Academy Helps Connect Those Committed To Making The Connection

On June 24^th and 25^th, dentists, hygienists, physicians, and other professionals concerned about the oral-systemic link convened just outside Chicago for AAOSH’s Inaugural Scientific Session. Attendees heard about the science and business of oral systemic health from cardiologists, diabetologists, hygienists, and practice management consultants.

Dr. Rob Wortzel of Wortzel Integrative Dental Care a Mountainside, New Jersey dental practice committed to the overall health of its patients, and Founding Member of The American Academy for Oral Systemic Health (AAOSH) said of the Session “Here, at last, was an opportunity to join forces with and learn from fellow professionals who believe as I do, that a healthy mouth can lead to a healthy body, and a long, healthy, and vibrant life." 

Learning Your Three Cs

Choosing to position your practice as offering oral systemic health services is a terrific way to differentiate your Offering, and serves as yet another way to do well by doing good.

The Three Cs refer to the major components comprising a successful oral systemic practice, and stand for: clinical-acquiring and employing the skills to diagnose, treat and prevent serious systemic illness; collaborative-the means to generate and cultivate cross referrals from health care providers outside dentistry and; communication-advising, educating and encouraging current and prospective patients to say "yes" to your Oral Systemic Offering.

There are many ways to acquire and hone your clinical oral systemic skills including joining AAOSH, studying and receiving accreditation in dental sleep medicine, neuromuscular dentistry, diagnostic and advanced perio risk assessment, etc. Once you and your team receive the requisite training to competently perform tests and deliver treatment, you will enjoy an additional benefit in that most tests e.g. oral cancer screening, salivary testing, perio risk assessment, etc. are ‘pay as you go,’ while procedures such as sleep studies and the like require little investment in equipment.

Effective collaboration means not merely better care for the patient, who almost invariably benefits from a multidisciplinary approach to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment: it also is a key to the growth of your oral systemic practice by generating referrals from health professionals within and outside of dentistry.

Dr. Lee Ostler, one of my AAOSH colleagues, helped me realize that physicians are ethically obligated to speak with a dentist about a patient they share in common. “It’s easier to enter a practice through the back door than the front,” says Ostler “and, once you understand how to speak the MD’s language, the rest is easy.”

Communication has to do with informing, educating and persuading current and prospective patients to ‘get’ the promise your oral systemic practice holds for helping them achieve a lifetime of overall health, wellness and longevity through care of the oral cavity. While the public is rapidly becoming aware of this, you’ll want to remember the importance of ‘running the race at the patient’s pace’. Do not make the mistake of the recent convert who, in his zealousness, erroneously believes everyone is as excited as he is about his newfound ‘religion.’

The successful oral systemic practitioner effectively translate and packages his Offering’s benefits in ways that first create awareness, then generate interest, create desire, and ultimately, encourage the new or existing patient to ‘say yes’ to care. In office displays, oral-systemic content rich on hold and outgoing messages, hyper-targeted ad campaigns, verbal communication skills team coaching, focused search engine marketing, and public relations campaigns together comprise your effective oral-sytemic practice marketing plan.

Daniel A. 'Danny' Bobrow, President.
Aim Dental Marketing
312-455-9488 / dbobrow@aimdentalmarketing.com