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Transcript:

The Dental A Team (00:05.806)

Hey everyone, welcome to the Dental A Team podcast. I'm your host, Kiera Dent, and I had this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective, because let's face it, dentistry can be a challenging profession with those two perspectives. I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, filler, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants where we have traveled to over 165 different offices coaching teams. Yep, we don't just understand you, we are you.

Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental. And I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams, grow VIP experiences, reduce stress, and create A -Teams. Welcome to the Dental A -Team Podcast.

The Dental A Team (00:51.246)

Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and you guys. Happy day to you. I hope it's a great day. I hope you're having a ton of fun. I just hope you're loving life. I really do. And if it's a rough day, just know I'm giving you a virtual hug. It's going to be all right. Things always work out. I had somebody ask me the other day, said, Kiera, why is life so hard? I said, life is hard because we're not willing to accept that maybe our life looks different than what we were planning on it looking like. It's hard because we're resisting what's actually happening.

I've had that. I've had my whole identity shaken. I've had just some rough, rough things in life. And I think all of us have. I think that that's what makes us human. But I think at the end of the day, when you can look at life and say, you know what? I choose to love life. I choose to be happy. I choose to see the best in this. I choose to accept that life is happening for me and not to me. That's when a perspective changes and all of us have that opportunity. So I hope.

I hope that today is just a good day for you. hope that you choose that perspective to see that life is happening for you and not to you. It's growing you where you ultimately want to grow. It's pushing you. might not feel great, but it's pushing you where you ultimately want to go. All right. That's Kiera just a little like, hey, sending you some love in this world. So today's topic is nothing to do with that.

all about hygiene handoffs and why they're important to case acceptance. Yep. Super sexy, exciting. I hope you're ready. I hope you're just like, yep, let's do this. but hygiene handoffs guys, don't think we realize how much the hygiene department impacts case acceptance. Hi, Jenis, you are awesome. You help us so much. I, you guys, we've done quite a few podcasts around the hygiene department. So today we're going to dive into the hygiene department even more so. And with this hygiene department, first of all, we've done, what would doctor do?

And I just had somebody reach out and ask me, how do we really get this? What would doctor do? We just did a podcast on it. you've got to block it in your schedule. I recommend doing it for four weeks and I recommend doing it case study wise. So round Robin. And if you don't know what the heck I'm talking about, go listen to that podcast, but that's just kind of a follow -up. Somebody reached out, asked me how to do this and then make sure that your doctors. Doctors, I've got to give you a huge tip on this. Please don't try to make our life hard like you did in dental school.

The Dental A Team (03:06.19)

We understand that every FMX has about 75 ,000 different treatment plans that you all dentists will create. We understand that. What we need to know in this, what would doctor do exercise is what you normally will diagnose. I understand that that tooth might be a filling. It might be a crown. It might be a root canal. It might be an implant and it might be a bridge. I'm well aware of that, but please doctors for everything lovely and awesome in life, just tell us.

one simple thing that you normally will diagnose. understand you might go rogue. I understand it won't always be perfect and I'm not expecting you to be perfect. What I'm asking is that you give the hygienist and the clinical team an opportunity to feel confident teeing treatment up for you because that's most of the time what you're going to diagnose. We're going to give you a five to 10 % change. That's fine. You still have that, but please, like I said, for everything, holy, lovely, and good in this life, just choose one diagnosis for us.

That's your general go -to diagnosis. We're not putting you in dental school. You're not being graded on the boards. We just need your basic one so we can win and we can teach treatment up for you. Otherwise, if you make it too hard, we say, forget it. We don't want to do this. It's too hard. They're always going to change their treatment plan. They're never going to treatment plan what they, what we think they're going to. So forget it. They can do it all on their exam time. Your case acceptance will be lower. Your patient experience will be lower and doctors, you don't have any help. So that's just my.

I got on a little soap box for you, but I'm advocating for our teams and advocating for our doctors on this one. see both perspectives. So doctors just give us your normal go -to on that FMX. That way we can start to win and help you out as well. So then next is this handoff. We've talked about the I crap handoff. So when doctors come in, we introduce the patient, let them know if they've met them or not. Compliment the patient. They're doing great on their flossing. We give a recap of the treatment we've already discussed. Hashtag teed up.

And we do a personal note. We do it in that exact order as well. Reason being, if I say something personal, the doctor can then pick that up and they have an immediate connection with the patient. Exam time drastically reduces. So those are all things that we've already discussed on other podcasts. Again, if you haven't heard them, go listen to them. Alex is amazing. She links all these in the show notes so you guys can just quickly click on those other podcasts. Shout out to Alex. She's amazing. She's the wizard behind.

The Dental A Team (05:25.994)

the keyboard for us that makes all of our show notes amazing and she makes your guys' life real easy. So with that said, next up is going to be these handoffs. So Hygienist giving that really awesome iCrap handoff, sorry it's the worst acronym but you won't forget it, to your doctor when they enter the room. Now some doctors are like, so Hygienist you gotta be on it. I hope you hear me snapping in the background. like, as soon as they walk through that door, you roll into your handoff.

A lot of people say, but cure, I want to go tell my doctor outside of the room. Fine. That's totally fine. You can team up outside of the room, but in front of the patient, you've got to have this handoff. Otherwise doctors got to go through the whole spiel. they've also did with something missed. That patient doesn't know what was being discussed. It brings the patient into the conversation versus the patient just watching the movie versus being an active participant in it. Get your patient to actively be engaged, get them involved in.

Like call your perio numbers out or your probing numbers out, help them co -diagnose with you. Have them look at x -rays with you. Have that patient be an active participant in the procedure versus a passive participant in the visit, if you will. So then doctors and hygienists, two pro tips that we've discussed before is getting them to say yes to you before we even present treatment. So, hey, can I put your bib on? Yes.

Can I lean you back? Yes. Getting them to do it versus saying, okay, now I'll lean you back. Having that patient have autonomy and getting them to say yes throughout your procedure is actually teeing them up to want to say yes for treatment. Psychological guys, I had my whole undergrad in psychology and I love it. And I had a hygienist email me and she's like, Kiera, I tried this. My floor at acceptance is a hundred percent. Rock on. Shout out to you. You know who you are. You emailed me and I loved hearing it. It was so cool. So with that,

Now doctors in the room, we do the treatment plan. Doctor gives a perfect handoff back to the hygienist. All right, it's Kiera. We want to get you back. So doctor is talking to the patient while giving the information to the hygienist. Do you see that triangle? I hope you do. Doctor talks to the patient. That way the hygienist hears what needs to happen. Patient is an active participant versus being just a silent listener. This way we have a perfect handoff. So then doctor gives the perfect handoff. Hey, all right, Kiera. So it looks like we've got some treatment that we want to get done.

The Dental A Team (07:49.762)

The great news is you're in good hands and we're going to get your mouth healthy. We're going to do this really easy for you. Doctors, tee up some, some confidence there. Okay. I'd like to get you back in about two weeks. We'll start on that upper right. We'll get that crown and that filling done. I know that was your biggest concern. Don't worry. We'll get that taken care of that way. You can eat again. I'd like to see you back in about two weeks and I'll need about two hours for that appointment. What questions do you have for me? I didn't say, you have questions? I said, what questions do you have for me?

nothing. think I'm good. Fantastic. I can't wait to see you back. You're in great hands. Rachel, are your hygienist? She's going to take great care of you, get you scheduled back for that. Beautiful. Doctor, you did so many great things on that. You told us what they're coming back for. You gave us a timeframe of when they're coming back for it. You told us how much time they need. You edified the hygienist and you gave them confidence that you are a rock star dentist and they're in great hands. High five docs. That is something we need from you. Then we loop. Hygienist, you've just been edified. You've been given the information.

Your job now is to take that information and either schedule right then if you're, if that's your practice protocol or take them upfront with that exact information. This handoff is paramount. I can't tell you when I'm in offices, I sit as a little fly on the wall watching everything go on. I hear this awesome handoff from doctor. I see our hygienist write it down on the route slip or wherever you choose to write it, message it, whatever you choose to do in your practice. I'm big on having something that has to be filled in so we don't miss these boxes.

Then we walk up front and we're like, okay, front desk. Here we go. Cure is ready to go. We'll see you later. Cause you're busy and you're behind and you don't even say anything that doctor just said to you. Darn it. We just lost an opportunity right there. So now the front office is like, okay, we'll see you later. And then they're like, did you get them scheduled back? No, I didn't even know they had treatment. So this handoff hygienist is crucial and you guys are the best of the best of the best at it.

or you're the worst of the worst. It's one of the two. So let's get you to be the best of the best at this. So that's why I like a route slip. That's why I like something that's written. I don't care how you do it. You can use a reusable route slip. You can use a blue note message. I don't care, but it has to be a template of those items. Otherwise it gets messy and sloshy. The goal should be that this patient knows exactly what they're coming back for, when they should come back and how much time they need to come back for. I promise you, if you will do this handoff.

The Dental A Team (10:13.42)

and make it your own, that's fine. I don't care how you do it. I don't care. I just care that you get these key pieces in it. If you will do this, your case acceptance will be increased. We won't have patients slipping through the crack and we'll be able to give them the best dental care possible. So then going up front, you literally say exactly what, what doctor said, Hey friend office, this is Kiera. So doctor did find some treatment on her and the great news is she's an awesome hands and doctor's going to do amazing work with her.

Doctor would like to get her back for the upper right for that crown and that filling. That's what she was mostly concerned about. Doctor would like to see her in two weeks for about two hours. I've already got her cleaning scheduled. And Kiera, what questions do you have for me? I've got nothing. Thanks so much. Awesome, Kiera. You are in great hands with the front office. Say their name. They're going to take amazing care of you. And I can't wait to see you back at your next cleaning. Hi, Jenice. You take off and right there front office. Just got the handoff to pick it up to schedule perfectly from there.

So hygienists do this, you edified the front office, you told them that they're great. So you left this patient in great hands. You also re -edified our doctor, reminding them that they're at the best place possible and you gave all the information. So now it's easy to schedule. Hygienists, you are a pivotal piece. You are like a cornerstone in this formula. You're the one who gets the information from the patient to hand off to the doctor. You're the one who gets the information from the doctor to hand off to the front office. You are literally this hinge between doctor, front office, doctor and patient.

you hinge into areas that are pivotal to the patient experience and the patient success. So try it out. Listen back to this podcast, deep dive on it, role play. I can't wait to hear it. You guys are going to do incredible. Hi, Janice. You are paramount and so, so, so valuable in these handoffs. So try it out. Let us know how it goes. And if you guys need help, we do this in practices. We role play it with you guys via zoom or in person and help you guys really dial this verbage in because at the end of the day,

I believe great case acceptance comes from great verbiage. It's all about our confidence and it's about the way we say things, making it easy for patients to say yes. All right guys, as always, thanks for listening. I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team Podcast.

The Dental A Team (12:22.505)

wraps it up for another episode of the Dental A Team podcast. Thank you so much for listening and we'll talk to you next time.

#885: Perks of Being an Associate Dentist

Episode 885

mercredi 4 septembre 2024 • Duration 22:43

Kiera joins Haley Schultz on The Dental Download podcast to talk about maximizing associate dentistry. They discuss how to go about learning about numbers, overhead, meeting cadence, leadership and more, as well as the Dental A-Team’s educational resource for new dental school grads.

Episode resources:

Listen to episode 654, Behind the Curtain of Dentistry

Tune Into DAT’s Monthly Webinar

Practice Momentum Group Consulting

Transcript:

Kiera Dent (00:00.91)

Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera, and I am so excited because I actually did an amazing podcast with Haley from Dental Download, and it was all about associates, and I really feel like you guys are going to love it. And so I wanted to actually do a crossover episode on our podcast, so I really hope you guys enjoy. It was all about associates, getting you guys a ton of perks, coming out of school. I think it's great for you guys, and I hope you really enjoy it.

Haley Schultz

All right, hello, everyone. Welcome back for another episode. I know last time I had you on, we talked a lot about kind of the business side of dentistry and a lot of what you do with improving practices. But today I thought we could talk more about kind of advice for people that are going in as associates. So maybe they're not owners yet, but how can they maximize that time to kind of be prepared for ownership? So I'd love kind of your opinion. So if someone is going in as an associate for their first time at an office,

Kiera Dent (01:20.878)

Thank you.

Kiera Dent (01:33.806)

Thank you.

Haley Schultz (01:39.466)

What are some things that they can do or maybe what should they be trying to learn from the owner to get themselves prepared for ownership down the line?

Hey, I'm so glad you asked this question because I did work at Midwestern University's dental college for three years in Arizona and I just want to like plant a seed and then I'll answer your question. So planting the seed is I've talked to so many owner doctors. I know the students and I feel like sometimes what students do because they're in such a learning phase, right? I worked with hundreds of them and so many of them told me Kiera.

I know you told me this before, but I really wish I would have just taken the plunge into ownership. Initially, I was so afraid to do it, but really like an associateship is, it is beautiful, but I think it's kind of like dental school, right? You're D1, D2, D3, D4. It's almost like you guys have this path of D1, two, three, four, associateship, and then I'll become ready for it, or even residency associateship, then I'm ready for ownership. And I think it's similar. I mean, we don't have children. You can use this example. I've heard it many times of...

You're never really ready when you get married. You're never really ready for children, but you jump in and you know you're going to be able to figure it out and we learn it along the way. So I just want to plant a seed. Um, almost every single owner I've ever talked to asking about their associate path. They all have told me, I wish I would have just straight on into ownership. So I'm just going to plant some seeds out there. It does not mean you need to do it because I know it can feel scary, but maybe just like percolate on that a little bit. So if you do elect to, cause I think most people go into associateship cause you feel like.

I'm not prepared. And I want to say that most dental students, I'm saying most, you know yourself, so go for it what it is. But most dental students are actually more prepared than they think they are. You don't have as much like quote unquote, real life experience. And so I think the, the part that feels daunting is you don't really know how to like run a team. You don't know how to do the billing aspect of it. You don't know how it's, it's the nuances of running a business. But what I want to let you know is most associates in that they're super proactive, just like some of those students in school.

Kiera Dent (03:38.094)

owning a business is still gonna feel very daunting when you do get to that point. So just throwing those ideas out there, like the pieces you don't know about ownership that you're scared about, it's gonna hit you when you do buy the practice regardless. So, but if I was saying like, okay, I know I wanna go into an associateship, I know I wanna go in and I wanna own, basically I'm gonna take this time as like my mini residency in business. That's how I would treat this as an associate of.

But that doesn't mean you're, I mean, cause you're also trying to learn like, Oh, I got to get my hand skills up and I've got to get my speed up and I've got to figure out how to work with an assistant. I think there's that piece that is beautiful that an associateship does allow you to do. But on the flip side of that, if you're going to go be an associate, I would definitely go learn all the billing and all the front office and go sit with the biller and say, Hey, I'm Haley. I have no clue what I'm doing here. I want to learn how to submit claims and just sit with them. They'll laugh at you. They'll giggle with you and be like, I have no idea what I'm doing.

teach me how to do this, and then you actually submit claims. You actually call on the insurance plans. You actually answer the phone and schedule a patient. You actually go through and you present a treatment plan with the treatment coordinator. You listen to them. Listening and observing is different than doing. And so I really would just take it as like, that's my mini residency because the business aspect is going to be the part that's going to rock your world of managing the team, of reading the books, getting the PNL.

I would talk to your owner doctor and say, hey, I'm super intrigued by business. Can you teach me? Like, I want to see how you look at your P &L. How do you talk to your bookkeeper? They might be willing to share. And if they're not, then hey, rock on. Come talk to me and I'll show you how to do a P &L. But really, I think that that's the pieces that are going to maximize you. You've got to learn the numbered aspects of the KPIs, the overhead, the bookkeeping, financial, the legal aspect. Like, that's the whole business side. And then the flip side is the billing, the office management.

how we run our meetings, what's the cadence. Those are, I think are the two pieces in addition to getting your hand skills up that really is, I think a great way for you to maximize your associateship if you elect to go that route. But remember sitting in someone's house, like think of us growing up in our parents homes. We lived in a home. We saw our parents pay the mortgage. We saw them pay the bills. So we saw it, but until you have that ownership piece on you, it is a magnitude that I don't think there's really a way to prepare you. You like,

Kiera Dent (05:55.662)

It's up to here at your neck of like, oh my gosh, I have so much debt. And so just realizing that I haven't found a great simulator to prepare you for real life, just like our parents couldn't prepare us for marriage. Like we watch our parents with marriage. We watch tons of people with it, but living a day in and day out, I think there is an element that really you just have to jump in and then gain the mental stamina and grit. I think is the best advice of how can I manage those emotions, master my emotions to ride the tidal waves of life and not get thrown off.

Yeah, that's great insight. And I'm curious in terms of if you do work with doctors right out of school that are going into ownership, are you working with many people right when they are getting started on they just bought their practice from ground zero or are you mostly having clients come in years into ownership and like, okay, we need to turn things around, we're struggling with this?

Yeah. So, Haley, I'm glad you asked and you actually inspired me on our last podcast. I realized our consulting company didn't really have something that I felt was affordable for new grads. And I felt like that was just a zone. And we know my model is I just want to serve and help as many dentists as we possibly can to like love life and enjoy the aspects. So we actually just created a part of our consulting that is way more budget friendly, but gives the foundations.

of the practice, it's more of a kind of like there is some DIY, but also you get massive access to the consultants. It is more in a group setting mastermind style. So you're learning from other doctors. You can ask your questions. We almost walk you through, not almost, we do. We walk you through like the 12 systems of how to set up your practice based on the months of the year to like get you in this good place. But it's way, way, way more budget friendly because I can do it on more of a math scale. And then when you're ready, you can add on calls and whatnot, because I just noticed that was a gap.

And I feel like it's a gap in a lot of consulting because it's like kind of like financial advisors and me and Ryan Isaac, like we talk about this all the time. Like dentists, when you get out of school, you need a financial advisor to make these decisions, but financial advisors usually don't take you until you're making over a million. Well, same thing with consultants. Like we don't want to deal with they, you don't have the money. That just seems ludicrous to me. Cause then like you said, you're in hot water and now we're trying to bail you out of it. So, um, I'm actually really excited. We have.

Kiera Dent (08:11.118)

quite a few new like brand new doctors in there. We've got some existing doctors too, because I didn't want to just like only have newbie docs. Like we do have some advanced doctors. So, and it's just been really, really fun to see it evolve, but the doctors are loving it because it's doctor and team. And we'll talk about it more at the end, but truly any person who comes from this podcast, just mention it. You guys are getting 25 % off your monthly fee for life because I want students to feel confident owning practices.

I want you to feel like you've got resources of a consultant on demand basically, because you're going to have a ton of questions. I know what you're going to go through. And I just saw that was a gap. So, math kudos to you of just planting the seed. And then our team went to work and we built a product that is beyond beautiful. And you get nine hours of consultant access per week or per month, excuse me, which right now most clients are only getting an hour and a half of time from a consultant. So we tried to just like...

maximize it. Yes, it's in a group setting, but I believe that there's a massive, massive, massive advancement. Think about in class, students raise their hand and they ask questions that you never would have thought of, but you at least get the answer to it, similar to our consulting, and you still can have access to answer all your questions. I just thought that that was a gap, so we decided to roll that out, and so 100%. Then there's also a lot of clients that when you're going to buy a practice, I think this is really important to note.

you usually see the cost of the practice and so you go to the bank to get that. And I recommended for years, ask for a little, like I'm talking 50 to 100K more of working capital if you can. And that's what you invest in CE and consulting and equipment because that's going to propel your business forward. It's not the actual line item of my practices as much. Tack it on and say, I'm hiring a consultant or convince the practice you're buying to hire a consultant. So it goes into the roll up fee.

Those are the things to do so that way you have the funds available when you really need the help the most.

Haley Schultz (10:07.85)

That's awesome that you created that program. That's exactly like there was definitely a need for it. So I'm excited to know that that's available now for people. But when it comes to again, an associate perspective, and I mean, it can just be anything you're seeing with your clients for if they need to increase production, if that's one of their problems that maybe they're not producing enough. Do you feel like the time needs to be

Yeah.

Haley Schultz (10:31.082)

towards clinical skills, actual CE, or is a lot of time it more communication skills that people need to really increase that production.

Hmm. I think that there's gosh like like tenfold I think there's a lot of things that can go into it and so I'll just kind of like hit the high points number one I think given a lengthy amount of time Students and new doctors tend to take that amount of time. So my biggest piece is timing yourself There's these cool little blocks on Amazon and you can get your assistant to do it where you can like wipe it and it can be clean But you can actually flip the timer once you walk into the operatory and see how long it's taking you to actually prep the crown. I

in addition to going and getting the exams and see how long your exams are taking you and just start timing yourself. It's kind of like when we train for like marathons or you're training for your race times. And if we're not tracking our metrics, you're actually not able to improve that. So I found like one of the biggest pieces of increasing production is just being able to shave off one, two, three, four minutes. That's going to radically help you. If you can shave five or 10 minutes for every procedure in a day, you're actually opening up space to add in one or two more procedures.

and you're getting that dollar per hour production up. That's also gonna track you in on your dollar per hour for production. And so, not on the, don't get wild on me. Let's not go for our gross. Let's go for our true like office fees of like what the insurance will pay you. So go off that number. But when you actually start tracking what your dollar per hour is, most associate doctors come out and they're producing about 500 per hour. So like trying to get us into that $4 ,000 a day.

But if you can get that up to even $600 an hour or up to $700 an hour and you productively schedule your day, that radically will increase that production. And so, and then also having confidence in yourself and pushing yourself, like you're going to get into a bind. And that's where I think communication skills come into play. If you know, I can push myself on my procedures and I can get my hand skills faster. I just need to have the word ninja skills to communicate to a patient in case something goes awry. Guys, it's dentistry. You are a real life artist working in someone's mouth.

Kiera Dent (12:34.83)

own that and be okay with him. Be like, you know what? Things just didn't quite go as planned. Push the next patient down. You learn, but don't get scared of that because you're learning. It's like a child who falls off a bike. They're not, they need to get back on that bike and keep riding. Same thing with you. So I really feel like tracking your production per hour, timing yourself and making sure it's there. And then figuring out like what takes you a long time. Is it the crown prep? Is it because you're not using your assistants and so many associates right out of school don't use their assistants. Like I am an assistant.

Let me help you. Let me hand you the instruments because it's crazy. We think like, I'll just grab it. It's faster. No, if you can keep your hands right in the mouth and you've got a really good assistant that constantly is sending it to you and they're right there, your production is going to go up exponentially because, and then also have your assistant. Like I recommend associates going into a practice and find the most seasoned assistant and ask them like, Hey, when do I need to go to an exam? Like almost have them guide you.

of when you need to be leaving the room. Cause that assistant knows your most optimal time. Like get out of here. I'm going to take an X -ray and then get back in here in five minutes. And we're going to keep rocking and rolling. So I oftentimes, my opinion is when associates go work for practices to give that associate the most seasoned assistant. I know the doctor never wants to give their perfect assistant up, but that assistant is going to force an associate to move faster, show you how to really get the rope. So I think there's like multifaceted. Usually it's not CE right out of school. You might be struggling with like,

sensitivity on that, just get your owner doctor to come in and assist you, or you go assist your owner doctor and figure out like, how do they actually put the band then? How do they cure? When are they doing these things and pay attention to almost their efficiency flow? And I think if associates will also do that, like, I know it sounds weird to go assist them, but you're watching to see how quickly they move and when do they go do the exams? And I think you working with your owner doctor a little bit more can really increase that production up for you. So tracking your numbers.

figuring out how much time it really does take you, shaving it off one or two minutes every time to just get it a little bit more efficient, seeing that owner doctor and then getting those beautiful communication skills with your patient of like, it was a day today and this is just real life dentistry and real life and thank you for waiting. Never apologize. I think a good phrase is like, thank you so much for waiting. I really appreciate it and let's get rocking and rolling. Don't be like, I'm so sorry, I'm so, cause you put yourself in a wrong phase.

Kiera Dent (14:55.566)

Thank you so much for waiting. Let's get rocking and rolling. I always give my best patient care to every patient and then figure out where you went awry that day and make it better the next day is what I'd recommend.

I love all those tips. And when it comes to communication skills in terms of like case acceptance, I know a lot of offices now have treatment coordinators anyways, so the doctors aren't so much like selling treatment anymore in a lot of cases, but at the end of the day, like the patients want to ask the doctor questions. So what are some things that you recommend people kind of hone in on when it comes to discussing treatment with patients?

Mm -hmm.

Kiera Dent (15:32.59)

This will be my favorite thing that I'll ever give everyone. Doctors, remember you are selling treatment and they're buying your confidence. So many doctors push off like, oh, it's a TC. And the TC's are like, no, no, no, you T for me. You've got to get this T'd up for me and you're confident. And you've helped this patient realize this is what they need. So a lot of doctors feel bad because they don't want to give bad news. And I'm like, you're not giving bad news. You're just educating them what the state of the mouth is in. That patient, they made choices.

they chose to drink the diet sodas, they chose to like sip on this, like those are choices they made. Educate them and then always end it with like, and the great news is we're going to be able to get you healthy, I'm here for you. And then this is what I say of your best case acceptance tip and I call it NDTR is my perfect handoff. And I think in my, what I love and associates love this is it kind of gives you a framework of how do I do my exam? So I recommend comprehensive exam, walk them through it.

tell them everything that's going on and then you do NDTR. You can remember New Dentist, Tough Road, Newter, Nevada Dentist, Totally Rock. Like I've heard all the things, Never Date the Rookie. Like however you want to remember this, I don't care. But someone says Newter and that just makes me giggle. But it's next visit, the date to return, how much time is needed and make sure their re -care is scheduled. So at the end of it, and I call like putting a bow on your treatment plan package.

And so it's like, all right, Haley, I want to get you back. Like the great news is we're going to be able to get you healthy. And I'm excited to get your mouth healthy and clean again. So I want to see you back in about two weeks. We're going to get started on the upper right. We're going to get, take care of that crown and that root canal for you. It's going to take me about two hours for that. And I want to make sure you've got your cleaning scheduled. What questions do you have for me? Um, I want to make sure you're super confident. I didn't ask, do you have questions? I told them what needs to happen. They're super clear because oftentimes patients feel like.

Well, where are we starting? And a lot of new grads, especially really get funky on their, on their exam. Cause like in school, someone else does it. They bring them back. Like they have to come back. They're here for like 500 hours. Cause you guys have to get all the checks on it. And so in private practice, they have to know where you're starting. You have to know where you're starting and you'll get faster at that. So worst case scenarios, you just start in the upper right. Always like, okay, I go up for right. Like that's always my go -to until I get better at like where my chief concern is. But it's, I want to see you back in about two weeks.

Kiera Dent (17:52.654)

Or if you know your schedule is wide open, I want to see you back in about a week. It's going to take me two hours for this. Please don't underestimate or overestimate. Like let's try and get that dialed in. This is where you also time yourself. So you're more confident on giving that timing. But if you will do that pretty bow and your team takes that up and they use that perfect bow, your treatment coordinator now can say, all right, Haley, let's get you scheduled. You're going to come back with Dr. Schultz. She's incredible. She wants you back in one week. So I'm going to schedule you on Wednesday at this time. She needs two hours for the crown, the root canal.

and then they'll go over the finances. Doctors, you are convincing this patient, they're buying your confidence. That's what they're buying. They're not buying the crown, they're not buying the root canal. And I do think you having that confidence and not like, well, you know, you kind of had this. And I'll say a lot of females tend to be a little more passive on their diagnosing. And I just want to give the female doctors the bike, girls, like we can do this and you are totally capable and like, don't feel bad about it. Cause I think we have these empathetic hearts.

Go in and diagnose confidently because they're buying your confidence is what they're buying. And looking at you, are you the person who can truly make my mouth healthy again? That's what I'm buying. And I'm looking at you of like, are you sure? And the more confident you doctors are, men have it too, don't worry. But I just watch it and Haley, you're a female, so I think I'm talking more to you than anyone else. But like truly, I hope that all doctors have the confidence in themselves. Another question is like, hey, how long have you been practicing dentistry? Four years.

You guys have been practicing for four years. Don't tell them you're brand new out of school. Like they don't need to know that move along. It's fine. In a year, you're going to look back at your treatment and be like, wow, that was terrible. It was the best you did at that time. And you're always going to judge yourself as you move on. And that's how you make yourself better. So like, don't feel bad about it. You can always fix it and you move on and you just make it better and better and better every single day.

That was good advice as well. And before we wrap up, I know you've already given us like so many great pearls, but I like to give people a chance for just like any closing thoughts in terms of advice for dentists that are just getting started.

Kiera Dent (19:53.934)

when you have way more skills than you think you do. And I think like having that confidence within you, you went to a great school and you're going to make mistakes. And I remember, so I started with a dental, a dentist, she was straight out of school and we started our first practice and we took our practice from 500 ,000 to 2 .4 million in nine months as a brand new grad. So I like to paint that story, not that you need to do that, but I love to hear what's possible because then you can expand what's possible for you. And I remember there was one night we were sitting there and she,

bombed a root canal. Like I'm telling you, it was a bomb. Like we broke off a file. Like it was awful. And I remember we were sitting there at the end of the day and I said, you're better than this. And I remember she was like, wow, you're like cut throat when she's down. But I think it was one of the best things I ever said because she is better than that. And she knew she's better than that. And so because like she made that one mistake, she could have let that haunt her or she can make it like make her better. And so you will make mistakes. And that's part of being a dentist.

but it's how quickly can you recover from that mistake and make it better and realizing nothing is permanent in dentistry. Like everything can be fixed, everything can be resolved. Like most of the time we're probably not gonna kill a patient. So our risk isn't super high. And I just really wanna give you that vote of confidence that you are well -trained, you are going to learn, you are going to make mistakes and that's part of the journey, but the faster you can learn from that mistake and do better and be better.

the better you're going to be for those patients. And to me, I feel like as a dentist, this isn't about you. It's about you being the best for your patients and giving them the best clinical care. And when you remove yourself from it and your ego and realize I got to be the best for this patient, it gives you that motivation to rise up, to do the best treatment plans, to give them the confidence of when they need to come back, to realize like, if they don't come to me and I know I'm a good dentist, they're going to go to someone else who might not be as good of a dentist. And I owe it to my patients to be giving them the best dentistry possible.

We only have our 32, which most of us only have 28 teeth. We get one set and you as a dentist, I want you to take that on and realize you are the best for those patients. Rise up to the level you're capable of and believe in yourself more than you give yourself credit. Cause gosh, I've seen a lot of rough dentistry and most students coming out of school are not that way. You've been trained, grow, evolve and realize you've got so much potential in you. Don't give up. Even when you have that bad case, do better, be better and come in tomorrow and be better.

Haley Schultz

Thank you so much and thank you again for your time today.

Kiera Dent

Of course, thank you. And as always, thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team Podcast.

#876: Have a Slam-Dunk September

Episode 876

mercredi 14 août 2024 • Duration 15:38

Kiera encourages practices to send out end-of-year benefit letters now, just in time for the slow-down in September. As a bonus, she includes the lingo those letters can include.

Episode resources:

Tune Into DAT’s Monthly Webinar

Practice Momentum Group Consulting

Reserve your spot at Master Momentum 2024!

Transcript:

Kiera Dent (00:00.634)

Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and welcome I hope you guys are doing so incredible and I hope that you guys just remember how great life is for you and That we're so lucky and blessed to be living in the day that we are and that we're able to be a part of dentistry And it's kind of crazy to be podcasting again. I took a little bit of time for myself I had some things come up and so it's kind of fun to be back to the podcast world and just mad kudos to our team So you guys today I wanted to give you a quick tip

to hopefully help you not have a suck -tem -ber as it has been known in the industry for years. I have an office, shout out to them, they know who they are and they call themselves the slam dunk September. And so how do you prevent that suck -tem -ber now to ensure that you have that slam dunk September? And if it's not September for you, maybe it's October, but typically around fall, things tend to be a little bit more slow. People are getting back to school.

The holidays are coming up and so people are kind of in this funky zone. feel like September is really that like shifting. It's a shifting from summer to fall. It's a shifting from being in summer, going back to school. It's a shifting from summertime into end of your holidays. And so how can we ensure that you guys are truly successful and set up for that? And it's a very simple tip that I think is so relevant for you just to put on your radar and to remind you. And sometimes you may have heard

Sometimes you'll hear things on the podcast that maybe we've talked about in the past I try really hard to give you guys new podcasts all the time But I think one of the most important things is just for us to remember things that we know to set them on automatic cadences So we don't have to remember as much and that we can become very proficient and efficient are the things that I like to do So before we get into that, I just want to say thank you for being a podcast listener. Thank you for being a part of my life Thank you for being people that I know rally in dentistry and are here and committed to

making changes into dentistry. And I just want to ask you to please go leave that review for us. Share this with a friend, put it in a Facebook place, on a post, in an Instagram question, share it with people when they ask questions. You guys know you can always go to TheDentalATeam.com, click on our podcast page and be sure to search any of your questions, any of your topics. And I guarantee you in the almost 900 episodes we have that there will be answers and solutions for you. If you're like me and you prefer it to be a little bit easier.

Kiera Dent (02:20.642)

Be sure to just email us [email protected]. We can help you, we can reach out with you, you can join our family. We have virtual, we've got group, and we've got one -on -one consulting options for you. So really trying to accommodate all the budgets out there and all the styles and preferences and just really wanting to make sure you feel supported. I know the world can feel a little funny right now. The world can feel a little uncertain. What is going to happen with the election? What's going to happen with our patients? What's happening with insurances?

What's happening with the turnover? Am I going to have a team? I think all those questions really having a coach to guide you to give that guidance. I know I lean on my coach all the time and that's honestly why I'm obsessed with consulting our practices and being on coaching calls today. Just being able to help guide them and give them that sounding board and giving them tips and advice and shortcuts really I think is a helpful thing. And so that's really what we're about at Dental A Team. And if that inspires you, if you feel like maybe there is an easier path we've helped.

offices from startup to selling to transitions to multi -practice ownership. So whatever your path, whatever your journey is, Dental A Team's not a one size fits all. Dental A Team is here to support you, your team and your ultimate goals and desires. And we do it from people who have been there, done that and done it successfully many times over. And so really that's our goal. That's our love. And that's our obsession is you giving you and your team the happiness, the ease. Now that doesn't come without you having to put in the work too. Some people just think that we're a magic diet pill and we're not.

but we do try to eliminate the stress and make it easy for you. today, like I said, let's help you guys not have that September. Let's help you have that amazing September. And one of the easiest things is to, think it's so funny as a society, we send our end of year benefit letters at the end of the year, right? And I thought about it. Most people have already been to the dentist come August, especially mid August. We are past that six month mark. July was

A lot of people's benefits are either partially used, some of them are maxed, but most of them still have some insurance remaining. And I think it's so silly that we send out our end of year benefit letters in October. I did the exact same thing, but then I started thinking, well, if we have a hard September and we're going to be sending out end of year benefit letters in October, could we not combine the two and be able to, utilize that? And so, just something to think about. I don't think there's anything wrong with sending at least seven letters and also incorporating

Kiera Dent (04:40.886)

Phone calls in it as well kind of like our reactivation of two two two. So two weeks two months Excuse me two days two weeks two months is how we like to reactivate patients You could do the same thing with reactivation and we could be sending it out say in August September October November And then we really start hitting it in November harder But something I found when I was sending letters is my October November December are pretty darn busy And it was my September that was very light and so why not send these

mid August. We're going to try and get this released early for you guys. So you're catching this podcast right at the time and sending out these email blasts of a use it or lose it or early bird gets the worm or let's schedule on your time schedule, not when it's packed. Or why don't you take advantage of the benefits that your insurance gave you instead of having it go back to your insurance company or Hey, our schedules get really, really busy or specifically targeting certain cases right now where you can go through your own scheduled treatment plans and look for them.

and see what you can do for them to be able to get them in on your schedules. And I just think it's something where we, I think end of year benefit letters came because our September's were slow. And so I'm like, why not be proactive? Why not set in our schedule that in August every year we start sending letters. And so there are a couple letter templates that we've been doing for some of our offices. And of course our offices get VIP. We share everything with them on the podcast. I will definitely give you guys a sample of it for sure, but.

Like one blast could be like dear patient name. Can you believe it's the end of the year is already approaching Halloween will be here before you know it and we're going to be into fall spice and pumpkin spice and making this up because this one's specifically for the New Year's ball drop. That's a little bit closer to end of year, but you could be saying like right now like truly pumpkin spice seasons about to be upon us knowing that time flies when we're all having so much fun. We wanted to take a moment to remind you that your dental care is a top priority. If you're seeing our practice as a patient with dental insurance now is the time to get

Most insurance plans renew annually, that's what the air quotes, renew annually in January and run on a use it or lose it motto. Don't waste what you've got. If you have a cleaning to reserve or maybe dental treatment that's been recommended, let's help you find the best day and time to use what you've got left on your insurance plan. Like we said, pumpkin spice is going to be here before we know it. Call and reserve your next appointment with us. We want to make sure that we can accommodate your schedule before our schedules get packed. Look forward to seeing you soon. regards, best regards to your dental office.

Kiera Dent (07:04.824)

So something as simple, I love to correlate my emails with the holidays that are coming around. So it could be like, no tricks, just treats. Let's get you scheduled today. Or you could do something around like, it's pumpkin spice day. Be sure to use up your benefits. Or you can say like, it's time to give like gratitude. Could you imagine what your life would be like without teeth? We get to smile, we get to speak, we get to eat. Like all these things like Thanksgiving wouldn't be the same without our teeth.

let's be sure we're taking care of them. So you really can play into some fun things, make them fun letters that your patients will be reading, and do something where, again, we're doing a benefit. I understand that it's going to benefit you as a practice for September, but truly as a patient wasting money on insurance, I think is the dumbest thing that they can ever do. Like that is Kiera's rant where I will go off on that because I just think it's, it's so unfortunate. People pay their premiums, people pay for their insurance and yet we don't use our insurance and

What happens is that money goes back to the insurance companies and that patient who paid their premiums, they're not able to maximize it. Now, if your patients have already maxed out, that's okay. Depending upon the state that you're in, some offices, again, it's state laws, so be sure to look into your state laws. Some stay in network, so they'll still honor the insurance fees. And if you're a state that does that, I always tell the patients like, hey, your insurance company gets to change every single year. They get to be doing things differently. And I would hate for

to legitimately have them come up with a policy and a plan next year that doesn't cover the treatment. We know this year, right here, right now, that this is what your insurance company is covering. Let's maximize the discounts that you still get. I explained to patients the difference between dental insurance and medical insurance. Dental insurance is like a coupon. They give us a bucket of money is another way to describe it. And once that money is gone, that's all we can use.

But medical insurance, we pay our deductible and then they cover the rest. so dental insurance is very different and we want to make sure we maximize it, utilize it, and then also get the discounts and benefits that come along with it. Because again, it's just a cute fun plan and let's make sure that we're getting everything on sale. Prices do go up next year for us and also for insurances, not your amount that they're going to cover, but the differences of what they will cover. And they often do change that from year to year. So we know today, we know we've got treatment, more treatments coming next year.

Kiera Dent (09:23.79)

So let's maximize and utilize those benefits. Now, if you're a state that doesn't do that and you actually go into your office fees, totally fine. We let them know we've maximized and utilized all of your benefits. Let's make sure we get the treatment done today because treatment will come up and we don't want it to stack up on you and it will never be cheaper or more predictable than it is today. So really helping your patients realize like we're proactive. I remember when I was dating my husband, I drove a 97 Honda Civic, it was cherry red.

I called her Rosie Anne named after my mower on my family's lawn business. I mowed lawns all growing up and I named my mower Rosie Anne. She was red as well and hence my car became Rosie Anne. I remember my husband, I was in college and like money just felt tight and I remember my window broke one time and I told my husband, said, I just don't know if I want to fix it. And he gave me something that I thought of so much. said, Kiera, always fix it when it happens because more things will break down.

our teeth are like, they're not like cars, but they are continually breaking down. Our bodies are continually breaking down. Cars are breaking down. and he said, always fix it because otherwise it just becomes more expensive. And I thought about that. Think about my window would break and then, you know, the AC breaks and then the clutch goes out and then the windshield wiper needs to be replaced in, you know, when we do it in small chunks, it doesn't seem as drastic, but think about our patients, the patients who come and get their small little fillings fixed. it's, know, a couple hundred dollars here.

versus our patients who have put off dental care for so long, and then they come in and they have these giant treatment plans that are 30 ,000 plus to get their mouths back to where they were. I think being proactive and taking care of them while they're small is something that we can do as a huge benefit to our patients. so helping our patients understand like, no, we wanna help you be proactive because it's smaller, we get to preserve more tooth. And I don't know, I have such a passion for teeth, clearly, that's why I do what I do.

But just helping our patients realize like our teeth like I said really truly are I think the It's funny. I say the mouthpiece to your soul, but it really is it's the way we smile It's the way we communicate the way we eat and enjoy food without our teeth It really would make it quite hard and the confidence that's there with it as well And so I think even if your patients might not prioritize it as much as you do Helping them see that like hey as problems come up because they're going to continue

Kiera Dent (11:48.396)

Our bodies are going to continue to get older. Our teeth are going to continue to age with us. And so let's be proactive on it now. So that's really how I'm able to help patients. And I think as long as we're not basing it on insurance, we're using insurance as a coupon. We're using it as a way to help our patients get the treatment done that's necessary. But at the end of the day, they're worth it. And being able to have that confidence, being able to have their teeth long term. Jason, my husband, his grandma.

gave him some great advice. She was much older and she said one of the greatest things she's so grateful she did for herself was to take care of her teeth. She said, Jason, I want you to floss every night and I want you to brush your teeth. And she died many years later. She was well into her nineties and she had all of her original teeth. And she said she was so grateful because she was still able to maintain a high quality of life. She's able to still smile with confidence. And she said she was so grateful.

that she was able to take care of her teeth. And that's something that she told all of her grandkids to do is make sure you prioritize and take care of your teeth. And so again, I think hearing from wiser generations than us, people that have lived through things, if as we get older, to be able to maintain and sustain our teeth, to be able to take care of them now, to be able to help our patients take care of them while they're small still, small little fillings, different things, really is such a blessing that we can give their older selves as well. And so,

I think right now this is a great time for us to be sending out those end of year benefit letters to help our patients know that now is the time. Let's get you in before our schedules get swamped and we're not able to accommodate you. And then also schedulers, make sure you're proactive. Let's not just throw in any patient because guess what? When everybody wants to come in, we get to pick and choose who we schedule. That's called supply and demand. And if we don't have as much supply of appointment spots, then the demand is for the patients that are going to ultimately

need it and also we prioritize different procedures in there as well. And this is why we start telling them in August, mid August, come in, we want to help you. So when they're calling me in December, my schedule is full. We're not making our lives crazy because I believe that everybody gets to make choices and choices do have consequences and rewards. And so let's reward our early bird patients. Let's get the word out. Let's share them with

Kiera Dent (13:56.514)

That way you and your practice have a slam dunk September, not a September. I would love to hear from you. I'd love to hear how your slam dunk September is going. I'd love to hear things that you're doing to be proactive. Some people are throwing in Invisalign days. Other people are looking for back to school specials that they can do to really start pumping those. But I believe practices who are proactive and prepared are the practices who thrive with ease.

Those who don't are the ones that are reactive and they're always struggling. So which type of a practice are you going to be? Let me know, email me in [email protected]. And as always, thanks for listening. I'll catch you next time on The Dental A Team Podcast.

#786: Writing Ads to Attract Your Dream Team 101

Episode 786

mercredi 17 janvier 2024 • Duration 18:08

Hiring a fantastic team member starts with writing the perfect ad. Tiff and Dana share tips on how to approach writing and distributing ads to hire. They touch on creating job descriptions, including core values, teasing culture style, and more.

Episode resources:

Reach out to Tiff and Dana

Reserve your spot at Master Momentum 2024!

#785: Gain Business Momentum!

Episode 785

mardi 16 janvier 2024 • Duration 30:49

January is a tactical month, and the Dental A-Team is lending a helping hand. On January 26, attend Master Momentum 2024, a free webinar for dentists. Attendees will learn to build a master plan for maximum momentum, set goals, and get your team on board to increase practice profitability. Sign up here to attend the webinar from 8 to 10 a.m.

In this episode, Kiera and Tiff tease out what will be touched on at Master Momentum 2024, and give tactical tips for viewers to be aware of heading into it, including how to master your time, what to do when a goal isn’t tracking, and a ton more.

Episode resources:

Reach out to Tiff and Kiera

#784: Differentiating Between an OM and a Personal Assistant

Episode 784

jeudi 11 janvier 2024 • Duration 28:33

Kiera breaks down the difference between these two positions that are game-changing in the best way. She talks about tips to hiring, what to consider for assigning tasks, and more.

Episode resources:

Reach out to Tiff and Dana

#783: The Magic Sauce to Excellent Hires

Episode 783

mercredi 10 janvier 2024 • Duration 20:28

Tiff and Dana discuss practices learning to fine-tune their hiring methods from the get-go. Specifically, hiring team members with your practice’s core values in mind. In this episode, they review the biggest hurdle to get over in creating core values (and using them), and the biggest successes in using core values to hire.

Episode resources:

#782: How to Go From To Do to DONE

Episode 782

mardi 9 janvier 2024 • Duration 18:48

At the start of a new year, it’s easy to get lost in all the to-do lists. In this episode, Kiera encourages listeners to remember to give themselves grace. When you’re overwhelmed, it’s important to remember to take a breath and consider three approaches:

Prioritize one thing
Utilize your team effectively
Be intentional with your time

Kiera breaks down each of these steps and reminds everyone to take a well-deserved breath.

Episode resources:

Reach out to Tiff and Dana

#781: How To Hire the Right Person

Episode 781

jeudi 4 janvier 2024 • Duration 19:56

DAT consultants Tiff and Dana walk listeners through the steps of coming up with the ideal avatar for your next team member. With hiring happening fast right now, it’s important to have a clear plan and expectations in place before you even extend an offer. Tiff and Dana review the following:

Consider what gaps exist in the practice
Have the job description(s) ready
Consider the personalities of interviewees and how they might align with the position
And more!

Episode resources: