How to reduce the rate of absences in the dental office?
Reducing the number of dental office absences really is a challenge. In the courses and lectures I have given, it is one of the most reported problems, both by the collaborators and the office managers. The truth is that no health office is free of this. Neither are patients free of unforeseen events. Traffic, protests, work, illness, etc. Unfortunately, that's not what happens in the office.
In general, the patient misses and period. It does not give a satisfaction. You don't care or anything. It simply leaves a beautiful hole in the agenda. And if the dentist meets by appointment, you will have to wait for the time to pass. On the other side, your accounts don't stop. And this is a very recurring problem in the dental office.
However, there are ways to decrease the rate of absences in the office. Depending on the case, the reduction reaches up to 70%, as we heard in the reports of the clinics that participated in our training. I remember that the secretary has a unique role in the appointment process of office patients, including also the rate of missed appointments. Let's see some tips!
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Point out on paper what are the possible causes of the high rate of dental office absences
In-office shortages are usually summarized by factors:
- Patient related (delay, neglect, illness, forgetfulness, etc.);
- Office related (structure, service, scheduling, etc.).
Using the same line of reasoning as a diagnosis, the dentist should raise possible internal causes so that he can treat them. For example, a poor office structure may have a negative impact. At the same time, dry, cold care may put the patient on the run.
If you go to a place that comes in and don't like it, you won't tell the manager or place owner you don't like it. You just won't be back there anymore. The same thing happens in the dental office. Lifting the possible internal motives, one begins to think about the resolution.
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Confirm the dental appointment by at least two media (if any fails)
Almost always, the primary means of confirming the dental appointment used by the secretary is the telephone call. What happens is that it is not always effective, especially when the use of mobile phones is prohibited at work.
Also, it is important to always call more than once. For example, if there are 10 patients scheduled, list them all from 1 to 10 and call. OK those who have confirmed. Wait 10 minutes and try again for those who didn't answer the call. Do you know why? Because, in many cases, if a person only receives a call from an unknown number, they are unlikely to return. On the other hand, if she gets two calls from this same number, she'll think it's urgent.
If unsuccessful at this point, opt for another means of communication to contact the patient. The secretary can send a text message or a contact via WhatsApp if she has his number and the patient has authorized the contact by this means.
At this point, another interesting tip is to generate in the patient a sense of responsibility. He must know that if he misses the dental appointment, he will harm not only the office but another patient who could come to the appointment. Use this type of phrase:
“Okay, Mrs. Joana. Your appointment is scheduled for tomorrow at 14:00. If you are unable to attend, please let us know in advance, please.”
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Confirm appointment 24 hours in advance
Confirming the dental appointment is something minimal that is expected of a secretary. If she does not do this, she can be sure that the office is losing a lot, a lot of money. However, it is worth noting that a timely time to confirm the consultation can be a powerful ally. If the patient is scheduled for Tuesday morning and the secretary will confirm it by late Monday, the chance of relocating a patient in case of absence is very remote.
On the other hand, if she confirms the appointment 24 hours in advance, the secretary will have time to try to make an appointment or anticipate another patient's appointment.
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Give the patient an appointment card
There are still many patients who like to leave their appointments in writing. And this is an excellent and very cheap way to remind the patient of the dental appointment.
However, I remember that this type of confirmation is complementary to others, such as phone calls, text messages and sending messages via WhatsApp. One thing should not exclude the other.
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Think about why a patient would miss a dental appointment
It is very common to find that the rate of absences in the office is related only to the forgetfulness or neglect of the patient with the consultation. There are several other reasons, such as:
- Fear;
- anxiety;
- Failure in the appointment scheduling process;
- Third party reports on the procedure;
- Dental Covenants;
- time at work;
- Poorly qualified secretary.
From these topics, you can start creating a problem-solving funnel that will allow you to identify causes and address them as soon as possible. I remember that most of the reasons above can be corrected by the secretary's performance.
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The dental office should have a waiting list
Just as there are patients who give little or no importance to dental consultation, there are patients who are eager to resolve their problem soon. If the secretary offers a waiting list, she has patient contacts who are unlikely to miss the dental appointment. This is also true when there is a very busy schedule, which ultimately increases the number of absences in the office, because the patient, anxious not to wait, calls other offices and gets a closer consultation, but does not uncheck the patient. scored.
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Your secretary / receptionist should be well trained for this purpose.
For all this to happen effectively, the secretary must be able to perform her duties to the best of her ability. A course for secretaries / office attendants is a cheap investment, especially when we consider that poor patient care is much more expensive and harmful.
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Use dental software (office manager) and help your desk
Dental software can be very useful when it comes to reducing the number of office absences. That's because it does many things automatically, including scheduling queries. Depending on the dental software, it is even possible to send text messages to patients in order to remember the dental appointment.
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Don't make things that easy for the missing patient
Do you know that conversation saying that a person only values when he loses? Yeah. This can be used for the office. The patient has to know that he has lost. When that patient, who missed without warning, wishes to make another appointment, throw that old charm:
“Hey John, what a shame you can't come. But we only have vacancies for consultation in 15 days.”
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All staff should serve as an example
Unfortunately, it is still quite common to find offices whose professionals do not respect the hours of service, arriving well after the beginning of work. And in many cases, it is the managers themselves who do it. It is important to set an example not only for patients but also for your office staff. Remember, being on time is being polite!
Source: Empreenda Dentista. Available at: https://empreendadentista.com.br/2017/10/17/indice-de-faltas-no-consultorio/. Access on: 12/09/2019.