Pennsylvania’ s Dental Meeting 2018
1. Targets Every practice needs to know where it’ s headed. As the old saying goes, if you don’ t know where you’ re going, any road will take you there. Targets are specific objectives that drive practice performance. There are at least 25 targets that every practice should establish, including:
• The number of active patients currently scheduled
• Overhead
• Production
• Profitability
• Number of monthly patient referrals
• No-show and last-minute cancelation rate
• Hygiene recall rate
• Production per doctor
• Production per hygienist
• Average production per patient
• Average production per new patient
These targets propel the practice forward. It’ s no different than having a target weight and weighing yourself every week to track your progress. You quickly find out if you are moving in the right direction. Likewise, by constantly monitoring targets, you can make the necessary adjustments to reach your goals.
2. Documented Systems Once the targets have been established, implement step-bystep systems to achieve the desired outcomes. With documented systems in places, staff members know exactly what they should do every day. This enables dentists to be more productive, spending more time on patient care rather than focusing on practice management. Gradually, the staff will run the practice by following high-performance systems based on specific targets. Many dentists measure accountability via the staff’ s attitude. However, a better way is to manage by targets, which are by their nature objective rather than subjective.
3. Scripting For 33 years, I have promoted the power of scripting to transform the inner workings of a practice. Scripting is more pertinent today than it has ever been. Without the benefit of scripts, staff members will never reach their potential nor will the practice be able to achieve its targets. Why? Because scripting enables practices to take control of the patient experience. In most practices, patients are running the show. Don’ t believe me? Answer these questions:
• Who decides if a new patient calls your office?
• Who decides if that new patient schedules to come in while he or she is on the call?
• Who decides if the new patient shows up for the appointment?
• Who decides if the new patient accepts recommended treatment?
• Who decides if the new patient pays for that treatment as required?
When I ask front desk staff members these questions, they say they are the ones who decide. In nearly every practice, the answer to the above questions is that patients are the ultimate deciders. The Levin Group Method™ is designed to create practices that take control through value-based scripting, which team members use to motivate patients to make the right decisions regarding their oral health. This ultimately benefits both parties. The best scripting includes positive language that results in a high level of customer service. Without scripts, the staff has little chance of being in control. If you wonder why your practice isn’ t functioning more efficiently, a lack of powerful scripting is probably one of the reasons.
CONCLUSION We are facing a new game with new rules and need a new playbook. Doing things the way they’ ve always been done will no longer get you what you’ ve always gotten. In fact, if you keep doing what you’ ve always done, you’ ll now get less and less. The world is changing. Just look at what the online world is doing to brick-and-mortar stores. Practices that use a new playbook— based on targets, systems and scripting— will be able to thrive in this new game.
Don’ t miss the opportunity to learn more at Dr. Levin’ s session on April 28, 2018, at Pennsylvania’ s Dental Meeting in Hershey.
22 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2017 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL