6 ways to boost your practice's efficiency [VIDEO]

Products, procedures and best practices to help you maximize your time and your team’s productivity.

Chances are, at some point, you’ve thought, “there aren’t enough hours in the day...” What if we could help get you back those precious seconds, minutes or hours?

Here are six tips to get you started. Check back with DentalProductsReport.com next weekend for more time-efficiency tips. We have 51 great tips to share!

01 Automate billing.

Imagine how much time it takes for front office personnel to comb through billing records. Not only is it time consuming, but that system is also vulnerable to mistakes and missed opportunities for collection. Various practice management software options and related vendors help facilitate this.

For example, Henry Schein Dental’s QuickBill is a simple way to send patient billing statements. QuickBill allows the dental team to send patient statements with just a few clicks of the mouse, right from your practice-management software. Plus, QuickBill gives complete control, allowing staff to review your statements, add personal notes, and even have the addresses verified. Users can even include a prewritten newsletter. QuickBill gets the job done fast, as statements are in the mail within 24 hours.

02 Eliminate the time intensive step of packing retraction cord.

Tired of packing a retraction cord? Using the SOL Diode Laser for troughing creates a separation between the hard tissue margins and the gingiva, while simultaneously stopping any tissue bleeding prior to taking an impression, or restoring a subgingival margin. This quick, bloodless procedure can save you time and will minimize the frustration of working with a retraction cord.

[Click Here For More DenMat SOL Diode Laser Information]

03 Make sure front office and back room staff can communicate quickly.

There are so many incredible options available for this now – whether that be a more traditional intercom system, walkie-talkies, or instant messaging via practice management software. Whatever method your practice chooses, every second you save through new modes of communication means more time spent focused on the case at hand.

04 Opt for clear, consistent patient education.

If there is any aspect of the patient visit you want to invest time in, it is proper patient communication, especially as it regards to treatment planning options. The way to maximize that time is by using quality interactive education that clearly and consistently explains key procedures and allows you the opportunity to clarify and engage. There are several products on the market today that help you to do just that and capitalize on high-engagement hardware such as iPads and other tablets so that patients get the “wow” factor as well as the necessary information.

For example, by using an online, cloud-based patient education system such as Patterson Dental’s CAESY Cloud, practices have the ability to link to more than 350 patient education presentations on their website(s), which makes patient education easily accessible for patients at home, following appointments. For added efficiency, CAESY Cloud requires no installation and no network connections between participating devices. All that is needed to access CAESY Cloud is a standard Internet connection.

05 Standardize clinical protocols for effective delivery of adhesion.

BISCO’s ALL-BOND UNIVERSAL allows you to standardize clinical protocols for effective delivery of adhesion. You can expect ease of use and a simplified bonding procedure with ALL-BOND UNIVERSAL. This universal dental adhesive combines self-etch and total-etch bonding, and it includes the resin layer and activator in just 1 bottle providing you a significant cost savings and guaranteed clinical effectiveness.

ALL-BOND UNIVERSAL is a light-cured, single-component dental bonding agent that combines etching, priming and bonding in a single bottle. It simplifies restorative procedures by adapting to self-, total-, and selective-etch techniques and because of the low film thickness. ALL-BOND UNIVERSAL is easily spread thin allowing for easy cementation to tight-fitting crowns. ALL-BOND UNIVERSAL is compatible with all light-, self-, and dual-cured resin composites and cements for all direct and indirect bonding procedures. Other single-bottle adhesives may need more than 1 bottle for indirect restorations, but with ALL-BOND UNIVERSAL, no additional activator is required.

06 Take faster full mouth series using digital radiography.

There are numerous ways in which making the transition to digital radiography from film is a win for the practice. The overall time saved is among the most tangible benefits the dental team experiences. Not only does getting rid of the traditional chemical processing and the associated dark room create more usable space for the practice, it eliminates the lengthy wait times associated with developing film.

[Browse The Latest Digital Radiography Products Here]

The ability to see images instantly can revolutionize your workflow. And, because digital images can be enhanced in real-time via imaging software, you as a clinician are able to diagnose in a more efficient manner, and help the patient understand treatment needs more quickly.