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Polish up your hygiene department
How do you see the hygiene department of your dental office? As little more than
the local cleaning and polishing center? What if you saw it for what it really
is? A business within your business, and potentially a significant profit center
to boot!
Better service equals increased profitability
Profit doesn’t have to be a dirty word. It can peacefully co-exist with superior
patient service—in fact, the two can thrive together. Profit may not be the sole
measurement of the health of a practice. But face it: without profits, nothing
functions. So if you agree that profit is as worthy a goal as patient service,
it’s time to investigate ways of maximizing profit in the setting of a private
practice. The hygiene department is a great place to start.
Picture hygiene as a portal—with opportunity knocking!
In virtually every private dental practice in the U.S., the hygiene department
occupies a unique niche: it’s an almost autonomous entity within the larger
framework. So, use it as a doorway to other
profitable operations and sidelines. From being strictly a cleaning and
polishing center it can evolve to a significant profit center.
Consider your hygiene department as a business-within-a-business—not just
through hygiene appointments—but also as a way for the dentist to motivate
patients to proceed with restorative and cosmetic treatments. Profitability of
the hygiene center grows by having control systems in place that expand and
fine-tune your entire office operation. And, the hygiene department can serve
to:
Sustain patient relationships
Educate patients
Produce income
Market your practice
Enhance the “Wellness Center” aspect of the practice
Grow the elective and cosmetic side of the practice
Establish mutual referral systems with other healthcare professionals.
Making it work
To develop the hygiene department into a self-supporting, profitable component
of a highly productive office, expand its role. Begin by establishing systems
that insure your entire team realizes the department’s full potential. Not only
does this important step increase profitability, it helps you offer patients an
enhanced level of care: a win-win situation for you and those you serve.
Six ingredients for success
So often in dentistry (as in life) the theory is sound; its execution marks the
difference between success and failure. Consider these six critical ingredients:
Expectation. Most dental practices have untapped income potential.
Recognize this and you’ve taken the first step to operate your office at peak
capacity.
Teamwork. Sounds Rah-Rah, but it isn’t. Success really depends on
interaction between every team member. Breakthroughs are a group effort. They
don’t “just happen.”
Vision. Having a philosophical picture of where you’re going (and how
you’ll get there) is critical to achieving any goal in life—especially true of
dentistry.
Communication. Just talking isn’t quite the same as conveying
concepts—clearly and effectively. Listening (being interested instead
of interesting) is a widely ignored component of effective communication. When
practiced, listening can open doors to getting your treatment ideas across.
Education. By providing information to transition patients into needed care
and elective treatments, you empower them. You add value to your practice at the
same time.
Monitoring. Well-designed monitoring techniques measure both successes
and failures of the dental team. A valuable feedback loop for greater
fine-tuning!
Change does require effort
Since 1990, we’ve consulted with hundreds of dental offices. Their making the
changes necessary to enhance profitability wasn’t easy. However, virtually all
have realized sustainable hygiene department profit increases of from 60% to
over 280%. And, these offices have groomed dental teams to be both more
productive—and happier in their work.
To meet the technical and financial challenges of the future, consider enhancing
your practice’s hygiene department—a worthwhile, attainable and profitable—goal.
Call us today to find out how we can help you
build a more profitable hygiene department.
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