Amazing Dental Opportunity

                 

I am excited to announce that Debra Quarles has written the The Revised Edition of Team Strategies for the Dental Practice and it will be available in January 2013. 

Debra Quarles is a positive, focused and motivated professional with over a quarter century of experience in the dental field. She possesses the unique ability to assess dental practice productivity and a keen talent for communicating. She handles all types of issues that arise daily in dental offices with diplomacy, grace and, of course, positive results. Debra solves system challenges and inspires evolution in practices of all sizes. Her skills at problem solving extend to managing practice flow, insurance issues, dental software systems, and accounting challenges. Debra thrives in every aspect of the front and back office.

Also a sought-after speaker, Debra shares her considerable knowledge with groups on various dental practice management topics including collections, scheduling, marketing, customer service, going paperless, and insurance. She also has consulted with Arizona's Dysart Unified School District to increase the effectiveness of its educational team. A published author, Debra’s writing includes the book, Team Strategies: For The Dental Practice, as well as articles for dental newsletters, publications and magazines.

The Philosophy: Flexibility and resourcefulness under pressure can bring amazing results...like lower blood pressure.  

The Rest: Time paddling a canoe is at the top of Debra's list. She has 4 kids, 4 grandkids and 4 dogs. Patterns are good. She loves travel, knitting, reading, and has authored several books, both fiction and non-fiction. Having a fear of heights, Debra naturally joined up with a group to climb the 13,775-foot Grand Teton. 

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Importance of Recare

  

Recare doesn't only help your bottom line, it can save patients lives.

"According to the ADA, 78% of the adult population has some form of periodontal disease. Studies have been published linking periodontal disease to heart disease, strokes, impairment of fetal growth, and weakened immune systems. With each new study that is published, it becomes clear that there is a definite link between oral health and our general health. In fact, according to Dr. Charles Mayo of the Mayo Clinic, visiting a dentist on a regular basis can extend life expectancy by 10 years," (Schein, http://www.henryschein.com/us-en/sites/wedothat/recare.html)

Patients are busy people and it is easy for them to tell you at the front desk that they will get back to you at another time to schedule that important cleaning appointment. However, letting patients walk out the door without scheduling the next appointment may potentially put them at risk.

Having a system in place for recare is important. Start by assessing what are your procedures now? Who is in charge of it? What is the ratio of patient recare calls to appointments? What needs to be improved upon? 

Having a system in place for recare is critical to the success. Someone needs to be in charge of making recare phone calls as well as following up with reminders to patients.  

How you present the information to the patient is as important as the appointment itself. Use friendly terms that hold importance. For example, "Mrs. Etcheverry, we will want to see you back for your dental examination and cleaning in July." This helps the patient see overall importance of the appointment. It is not just a cleaning, it is a health screening. 

5 Things to Remember:

1. Give every patient the opportunity to schedule their next cleaning appointment or remind them of their next cleaning appointment when they come in the office for other matters.

2. Offer two times during days and times that you know the patient already prefers. This will limit the chance they will have something come up and need to cancel.

3. Ask with a smile in your voice.

4. Send a post card, email or phone call a few days prior to the appointment to confirm. 

5. When patients cancel ask them to reschedule then and there. 

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Billion Dollar Branding

 This week we are featuring a fantastic business book from, "Billion Dollar Branding." This book is fantastic. It helps you focus on how to look at branding your business know matter what size your business is.

Buy the book. 

   Get FREE stuff

 

A downloadable Billion-Dollar Branding workbook not available to the general public. This exclusive workbook gives you exercises to get the most out of your branding experience. 

An ebook download of entertaining & edifying advertising & marketing rants called, Cashing In On The Money Bus. 

 A subscription to Hot Points, the acclaimed weekly screed on the state of the art in advertising and marketing. 

 Check out more on their advertising techniques at: Billion Dollar Branding

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Creating Smart Goals

We are into the new year. Hopefully you have accessed your business goals this year and decided what you need to work on and change. Or created some New Years resolutions.  In order to have a higher chance of achieving these goals, there is a simple formula when writing them that will help keep you and your team on track.

S: Specific-Goals should be very specific. Top Achievement business site suggests that you should answer six questions when writing this type of goal.

 http://topachievement.com/smart.html

                              *Who:      Who is involved?

                              *What:     What do I want to accomplish?

                              *Where:    Identify a location.

                              *When:     Establish a time frame.

                              *Which:    Identify requirements and constraints.

                              *Why:      Specific reasons, purpose or benefits of accomplishing the goal.

M: Measurable-if you cannot measure when you achieve your goal, you won't know when you have achieved it or what you are working for.

A: Attainable-Goals can be attainable if you plan the right steps in order to achieve it. Once you map out a plan, then it becomes clear to you on how to achieve the goal you have been working towards.

R: Realistic- Goals should be realistic. However, you are the only one that can decide what is realistic to you and how hard you are willing to work to achieve that goal. 

T: Time- You should have a time frame in which you want to achieve your goal. This will help you keep you on track and keep you moving forward towards your goal when you are feeling less then motivated.

Your New Years Resolutions do not have to be thrown to the waste side. With a little preparation and smart planning you can achieve everything you need to achieve this year.

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Ringing in the New Year

 

Hopefully you had a fabulous New Year. And now it is time to evaluate those resolutions you made. Don't worry you don't have to drop them to the waste side already.  Follow some simple suggestions to help you achieve whatever your goals are.

1. Write it down

2. Tell yourself your resolution over and over

3. Make a visual representation of what it looks like when you have achieved that goal

4. Give yourself a reward when you achieve your goal

5. Write out an action plan to complete your resolution.

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Happy New Years

Wishing you a Happy New Year From Salt Dental Practice Management:

May the New Year bring you happiness and change.

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Holidays are Here

Enjoy the season of giving, family and great food.