Podcast

In 2017, Ashley Dorn took the trip of a lifetime: She traveled on a dental mission trip to Haiti.

In this episode, Ashley, who’s a traveling consultant and marketing specialist under Kiera’s Dental Consulting, shares what the experience was like and how an 8-year-old Haitan girl changed her outlook on life.

She also chats with Kiera about creative methods her team adopted to cover funding for the trip (hint: fluoride). By the end of this episode, you’ll be feeling inspired to get out and serve others in any capacity!

Ashley and her team attended the trip through Hope Smiles, an organization that provides dental care to countries worldwide. There are many other companies with similar missions, like International Medical Relief. For more information on Hope Smiles, feel free to reach out to Ashley at info@thedentalateam.com. 

Kiera decided to “walk through an office” and do live recordings at different intervals with Ashley Keith and her office in Kansas City! THIS WILL BE A SERIES OF EPISODES and YOU get to walk through the struggles, ideas, and outcomes with Kiera and Ashley!

In this first episode, Kiera and Ashley focus on the front office, discussing how to combat the “Whack-a-Mole” or tangled ball of yarn approach to front office work (putting out fires as they ignite). Ashley recently moved offices, and learned the importance of having processes in place for each position — information was getting lost, people didn’t know what they were working on, and an entire new patient flow had to be figured out. But we’re not going to spoil the whole episode for you; listen yourself and keep an ear out for how to unwind the ball of yarn.

The quick and dirty: Build processes around your positions, not people.

Ashley Keith works as office manager for Keith + Associates...

Dr. Desiree Yazdan is back in all her glory! Kiera and Dr. Yazdan talk social media (remember, Dr. Yazdan has 141,000 + followers on Instagram) — how to do it and how not to do it. Believe it or not, social media is not just a box to check; when used correctly, it can serve as a strategy to grow your business. Dr. Yazdan’s high-level tips:

1. Don’t recycle the hard sell
2. Use stories to educate and inspire
3. Batch your content in one day for the rest of the month

Dr. Yazdan is a cosmetic dentist at the Center for Restorative & Cosmetic Dentistry in Newport Beach, California. She began using social media to brand herself when she had no other money for marketing, and she still uses it to this day. Learn more about Dr. Yazdan at www.dryazdan.com, and read her free Instagram Guide for Healthcare Professionals at www.dryazdan.com/instagramguide.

Lastly, Dr. Yazdan has her own podcast now! Yippee! Go check her out at The Social Dentist immediately! Then head over to ...

Kiera dons her scrubs and scalpel for this episode, diving into the first Dental A-Team autopsy of a practice! She discusses five concerns from one of the ELITE practices she visits—we’re talking TOP OF THE TOP PRACTICES.

Some background on the practice: Six operatories, three hygienists, three office admin, and two doctors; staff works 6 a.m. to 3 or 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Kiera visits this office quarterly, and at the most recent meeting, the office discussed and came up with solutions for five concerns:

1. Not enough room for new patients
2. Two doctors, three hygienists — lots of moving parts
3. Training dental assistants in high-turnover area
4. No one’s doing sleep apnea
5. Same-day cancellations

Any of these sound familiar? Listen up! Kiera shares what this office saw as solutions, as well as what other right answers might be. Interested in providing your own feedback about these autopsy offices? Kiera’s looking for penpals! Email your ideas to ...

Hygienists, this one’s for you! Kiera sits down with expert hygienist and practice management coach Laura Myers to discuss obstructive sleep apnea and incorporating it into your dental practice. Before you panic about the stress of adding ~another~ topic to your already tight time slot, wait! Laura gets it, and she walks you through how you can snugly fit the lovely sleep apnea conversation in. The takeaway tips:

1. Fix those health histories
2. Oral exams: Know what to look for
3. Have that simple conversation
4. Document it!

Also, Kiera and Laura talk about why little things like the blood pressure cuff can really, truly, actually save lives (plus examples!). Visit www.TheDentalATeam.com for more! (Psst, hygienists! Check out our course just for you!)

The scoop on Laura: 

Laura Myers is a veteran of the dental industry for over 25 years. She holds a degree in dental hygiene from Harrisburg Area Community College where she graduated with high honors and plans to continue her...

Kiera is all inspiration in this Thursday/Monday Morning Mash-up! She talks about finding balance in your four futures from Alastair McDonald and Mark Costes: mind, money, movement (or muscle), and meaning. This is so necessary in the busy culture and lifestyle of today — especially when you’re traveling two-thirds of the year like Kiera is!

So how does Kiera manage all those flights and airports and offices and Ubers? It starts the moment she wakes up with her miracle morning routine. She walks through personal evaluations and stimulations of each of the four futures. For example, meditating for three minutes, then writing three accomplishments from the previous day, followed by 10 air squats, and finishing up with a glance at her invoices at bank accounts. Boom, four futures.

That’s a very watered down version, but it’s whatever works for you! This episode will have you feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world. Listen to more like it at ...

Presenting the newest star of the Dental A-Team Podcast … it’s Brodie! Brodie is Tiffanie Trader’s almost-11-year-old son. And Tiffanie is one of the movers and shakers of Kiera’s Dental Consulting business! In this episode, the three sit down to talk “mom guilt” from different angles — as a mom (Tiffanie), as a kid (Brodie), and as a future mom (Kiera). Working moms often worry over what their kids think about them being gone all the time. Tiffanie and Brodie have been through a couple different work positions, and they’ve come out with interesting perspectives. The biggest: Stop stressing!

This episode is a great look-see into your kids’ lives. Tune in now!

More episodes with Tiffanie are found at www.TheDentalATeam.com!

Summer is almost over, which means it’s nearly time for Women Dentists Connect! Kiera and Dr. Summer Kassmel connect to talk about this awesome two-day event for all female members of your dentist family — students, associates, practice owners, retirees, teachers, etc.

WDC is taking place October 11-12 in Scottsdale, AZ. This conference will put you in classes and trainings with others to discuss what working as a woman in the dentist world is like, how to build your dream life, plus a roadmap to get there. Expect conversations about pain points like how to have crucial conversations, how to talk numbers, as well as breakouts for each position in your office. Really, it’s everything you could ever want, and Kiera and Dr. Kassmel are SO excited to celebrate and learn with you.

Head over to www.WomenDentistsConnect.com to sign up, and if you want to get a discount code, make sure you listen to this episode to hear the code! 

In this quickie episode, Kiera is talking about insurance verification — don’t hang up/delete/ignore! This is important! Insurance verification might not be the sexiest thing, but one of the secrets to success in keeping patients and a higher treatment acceptance is commitment to verification.

Still skeptical? Kiera walks you through a few tips and tricks to get it done fast, and get it done right. If your office dedicates time to insurance verification, it will:

1. Confidently answer patients’ questions about insurance
2. Get patients to say yes more often to treatments
3. Not have to send out pre-denials

Visit www.TheDentalATeam for more tactical practicals today!