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Dental Practice Tips for Eliminating Cancellations
There is no question that many practices experience cancellation and no-show problems.
Although every practice has this dilemma, some experience a far greater cancellation problem then others. Let’s look at the main causes for this problem and some of the ways these problems can be reduced or eliminated.
In my experience, one of the most common reasons for this problem is the way the appointment schedule is handled in the first place. If the doctor is often running late, the patient perception may be that “he’s so busy that he’s always running late so I if I don’t show up at some point, it won’t make any difference anyway.” Therefore, when the time comes for that patient to choose between going to the beach or playing tennis as opposed to going to the dentist, he will do the former.
The lesson here is to make sure that all appointments are scheduled appropriately to avoid running late. It is just as important to remind the doctor not to do more dental treatment on the patient than was planned for. If the original request was to schedule the patient for 40 minutes for a particular procedure, that is all that should be done.
Appointment coordinator: Don’t encourage this problem by scheduling the day too “tightly” and remember to use good verbal skills when making appointments. Too often I hear things like, “Can you come in around 4:00?” What time, then is the patient expected and when is he or she considered late? 4:15, 4:20, 4:35? How does one record “around 4:00?” The other problem is that the patient may perceive that they can “come and go” at their own pleasure.
Aside from good verbal skills and good appointment scheduling, the area of financial policies and arrangements can affect the cancellation/no-show rate. That may seem strange at first glance, but it really isn’t. When a patient is expected to bring in any sizable amount of money to their appointment, you may inadvertently be contributing to the problem. If I am your patient and you expect me to bring in the first half of the fee for the 3-unit bridge, and that amount is $1200, you have a 50/50 chance that I will not show up because I don’t have the $1200 on the day of the appointment.
If I am really a chicken, I will not call the office during working hours but call in the evening and leave a message telling you that I am unable to come in for the hour appointment because of a last minute change at work. In fact, it may very well be because I don’t have $1200 and I know that your financial coordinator is going to ask for it. What can I tell her? So, to avoid the embarrassment, I will cancel the appointment. I am a believer in avoiding coordinating large payment with dental appointments.
Let’s talk about cancellations in the hygiene schedule. Most general practices have more cancellations or no shows in their hygiene schedule than the doctor’s schedule. There is one simple reason for that problem. The practice does not create perceived value for the patient. If the patient does not see the value in the appointment, chances are great that they will fail the appointment.
How do you create value and importance? One thing that you should not do is to refer to a hygiene visit as a recall or a cleaning. The term recall does not convey value or importance. Most of us grew up with that expression and too many infer that “it’s only a recall appointment...it’s only a cleaning...” How important does that sound? Another problem with “recall” is that it conveys a negative. Parts are recalled because they are defective. Patients are not. Firestone Tires recalled tires because they were defective. Does that create perceived value? I don’t think so.
There are a number of ways to accomplish your goal and one is to start with a better term: continuing care is far superior to “recall.” The next thing your entire office should be aware of is what is said about the patients’ future continuing care visit. Be cognizant of the semantics (e.g., cleaning) and make the appointment sound important: perceived value.
Therefore, doctor, you might say something like this to the patient when you have completed treatment. “Jeff, you’ve been a great patient and I want to thank you for your cooperation. I want you to come back in December (use the name of the month and not the number of months that you want the patient to return). It’s important that I recheck the area around that bridge that I just cemented. I am very pleased with the way it looks and it’s important that I see you in December for your continuing care visit. Susie (clinical assistant), make sure that Gladys (appointment coordinator) schedules an appointment for Jeff in December for a continuing care visit.”
It’s essential that you have sound policies and procedures so that you can be proactive, rather than reactive, to problems in the practice. Be aware of some of the issues discussed in this article and you’re no-show cancellation problem will improve.
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