Practice Management

Q:  How do I get my team motivated to think like an owner and go the extra mile?  First and foremost, no one can motivate anyone to do anything. Motivation has to come from within! It’s an internal process, a reason to act a certain way based on the good ole’ radio station WII FM (What’s in it for me?). So if that’s the case, why are there jillions of books, lectures and articles written on this very topic?  

General dentists see volumes of patients each year. However, only 1 in 4 adults has straight teeth and a healthy stable bite. General dentists can add Invisalign® to their practices knowing there are many patients who can benefit from treatment.  An excellent way to market Invisalign is to educate patients about its benefits.

You’ve gone through the extra training. You’ve talked to specialists and even spent some time in their practices observing and learning. You’ve put the time in, and now you’re ready to add a new specialty service to your list of offerings.

The old adage, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression” is so appropriate when thinking about the opportunity to convert a first-time caller into a loyal patient. The first minute of the call can make or break the relationship. A shared goal

Creating a successful dental practice can take years of hard work. Your professional skills, relationships with patients and business ability surely assist in bringing the practice to the high level of professionalism necessary for determining if it is the appropriate time to sell it.

The concept of market segmentation has been a part of the marketing scene since long before the phrase was coined. Any time someone with something to sell (or say, for that matter), identified and spoke directly to “…a sub-set of a market made up of people or organizations with one or more characteristics that cause them to demand similar product and/or services based on qualities of those products such as price or function“* they employed a market segmentation strategy.

There are two benefits your practice realizes from getting its patients to submit posts to customer review sites* and your social media. First, people increasingly depend upon service review sites in forming their opinions about a product or service, which in turn, predisposes them to making their product or service selection.

Have you ever wished you had an extra employee whose job was to organize all of the practice information you generate each day and use it to help you run your practice more efficiently? Obviously a position like this would not be a cost-effective tool for practice improvement in any but the largest offices. Fortunately Dr.

Line item accounting helps offices keep an organized record of clients’ services. New customization options allow the user to personalize the software to accommodate their individual office needs. Increase office efficiency with features like “family walkout” and the “patient bar.”

Is your staff referring to itself as office furniture?  At a recent convention, I asked a young woman about her role in the practice, to which she responded: “I’m the front desk.”  This employee has clearly lost a sense of her true value to the dental practice, and it’s likely the office is losing out on the benefit this woman could be providing as communications central.

November 2010 | Dental Products Report When we started our practice from scratch 25 years ago, we worked out of a one-room operatory. Computers were not yet high on our priority list, but within a short while we obtained a computer for administrative tasks and eventually grew to using practice management software on a more robust computer network.

We see it, hear it, read it, and we live it every day. Our economy has taken a dive and it has shown in the bottom line of our dental practices. So what can we do to help counter the effects of the downturn? One of the great things about being a general dentist is we have the opportunity to provide a diverse offering of services to our patients. I’ve been practicing for nearly 13 years, and still thoroughly enjoy the diversity of being a general dentist every day. Each day is different from the last and you never know what you might get tomorrow.

Sports Dentistry Dr. Alexander Della Bella Team dentist for Major League Baseball’s Cincinnati Reds and the East Coast Hockey League’s Cincinnati Cyclones Imagine your patients walking into your practice to find a local professional athlete sitting in your waiting room.

Information provided by 3Shape. Improving on existing functions and adding expanded capabilities, 3Shape’s Dental System™ 2012 software is designed to provide CAD/CAM solutions for new indications, help dental labs increase productivity and help dental labs help their dentists.

I use E-volution to denote the Electronic Revolution sweeping over us. One area where growth and change are particularly great is the relatively new phenomenon called Online Reputation Management (ORM), which, according to Wikipedia (as of 1/2010) is: The practice of consistent research and analysis of one’s personal or professional business or industry reputation, as represented by the content across all types of online media.

As we get closer to the end of the year, dentists often ask about how major technology purchases will impact their taxes. Applications such as lasers, CAD/CAM restoration systems, digital and cone beam radiology are large investments, and dentists who work closely with their CPAs can strategize to maximize the tax benefits of purchasing them. Capitalizing on Section 179

Ok. You didn’t go to dental school to become a marketer. But what’s a practitioner without patients?  One avenue for promoting a  dental practice is to sell yourself as an expert in your area of expertise. It can be a broad area –dentistry or a more narrow one-say teeth whitening or implants.

1. OS (oscillating segment) Discs are 60° segmented with a radius of 1.4 cm and a pivoting angle of 30°, allowing comfortable intraoral handling even in posterior areas with excellent user control. 2. A more effective method than manual enamel reduction, the OS Discs reduce the risk of injuring soft tissue without the need for a disc guard. 3. OS Discs allow very good vision for the user and provide optimal chip removal.

February 2, 2011 | Dental Products Report news DHPI partners with Learn HealthSci  

An investment in patient comfort, Gluma is economical to use at less than $1 an application. Plus it’s billable to insurance. The only desensitizer proven to penetrate exposed dentinal tubules up to 200µ, Gluma has received numerous accolades including “Top Desensitizer” from The DENTAL ADVISOR and Reality’s Choice 5-Star Award 7 times. Acts as a microbial barrier, inhibiting bacterial growth that can result in pulpal inflammation, secondary caries and restorative failure.

How’s your phone etiquette? Your team members can’t just answer the phone. They need to connect with the patient. Here’s how.

Intraoral cameras should be used on every patient because doctors and patients alike can reap benefits from the images they take, Drs. Jason Luchtefeld and Frank Clayton said. They also have specific recommendations about what images they see as musts for each of their patients.

June 4, 2010 | dentalproductsreport.com Photo: Getty Images/Don Farrall

You are not the only ones wrestling with this daunting task! The issue of finding comfort in the “asking” always reminds me of a Theatre 101 class I took years ago. The first rule of the stage is, before you utter one line of dialogue you have to ask yourself, “What’s my motivation?” Your answer will color the tone, pace and delivery of that one line.

Changing human behavior is not impossible, just almost impossible! This statement is easy to garner agreement around since most oral health care providers have experienced it on a personal as well as a professional level. A personal example many can relate to is losing weight which requires dietary habit changes, or getting more fit which requires additional exercise. Even when desiring the outcome the habit change would provide, changing a habit is challenging, and so the desired outcome is often elusive.

September 9, 2010-A brand new, course shows dentists fifteen of the fastest and most cost effective marketing strategies to grow any dental practice…during a “hot” economy or a “stone cold” one. This course is available by going to www.DentalMarketingDynamite.com. 

As I write, Massachusetts is sending a Republican Senator to Washington, D.C. for the first time since Edward Brooke served from 1967–1979. What’s this got to do with tax-law changes? A lot! Without making any political commentary, the facts are:

The search for a practice management software application that fits your practice’s needs can be a tricky endeavor. With a wide range of options ready to handle your scheduling, billing, patient records and more, it’s important to make the right choice because this will be the central hub for all of your practice’s information.

Given the state of our economy, businesses continue to look for ways to stay in touch with existing clients and attract new customers. One very effective tool, which is often overlooked because of the rush to get online and more involved with the digital world, is the newsletter.

In November 2010, the State of Michigan Court of Appeals upheld a Circuit Court Judgment that confirmed an arbitration award that ordered the selling dentist to pay a total of 80% of the purchase price in damages plus attorney’s fees and investigating expenses because he violated a restrictive covenant. (Case No 293996 Oakland Circuit Court LC No. 2009-098520-CK)