The title of this article begs the question, “What is winning?” I believe that the definition of winning for a dental practice is achieving the right level of practice production. If production is at the right level, then the practice will generate the right level of revenue, cash, and income. It will survive as a business to serve its patients and provide jobs and security for the dentist and team.
Here are three ways your practice can win in 2021.
Reactivate any patients who do not currently have an appointment
Currently, Levin Group ranks reactivation of patients as the number one factor for increasing practice production during COVID-19. Before the pandemic, reactivation referred to patients who were 18 months overdue and had become inactive. Today, think of any patients who do not have their next appointment in the books as candidates to reactivate. If scheduled, this patient population could lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars of increased practice production. The critical step in accomplishing this is to make sure patients know they will be safe in the dental practice and that there are numerous financial options to help them afford hygiene and other treatment.
Stabilize the dental team
Staffing may be the single biggest challenge facing dental practices in the short-term. For most practices, retaining staff should be the primary focus. Your current team is trained, knows the practice, and is instrumental in keeping the flow going. If you want to keep your team happy in 2021, it is essential to show them compassion, caring, and concern.
Reanalyze your schedule, and keep it filled
A full schedule has always been important, but now it’s even more critical. With all of the changes to personal protective equipment and infection control, you may need to throw out the way you currently schedule and build a brand-new approach. Start with procedural time studies and find every possible way to eliminate inefficiencies. Once the procedural time studies are complete, you can rebuild your schedule specifically to achieve your production goals. When the new schedule is built, then the other systems must kick in to fill it. (See item number one.)
This will be a better year than 2020. At the time of this writing, dentistry already looks more stable, even if it is at a lower production level than in 2019. If you take the right systemized approach and make the right moves, 2021 will get you ready to have one of your best years ever in 2022.
Roger P. Levin, DDS, is the CEO and founder of Levin Group, a leading practice management consulting firm that has worked with over 30,000 practices to increase production. A recognized expert on dental practice management and marketing, Dr. Levin has written 67 books and more than 4,000 articles, and regularly presents seminars. To contact Dr. Levin or to join the 40,000 dental professionals who receive his Practice Production Tip of the Day, visit levingroup.com or email [email protected].
