must provide our patients with options. As healthcare providers we have a legal and ethical obligation. Please…leave the final decision up to tyour patient.

Let them decide what they can or can’t afford.

Most long-term patients establish great trust in their dentist. This is why your patients will say “YES” to your care. This is why you must tell them what really exits in their oral cavity.

Your patients are depending on you to tell them what they really need. They deserve to hear all their options.

When they buy a car I promise you they want to know if the sun roof is included and they will decide for themself if they want to Sirus Audio System included. And many will pay extra for it!

What Can We Learn From Oprah Winfrey?

You see, this was not the first time a shop keeper turned Oprah Winfrey away. The first person many years ago flat out told her they would not sell to her because her skin was black.

In Switzerland, most people have never heard of Oprah Winfrey and the shop keeper, who told her she didn’t want to hurt her feelings but she couldn’t afford that handbag, obviously didn’t know who Oprah was!

And how do you think that shop keeper feels now knowing that the billionaire woman was refused service in her shop? There has been an official apology as well as the Swiss government apologizing.

And how many of your patients have you neglected to tell exactly what type of dentistry they needed?

Did you tell them their options for that missing tooth? Did you allow your patient to decide which is best for their pocketbook?

Build trust with your new dental patients — at their first appointment

“Customer is king”

Treat every patient the same (provide a specific level of care for all patients of record.

“Every patient deserves to know what is going on inside their mouth and the various options that can create health and even a more beautiful smile”

Allow all patients to know the types of dental treatment options you can offer patients
Allow patients to know and truly understand that you care about their well-being

” People don’t care how much you know but they do want to know how much you care”

Tell patients what you see in their mouth

“Many patients believe the dentist will FIND something. Change this into a conversation of “co-diagnosis”. This means that your patient participates looking with you. (use a hand mirror or intra-oral camera) Show patients what you see and tell them “This is what we see in this area on your lower right area.” (Identify where you are looking in their mouth – especially when using an intra-oral camera)

Provide patients with options to create health and a longer life (And many want to look more beautiful as they age)

“Most people do want to live a longer and healthier life!”

People Buy What They Want

I can tell you that people really do buy what they want.
If you present a benefit for placing an implant over a removable appliance or doing nothing, at least you have left the choice up to your patient.
If you position yourself, speak with a certain (Caring, etc.) tone and in a manner that you know are comfortable with your patient, they are more likely to trust you and believe that you have their best interest in mind.
When people know how much you care and when they trust that you have their best interest in mind, the decision to say “YES” and accept your treatment plan becomes so much easier for everyone.

Recently, I spent some time in Palm Desert, California. It is summer time and the snow birds (The retired people) have returned to their other home. This beautiful desert location was still filled with a lot of people. They temperatures were triple digits. (Temperature in Fahrenheit) There were so many families in the desert vacationing with their families. These families didn’t drive in old beat up cars but nice, big, expensive cars. The families were in the restaurants’ and shops.

I also noticed that the car dealerships were plentiful. I saw dealerships for such automobiles like: Bentley, Jaguar, Mercedes, BMW, Cadillac, etc., etc.

There were dental offices on every corner. And the dental offices I visited were very upscale.

In Conclusion

I know for sure that people are spending money. I spoke to a retired lady I know today about this. She constantly tells me she needs to watch her money. But when I asked her if she would stop spending the thousands of dollars each year on her face creams she quickly told me “Absolutely not!”

I know that if you understand how to effectively communicate with your patients and if you know when to be quiet and listen, if you understand how to build trust with your patients – You will have many more patients say “YES” to your care.

I am interested to hear how you create a treatment plan in today’s world. I want to know what type of economy you are creating for yourself.

How do you create your own economy? What are you doing during the dental patient appointment to build trust? How do you explain all the options to your patients? How do you know you don’t have an “Oprah Winfrey” sitting in your dental chair?

I would like to hear about your experience with treatment planning and how you deliver your message today. Do you discuss single tooth dentistry or comprehensive dental care options?

What you believe really is what you create. The words that come out of your mouth do become YOUR reality.

Tell me more about your world – your economy – in the comment section below.

About Debbie

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS is founder of Dental Practice Solutions, and has successfully designed efficient dental hygiene departments that result in high performance dental teams for over 13 years. Her focus is providing optimal patient health while consistently increasing profits for the dental practice.

Debbie is an accomplished author who speaks internationally about her signature systems and services for the dental hygiene department. She utilizes the most recent science and research to prevent disease while increasing the teams’ enthusiasm and guiding the dental team to consistently increase profits.

In 1984 she graduated from the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles, California with a Bachelors Degree in Dental Hygiene. She is a former clinical assistant professor from USC in Los Angeles, CA. In 2000-2002 Debbie co-taught the practice management course for the dental students at USC. Debbie is also a former dental hygiene program director for a school in Portland, Oregon where she wrote the accreditation, hired the teachers, purchased equipment and managed a 2 million dollar budget.

Debbie works with dental practices throughout the world implementing her signature dental hygiene systems and is considered one of the Top Leaders in Consulting for Dentistry Today. She can be reached at: www.https://dentalpracticesolutions.com, support@dentalpracticesolutions.com or call: 888-816-1511.

Dental Practice Management Consultant Takes Team from Good to Great!

By: admin

August 6, 2013

As a Dental Practice Management Consultant I see various types of dental practices.

It is the sad truth but most of the dentists who contact my office are usually at a sink or swim stage and it can be a daunting task to even pick up the phone and talk, let alone try to make a decision about hiring a dental practice management consultant.

(And this article will explain the ROI on hiring a consultant.– IF you read between the lines regarding their BIG results!)

It usually takes a dentist 3 months to make a decision to hire a new consultant and by this time the office numbers have plummeted to where doctor is not able to sleep at night.

Does this sound like you? Are you one of these dentists thinking that you must do something but you fear change or worse, you fear nothing will ever change no matter what you do!

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” ~ Albert Einstein

Maybe you have tried various new dental business systems or other practice management programs and nothing seems to work.

Let me put your mind at ease and begin to share a recent client of ours: (Read on and you can calculate for yourself the doctors ROI on hiring a Dental Practice Management Consultant)

In order to create consistent profitability for doctors desired outcome I needed to research and analyse their current numbers. I looked at their list of services, fees, production and collection numbers, P & L, etc., before we began to dive into the consulting process. We were able to set realistic goals after sitting down to research and strategize together.

Years ago, I learned that it is extremely important to identify the practices’ obstacles and road blocks, to reach where they want to be. Once I have the attention of doctor and the team I can place my full attention, together, with my passion, enthusiasm and keen insight, to dig into the necessary work that needs to be done. We create a step-by-step process to work smarter and not so hard. It really doesn’t not mean that working with a Dental Practice Management Consultant is stressful or creates more work. It is just the opposite. Together; doctor, the entire team and I, roll up our sleeves and dig deep into the barriers that broke down the success of the office.

Big Results

The team at “Dr. XYZ” in Portland, Oregon, has shown big improvements in less than 5 months of hygiene department coaching. When I first met with doctor she showed me the hygiene schedules. Each hygienist (2 hygienists) had at least 2 openings each day. The office has seven days of hygiene patients each week. Originally these days were not booked with patients but just sitting open.

The entire team changed many of the words that they used with their patients. The front office scheduling coordinator no longer calls and asks patients to return a confirmation call. She is confirming patients appointments about 4 days in advance of their appointment. All patients are now aked if they prefer to be contacted via email, text message or phone call.

(Some of the words they changed were “Cleaning” as well as asking patients when THEY wanted to return vs. suggesting an appointment date and time. They took control of the schedule. AND they increased the percentage of pre-scheduled hygiene patients.)

Many of the patients now request an email to confirm their appointment. The email says something like this:

“Dear Mary,

I am writing to let you know that Doctor XYZ and Holly, (Most know HOLLY is their hygienist) are looking forward to seeing you for your preventive care appointment. Dr. XYZ will review your x-rays and complete a visual exam. Holly will also complete an oral cancer screening exam using our new technology called Vizilite with can detect any early signs of oral cancer. She will also evaluate the health of your gums for inflammation, disease, check any restorations, remove plaque, calculus and stains as necessary. We look forward to seeing you on Friday August 9th at 8 am.”

In good health,

Megan Ridgley
Scheduling Coordinator at Dr. XYZ

Here are the BOTTOM LINE Results the office has received from the Dental Practice Management Consulting Process:

The office of XYZ has decreased their cancellations and open holes in the hygiene schedule, down to no more than 1 each week.
The team began role-play exercises to more effectively communicate non-surgical perio treatment. We also worked together (role-play) on overcoming many of the barriers and obstacles for patients accepting aesthetic and restorative treatment.
The original percentage of adult patients treated for periodontal disease went from 18 – 45% in the past five months.
The hygienists now have a 90% acceptance rate for using the Vizilite which has contributed to an increase in production.
The team learned how to assess and categorize patients for Caries Risk using the most recent CAMBRA protocols. (found in California Dental Journal 2011) This provided another $3,000 production to the practice without creating more patient time in the chair and didn’t increase the practice’s overhead. This is pure profit!
This increased hygiene production as well without adding more chair time or hiring more employees to work in the office.

One Team Challenge Existed

The one challenge they were still having at the end of July was keeping the hygienists on time so we were able to implement our “Down to a Science” strategy which seems to be helping with time management.

The Dental Practice Management Consulting Process

Each month I have at least one phone call with doctor to discuss the successes and challenges that may still exist. We are able to work together to create a systematic approach to solve these challenges as they occur.
Every sixty days myself or one of my team coaches is in their office for about 1 1/2 days of hands-on training, team meetings, role-playing and strategy sessions so discover solutions to any challenges.

The fact that the team has an expert there to guide them through a step-by-step process is a much easier way to create their next stage of success.
I have to add that the office administrator is great to work with and we spend a lot of time working together each week.

As of August 5, 2014 the office production numbers are at $628,000 with the hygiene department up by $65,000 and aesthetic/restorative case acceptance has increased by $110,000 this year so far.
The total production and collections is estimated to be up by approximately 30% from 2012.

More Big Team Results

The team has gained a new enthusiasm for working together. They told me that they feel like a family and have their friends (their patients) come to visit daily.

Recently, doctor had a pizza party after hours and each team member played a role in calling overdue hygiene patients. This was one more solutions we came up with through our research and strategy sessions together.

The team also receives a bonus when they achieve their new collection goals which appears to have limited team morale.

Would you like to be our next success story? There are so many options today. The one roadblock I see holding offices back is the attitude “It’s this economy that holds us back!” I want to say to you “Creaate your own economy!” People really are finding many ways to buy what they really want. Do your patients understand the wonderful menu of services you offer?

Does you team educate your patients about doctors extensive specialty courses he/she has completed?
Let your patients know about the research on oral health and it’s relationship to total health. I do believe most of your patients want to live a longer health status.

Let’s schedule a time to talk about your next level of success: support@dentalpracticesolutions.com or 888-816-1511
Maybe you want to take a test drive of what our team offers. Here is a simple and a simple step-by-step guide to get your started:
30 Day Dental Hygiene Profits Program

ABOUT DEBBIE

Are you looking to improve profits in your dental hygiene department? Debbie has an innovative and successful way to educate you and your team to create the small tweaks mentioned in this blog. Debbie has been in the trenches of the dental office over 30 years. She is a former Dental Hygiene Program Director, an assistant professor from the University of Southern California and even co-taught the practice management course for the senior dental students at USC.

Check our her services section on the website to find one that meets your needs. Consider getting your team involved in her 12 week Case Acceptance Program. You won’t need to stop your day of work at the office or pay for a consultant to travel to your office. The program is at your fingertips 24/7 indefinitely.

Debbie speaks at most of the major dental conferences in the world. She is recognized for the past 8 years as “One of Dentistry Today’s Top Consultants.”

She will also be featured on the cover of Hygiene Today in September 2013. (Published alongside Dentistry Today)

Many of her clients span from not only the United States but Brazil, Australia, India and the UK, just to mention a few.

Your Doctor/Hygiene Exam Science Project

By: admin

July 16, 2013

Dentistry has experienced many changes these past ten years. The economy is a lot different and the way we will deliver our treatment recommendations to our patients also needs to change today.

The dental hygienist has a big influence on how and when patients will accept treatment.

In addition, the entire dental team must rely on advanced communication skills to improve case acceptance. The dental hygienist plays a very important role in case acceptance for comprehensive care.

Let’s take this apart and study this system for the doctor/dental hygiene exam and how it can affect case acceptance. Doctor needs to write down how he/she wants this to be streamlined to create highly effective case acceptance. Role-play with your team using scripts and practice this system until you have it down perfectly.

The Doctor/Dental Hygiene Exam

The doctor/dental hygiene exam is highly effective when there is a specific format for delivering the information: 1^st from the hygienist to the patient and 2^nd the delivery from hygienist to doctor while your patient is present in the treatment room.

Often times the doctor enters to complete a patient exam and it is rush-rush. Either the hygienist is running behind, maybe the hygienist has been waiting ten minutes for doctor to complete the exam and in addition, the patient may be stressed because they need to leave to return back to work, etc.

At Dental Practice Solutions we recommend a specific method for determining when doctor will complete an exam. The doctor should never wait until the end of a dental hygiene appointment to complete an exam.

When the doctor enters the treatment room, the computer monitor should show images of the teeth, showing calculus, plaque, BOP, fractured restorations, etc.

The dental hygienist also needs to have the most recent radiographs available for doctor to view when completing the exam.

Here is a scenario of how this exam process will be completed:

The dental hygienist needs to have written notes to herself/himself about what they discovered with the patient. Now the doctor and hygienist will have a specific flow to the exam conversation. (This is your roadmap)

Doctor only needs a quick “Hello, how are you Mr. XYZ?” For a patient of record there does not need to be a lot of conversation. Anything over 2 minutes is too long!

The hygienist can begin reporting to doctor with a quick personal update.

Example:

Hygienist:“Dr. Goodtooth, Mr. Dundee’s son is getting married this summer!”

Doctor: “Congratulations! I remember when Matt was only six years old! How can it be that he is getting married?!”

Hygienist: “Dr. Goodtooth, today I reviewed Mr. XYZ’s health history and there are no changes. I took his blood pressure and it was 100/70. We completed an oral cancer screening with the ORALID®. That was negative. Mr. XYZ told me that he wants to have whiter teeth for his son’s wedding. We talked about completing those implants and before you complete those he wants to do the whitening of his teeth. I told Mr. XYZ that you would like to have the annual x-rays next time we see him in 6 months. His pocket depths were all within normal limits and there was no bleeding today. We talked about him using the Sonicare and he may buy one next time he is here.”

Doctor: Nods in agreement and says something like “Ok, or ah-huh.”

When the hygienist is finished with her/his verbal report doctor can begin to expound on the necessary treatment.

Before the patient leaves the treatment room the hygienist will schedule Mr. XYZ’s next hygiene appointment.

REPETITION IS KEY

Patient’s usually need to hear something new about three times before they are able to fully comprehend their treatment needs. Now they can attempt to make a decision to schedule and pay for treatment.

Imagine we are speaking Greek to them! They have no clue what these funny sounding words mean!

Do not attempt to discuss payment options or schedule the treatment until the patient has confirmed they understand the diagnosis.

Three Verbal Communication Opportunities

When the patient has a new condition that needs treatment it is helpful if you can talk about this three different times during this appointment. The 1^st time is when the hygienist completes her or his assessments and discovers the need for treatment. At this point in time the hygienist will co-diagnose the area(s) of concern with the patient seated upright in the dental chair.

The 2^nd time the patient will hear about the condition in their oral cavity is when the hygienist reports to the doctor.

The 3^rd time with be at the front desk with the treatment coordinator.

STOP AND DO NOT PASS THE FRONT DESK!

Always have patients stop off at the front desk before they leave the dental office. Patient’s should always be escorted to the front desk and the dental hygienist or other auxiliary will report to the treatment coordinator or another auxiliary at the front desk, what was completed at today’s appointment and what will the next appointment be scheduled for. If the patient was scheduled in the back office treatment room, this needs to be reported when the auxiliary is speaking to the treatment coordinator at the front desk.

When patients are left to wander out of the office without a team member escorting them, appointments will many times go unscheduled and/or payment is often not received the day services are rendered.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS: REFINEMENT AND DOWN TO A SCIENCE

As a Dental Practice Management Consultant, I always recommend that you create scripts for all communication that routinely occurs. If you are talking to a new patient on the phone or maybe you are talking to a patient of record about a recent diagnosis, script out these various scenarios and role-play with your team. Role-play these various opportunities and create solutions to overcome patient objections and discover how to work in harmony as a team. Effective communication is key!

This should be an ongoing process. Learn how to understand the various ways your different patients communicate and learn how to respond to these various personality and communication styles.

LARGER COMPREHENSIVE TREATMENT PLANS

Not every patient will accept your treatment recommendations the 1^st time a patient is informed of a diagnosis. Many larger cases, above $2,000.00 USD may take three follow up attempts to finally have patient schedule for treatment.

This means that the dental hygienist plays an important role in follow up each time they see the patient.

CONCLUSION

There is a very systematic, scientific way to complete an effective doctor/dental hygiene exam.

This process really does need to be practiced until you have it down to a science.

Write scripts for everything that is said in your office between the team and patients. Always take time to role-play with the team. Practice until you make it perfect.

If you want to dig deeper into this topic Dental Practice Solutions has a one-of-a-kind 30 Day Dental Hygiene Profits Program which spends 3 Days of the 30 days on this topic of the doctor/hygiene exam. You can find more information about this program here: READ MORE

About Debbie

Debbie Seidel-Bittke, RDH, BS, is founder of Dental Practice Solutions and for over 20 years she has been committed to creating a dental hygiene department that works enthusiastically, creating a high performance teams, improving patients’ total health and consistent profits to the dental practice.

She is an author for journals such as Dentistry Today, HygieneTown and RDH. Debbie speaks internationally about systems and services in the dental hygiene department to create a team that works like a well-oiled machine, improving the total health of patients’, utilizing the most recent science to prevent disease and consistently increase profits.

In 1984 she graduated from USC in Los Angeles in with a Bachelors Degree in Dental Hygiene. She is a former clinical assistant professor from USC. In 2000-2002 Debbie co-taught the practice management course for the dental students. Debbie is also a former dental hygiene program director for a school in Portland, Oregon where she wrote the accreditation, hired the instructors, purchased all the equipment, worked with project managers on the building of the school while managing a 2 million dollar budget.

Debbie works with dental practices throughout the world and is considered a leader in creating consistent profits to a dental practice through services and systems in the dental hygiene department.

Caries Risk Assessment: Saving Dollars for Your Dental Patient Adds Profits to Your Dental Practice

By: admin

July 9, 2013

I get excited when a dental office contacts me to be their Dental Practice Management Consultant and recently I had a few offices contact me who were located outside of the United States.

Their reason to call was to have a US Dental Practice Management Consultant implement preventive services for their practice and bring preventive protocols to their practice.

One of the most overlooked areas in a dental practice today is the Caries Risk Assessment. (CAMBRA) It happens a lot that offices do not have a protocol in place to assess and prevent caries. CAMBRA is not new. The California Dental Journal produced two journals dedicated to this topic in October and November 2007 and again in October 2011.

It is very rewarding to be a part of the shift in other countries who have millions upon millions of their population without preventive care services! There are dentists in these countries looking to make a change in their country. Congratulations to these dentists for leading CHANGE!

Caries Risk assessment is one of the areas we can see a huge shift in the underserved populations. With the guidance of a Consultant you will have a turn-key value added system in place to prevent disease and create one more profit center.

(Read below and add your own numbers to see what this means for your practice and profitability.)

What is CAMBRA?

CAMBRA assists providers to systematically evaluate caries risk in an individualized manner; children as well as adults.
Tailors a specific preventive therapeutic management plan or “care path”;
Customizes a restorative plan in conjunction with preventive care; and
Supports the dental professional to plan a timely, specific, and appropriate periodicity schedule based on the patients’ caries risk.

To effectively prevent and management the disease of caries, care should begin early, ideally during at age 1 a comprehensive oral exam visit is completed.

Yes, assessment begins very early. Do you tell parents that a child’s first visit is at age 3? NO? Think again.

Here are steps to prevent caries risk:

A caries risk assessment is the first of these critical steps,
Give the provider more information to help them consider the risk and health status of each patient before beginning the exam.
Caries risk assessment provides information pertaining to three specific overarching domains: white spot lesions, decalcification enamel. defects or other obvious decay in the child.

The information obtained from a caries risk assessment allows the care provider to formulate a caries risk profile for the child, and also an adult. This is an essential first step to determining the prevention and treatment plan, as well as the periodicity of patient follow-up/continuing care visit. (one month, three months, six months, or one year).

The CAMBRA-based dental practice will increase the usage of current preventive products. (Another profit center for your dental hygien department) The dental practice needs to have these products available to the patient so they can easily improve self-efficacy and begin using these preventive care products immediately.

CAMBRA-based prevention and nonsurgical caries management should lead to a shift away from restorative procedures to procedures focused on prevention and early intervention; cost analysis and development of financial models should show the economic value change the psychology of the dental professional’s messaging style.

Include attractive literature for patients to read in your reception areas and take home with them to learn more about Caries Prevention.

The new CDT codes for CAMBRA will assist in reimbursement for the patient.

In January 2013 the CDT codes were revised and D 1204 and D1203 are no longer used. For the patient who receives a fluoride varnish the insurance billing code will be: D1206.

For adults and children who receive a fluoride other than a varnish the code for billing used will be: D1208.

What does this mean for the profits to your practice?

For patients who are assessed moderate to extremely high risk they will return every 1-3 months for a short appointment to assess biofilm, review home care and diet, provide a fluoride varnish and if the patient will always use a 1.1% Sodium Fluoride each night.

Here is a breakdown of what this may mean for your dental practice and the patient:

RISK ASSESSED Interval of Service Services CDT Code Fee

Mod – Extremely High 1- 3mos Biofilm eval, F2 Varnish, eval home-care, 1.1% NaF D1206, D09999 $ 65

Low 6 mos Prophy, F2 Varnish D1110, D1206 $135

Most offices will enroll at least 100 patients annually into CAMBRA. This above chart can be used to assess your profit potential. (Average practice is approximately 1500 patients)

CAMBRA strategies are implemented with a focus toward prevention and early intervention. Studies should also determine if there is significant practice growth and case acceptance once the patient oral health is improved.

CAMBRA represents best practices and should become the standard of care in disease prevention and treatment.

ABOUT DEBBIE SEIDEL-BITTKE, RDH, BS

Are you looking to improve profits in your dental hygiene department? Debbie has an innovative and successful way to consistently increase profits in your dental practice.

Many dentists today only need a 1 or 2 day workshop in-office to create the best solutions. Some offices find it valuable to participate in one of our online membership programs. This investment will be your highest ROI .

Check our services section on the website to find one that meets your needs. Consider getting your team involved in our 12 week Case Acceptance Program. You won’t need to stop your day of work at the office or pay for a dental consultant to travel to your office. The program is at your fingertips 24/7 indefinitely.

Debbie writes for many of the major dental conferences in the world. She is recognized for the past 8 years as “One of Dentistry Today’s Top Consultants.”

Many of her clients span from not only the United States but Brazil, Australia, India and the UK, just to mention a few. She has unique and one-of-a-kind learning systems for offices all over the world to participate in as well as in-office workshops and dental hygiene consulting.

7 Tips to Survive and Thrive Today!

By: admin

June 18, 2013

You most likely chose to be a dentist because it is supposed to give you a chance to live a great life! It should be able to give you a lot of freedom.

Maybe your goal was to work three or four days a week. I imagine that you probably expected to have a bank account with many zeroes at the end of the balance by now.

“Why is this not happening?!”

Many dentists today are asking this question. If you are one of these dentists asking this question, I want to let you know that you are not alone!

I also know without a doubt – — – There is HOPE! I promise you that there is a silver lining to the story of “Today’s Economic Crisis” that many of you are feeling.

During the depression there were more millionaires created than ever before and I know this is happening again – as I am writing this – it is happening.

What is the best answer to this question?

The answer is not going to be something you may want to hear but the answer is this simple:

INVEST in YOURSELF

Years ago, you invested in your education and it didn’t stop there. Investing in yourself is something you need to continue over your lifetime – -and I don’t mean only investing in the DOW JONES or NASDAQ. I mean investing in your dental business and creating systems that consistently bring profits.

Dentistry is a very fast moving industry. Technology changes, internet and how people search for a dentist have changed. The systems and services that create consistent multiple income streams for your dental practice have changed in just the last 5 years. Patients used to come to a hygiene appointment to have their teeth cleaned. Now patients can come to their dental office for preventive services that support total health.

I feel your pain and I know that you don’t want to spend another dime.

The answer is that if you don’t invest in a solution to your own economic decline, you will never leave this challenging situation you are in today.

There needs to be a CHANGE.

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Albert Einstein

For myself, I invest in coaches who support and guide me to stay in a position that will serve my clients at the highest level. This is how you will not only survive but THRIVE. This is what I know works best for those who want to be at the top of their game.

“INVEST IN ME” = Your Biggest ROI

2. Hire a dental practice management consultant who is an expert in their niche. This should not and will not drain your bank account if you choose the correct one for you. Find an expert whose expertise is solving you specific needs. Now you will have your biggest ROI. This is the best way to invest in you.

3. Do you know that your dental hygiene department is the one area that can create multiple streams of income? This is the one area of your dental practice where you need to have up-to-date systems and services. There are some simple questions that your hygienist can ask that will drive your profits by $100,000.00 in the next year, services that create optimal health and profits.

About 99% of our clients have at least $100,000.00 of unscheduled treatment sitting in their patient charts. Do you know what to say to a patient who did not want to schedule for necessary treatment? Do you know 1 simple question your hygienist can ask that will drive adjunctive and aesthetic services, that perhaps your patients never thought to ask you about?

4. There is a simple step-by-step strategy to bring them back to your office. Most recently we have an office report that 50 patients scheduled their hygiene appointment when they took step one of our Continuing C.A.R. E. System.

5. Implement an incentive program to inspire patients to come back to your office. Use this to bring in overdue patients and also create referrals for New Patients.

6. Implement a smile evaluation. Ask your patients what is one thing they would like to change about their smile. There are so many different ways to ask this simple question but the bottom line is to ASK.

7. ASK your patients who can’t commit to schedule treatment; “When is a good time to follow up with you?” Or better yet, they probably have unanswered questions and this is the really meaning behind their statement? ASK them to return for a short consultation and invite then to bring their spouse or the other decision maker with them.

ASK: Always Seek Knowledge.

Ask yourself “what can I do differently today to create a positive change?”
Ask your patients the various questions suggested above.

These are only a few suggestions so you can not only survive today’s economic decline but these are suggestions for you to THRIVE!

After all, that is why you do what you do – RIGHT?

Here is to your success!

ABOUT DEBBIE SEIDEL-BITTKE, RDH, BS

Are you looking to improve profits in your dental hygiene department? Debbie has an innovative and successful way to consistently increase profits in your dental practice.

Check our our services section on the website to find one that meets your needs. Consider getting your team involved in our 12 week Case Acceptance Program. You won’t need to stop your day of work at the office or pay for a dental consultant to travel to your office. The program is at your fingertips 24/7 indefinitely.

Debbie writes for many of the major dental conferences in the world. She is recognized for the past 8 years as “One of Dentistry Today’s Top Consultants.”