Dear Friends,
September seemed to sneak right by us this year! No sooner did we bid farewell to summer than we discovered pumpkins displayed at the corner market. So we are sending September's installment of our newsletter at the beginning of October which means it has to be an extra-special edition.
Recently, some practices have told us their schedules aren't as full as they would like and they suspect it is a result of the economic climate. Well, you can fret over the holes in the schedule or you can use your time wisely. In this newsletter we feature two articles that will help you make valuable use of your time. They contain team exercises that will lead to fuller schedules. In Recipe for Success; the patient review process, we learn how Dr. Vivek Mehta and Dr. Michael Gusar and their team evaluate their success with new patients. On the other end of the spectrum, the article Lost Souls addresses those patients who have fallen through the cracks and provides a process for evaluating where the relationship ended and how to re-engage them. We highly recommend that you block time in your schedule to work with your team on both of these exercises. It will make a difference in so many ways.
We also want to call your attention to two very important opportunities. First, we are now taking open enrollment for Sandy's Facilitator Study Club. All patient coordinators and facilitators as well as those team members who share this responsibility with another role in the practice are welcome to enroll.
To find out more about the Facilitator group click here.
We are also forming a new Practice Transformation Masters Program group. This twelve-month learning program helps dentists become better leaders while reviewing every aspect of your practice from a behavioral perspective. This program is limited to five dentists per group and will begin next month.
Click here to learn about the Masters program
As always, we would love to hear your comments, ideas and suggestions for upcoming newsletters.
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Recipe for Success: the patient review process
An interview with Dr. Vivek Mehta
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Dr. Vivek Mehta practices in Auburn Massachusetts with Dr. Michael Gusar. Recently he shared with us in an email that they have begun to implement a new patient review process. His email outlined the goals and objectives for the exercise:
Goals
1. Increase Tx acceptance and production
2. Increase Patient Wow! Experiences and Referrals
Objectives
1. Celebrate successes
2. Recognize hurdles
3. Get a pulse on the who, how and what is generating the
production in the office
4. The entire team gets an overview of the flow of patients in the office and get a sense what factors are significant in completing the circle from getting new patients into the door to generating production numbers which pays for running the office.
I spent some time with Dr. Mehta to find out more about this valuable addition to their monthly meetings. Here are excerpts from the interview along with some important guidelines.
Read on
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Lost Souls
by Sandy Roth
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In the last few months, I have spent a fair amount of time with clients who are working hard to build (or rebuild) their practices. Many dentists are realizing that it is important to actively seek and retain clients. Seems so logical when we apply the notion to any other business or service, but somehow this principle has eluded many dentists. Perhaps at another time we can discuss the reasons for that, but in this issue, I'd like to give you some help in this process.
There are three areas of practice building on which you can concentrate. The first is attracting new patients. The second is working effectively with those clients who are active in the practice. The third is reconnecting with lost souls - those people who once came to your practice but who have disappeared. These people will be our focus today.
In most cases, the "recall list" is the focal point of patient retrieval. Someone - the one who drew the shortest straw? - is assigned the thankless task of dialing for dollars. She starts with the first name on the list and works through them, each name more daunting than the last. This is a study in rejection and a real uphill battle. When people do answer, they are often evasive and clearly do not wish to discuss their dental care or make an appointment. "I'll let you know when I am ready. Thanks for calling." Click.
Mostly, our dialer reaches machines. "Hello, Mrs. Jones. This is Susan from Dr. Wonderful's office. I'm calling because you're overdue for your cleaning and we're very concerned about your dental health. Please give me a call at 555-5555 to schedule
your appointment. Thank you." Messages are left on answering machines and voice mails all over town. A few people call back but most don't. Next month, the process starts all over again.
These impersonal phone calls rarely accomplish their primary goal: to reconnect in a meaningful way with one-time patients so that they will choose to re-establish an active relationship with the practice. There are, of course, some patients who are no longer your patients. Either they are working with another dentist or have chosen to not seek further care. Wouldn't it be advantageous to separate those from the patients who are reluctant for other reasons? Then you could concentrate on addressing the barriers and limitations seen by people who are still your clients but who are not taking advantage of your services. Consider the following approach to finding and reconnecting with your lost souls.
The Lost Souls Project
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