Tune Into the Dental A Team Podcast!

Kiera + Mark = Magic!

The two catch up over common struggles they’ve seen in the offices they work with, the patterns and themes they’ve helped solve over and over again. Your dental practice’s problems often lie within culture, operational systemization, or overhead/cashflow control. Good leadership encompasses these three areas, and to be the most effective leader possible, you need to do two things:

1. Set crystal clear expectations for the people who work for/with you
2. Hold them accountable

That doesn’t mean micromanaging. That means attaching yourself to the result, not the process.

It’s time to realize that you’re in the same race as everyone else, and that means there’s an answer and solution for every situation. Let The Dental A-Team help you find those solutions at www.TheDentalATeam.com.

Okay, you’ve listened to episode 69, Time Suck? Time Suck? Let’s Talk Personal Assistants, and you now know you want/need a personal assistant. But what do you actually have them do now that they’re there!? We had a DAT listener reach out and ask that we dive EVEN DEEPER on this topic. You asked and Kiera delivers.

Kiera has a ~ton~ of ideas on the possibilities for a personal assistant:

• Travel. Booking flights, hotels, rental cars.
• Create. New patient forms. Doctor forms. Even your operations manual — have them do the legwork you don’t have time to do.
• Check-off. Even menial tasks like setting hair appointments, massage appointments, doctor appointments. Heck, even getting your car detailed.
• So much more. Listen to this episode for a full list of ideas!

Remember, personal assistants are there to make your life easier, so LET THEM. Kiera’s biggest advice: Meet every Monday with your assistant, list out what you need done for the week...

Everybody has them — those 30 minutes or 60 minutes here and there where things are sloooooow. What is your dental practice supposed to do during September (or Suck-tember) when it’s the slowest time of the year for practices across the nation? Well, how ‘bout a go-to to-do list on your phone or in the back office of all the things you’d like to tackle during the slow days?

Kiera’s here with a bunch of great ideas, including:

• Role play (new patient phone calls, cancellations, perfect hand-offs, etc.)
• Flipping rooms relay races
• Note-taking contests
• Phone call challenge, and much, much more!

There’s always a place for productivity. Take these tips and figure out ways to impact your business for the better, even during down-time.

For more tips and episodes with Kiera, visit www.TheDentalATeam.com 

Getting promoted to a leadership role isn’t all rainbows and sunshine. There’s a lot of hard work that goes into the transition, and in this episode, Kiera talks with Amy Ells, a regional manager out of Canandaigua, New York about what it means to be a successful leader and how a leadership team can best function. The pair dispels a few dental practice myths, including “my practice is different” and “being in a leadership role makes you better than others.”

Remember, a good practice employs a 5-star patient rating AND a 5-star employee rating. Amy is all about that mindset as her practice grows from three to four locations.

Amy joined Finger Lakes Dental Care after completing her degree in Communications with a concentration in Public Relations and a minor in Marketing from SUNY Fredonia. She has been a part of the Finger Lakes Dental Care team since 2008. Amy is a member of the American Association of Dental Office Managers and has been taking...

Ashley Dorn, the wonderful traveling consultant from episode 88, Number One Cure for Dental Burnout, is back! This time, she’s here with a list of five easy-to-implement ways dental assistants and hygienists can get that beloved case acceptance.

Tip #1: Get on the patient’s level — literally.

Tip #2: Break down the verbiage.

Tip #3: Not show and tell, show and discuss. X-rays are really cool, so show them off to your patient! Point things out, maybe even co-diagnose what the issue is.

Tip #4: Reinforce what the doc ordered.

Tip #5: The perfect hand-off (with personalization for style). Time for some NDTR and wishing luck on the patient’s upcoming vacation!

As dental assistants and hygienists, you’re the one really building relationships with patients, and these five tips will perfect your style and earn you your patients’ trust. Plus, Kiera gives bonus tip #6: Don’t speed in Colfax, Washington!

For more information and episodes, visit ...

Kiera breaks down the ugly stepsister of hiring in this episode: firing. Ugh. Everyone hates doing it. But believe it or not, sometimes it’s not the employee’s fault, it’s yours. That’s right. Maybe you didn’t provide clear expectations, or maybe you ignored self assessments. Let Kiera walk you through the process for potentially going separate ways with an employee, including…

• Monthly self-assessments (from the beginning!)
• Verbal warning
• Written warning
• Probationary period with weekly check-ins
• Decision day

No one should be surprised when they’re fired. Give your employees time to improve and try harder. Due diligence gets you far in life.

More tips on successfully running or working in your dental practice? We’re here for you: www.TheDentalATeam.com!

Kristen Shepherd, a dental hygienist with True Dental Care in New Jersey, is proof that this Dental A Team podcast is changing lives for the better! Back in March of this year, she began implementing methods shared on this podcast (see episode #46) to improve her 37% fluoride acceptance rate.

...

BOOM! Now she’s at 97% (some weeks, 100%!!).

In this episode, Kristen walks Kiera through how that happened — the process it took to get there, the magic verbiage she uses now (including a couple roleplay scenarios), and three steps YOU can start using today to slay your dental giant, whatever it may be:

1. Your patient is not a scary person; he or she is there for your help and knowledge
2. Set goals for yourself, whether it’s a 50% acceptance rate with your patients or even just you talking about fluoride to half of your patients, accepting or not
3. Put your fluoride out there on your pre-set tray and hold yourself responsible to bring it up!

Thanks to Kristen for sharing her...

Danielle Kramer is a guru with billing having over 15 years of experience including HMO, FFS, and PPO.

In this episode, she and Kiera talk about how to maximize your billing department’s efforts through acquiring all the necessary information and having hard conversations. Remember, billing specialists should be the go-to person for important finance questions.

Whether you’re a Fee for Service or PPO office, Danielle emphasizes the need for having difficult conversations up front. One office she’s working with has avoided these conversations and it’s led to unpaid balances for over a year (!!!). Mailing letters and notices don’t work; phone calls do. Better yet, have patients pay over the counter before they even leave. Set clear expectations that won’t have you backed into a corner down the road.

It’s all here for you, just press play! More on dental practice magic at www.TheDentalATeam.com. 

It’s tactical practical time! Kiera talks secondary insurance and aging reports, and gives quick goals and tips you can start implementing TODAY. When it comes to benchmarking your 30-60-90-over 90 reports, Kiera recommends the following numbers:

• 0-30 days: High
• 30-60 days: Between 5,000 and 10,000
• 60-90 days: Below $5,000
• Over 90 days: Below $5,000

Now don’t panic. Kiera explains how you can go about decreasing your current numbers. For example, separate out your orthodontist services! Or if you’ve sent accounts to collections, write those accounts off! This episode is full of quick fixes for tackling the beast of AR.

Still intimidated by the billing process? The Dental A-Team can help. Send us a quick email at info@thedentalateam.com. Also check out episode 33, How to Get Paid! Insurance Tips with Donna Dinette.

Lauren Edvalson of Edvalson Marketing is BACK with more marketing advice than ever! This time around she talks about consistency in look between your office, website, and social media. That’s right, your patients aren’t going to appreciate how beautiful your waiting room is if they aren’t impressed by your website from 2004; they won’t even make it to your office! Make sure you put your energy where it can yield results.

Another take-away from this episode is a photographer cheat sheet. Don’t fill your social media and website with stock photos; show off the real you. Check out Lauren’s cheat sheet here. 

Kiera and Lauren also talk the do’s and don’ts of social media. AKA don’t show only sharp instruments and tongues. Think about what your audience wants to see and appreciate. Again, aesthetic!

For more tips and tricks to improve your dentist trade, head over to www.TheDentalATeam.com.