Aligned Dental Partners has launched a three-part educational series to help dentists and group dental practice owners run a more profitable and valuable business.
Part 1 – “Hygiene is not a Loss Leader”
Part 2 – “How to get supply and lab bills to account for less than 10% of revenue”
Part 3 – “What is the value of my practice?”
Hygiene is not a “Loss-Leader”
Too often we hear dentists say that their hygiene department is a “loss-leader.” This is may have been true in the past however with all that we now about the periodontal condition connect to the rest of the body, a properly managed hygiene program with well-trained team can be a strong profit center for your practice. Traditionally, dental practice teams have put too much weight on the doctor’s schedule and overvalue the doctor/patient relationship; with proper systems and processes in place, a hygiene driven practice will increase not only hygiene profitability, but doctor profitability as well and will ultimately enhance the patient experience.
Aligned Dental Partners’ Approach
As a leading consulting firm to dentists and group dental practice owners, Aligned Dental Partners can help identify and capture missed revenue opportunities in your practice. Most entrepreneurial dentists and group practice owners fail to capitalize on lost revenue in the hygiene department because the lack of good clinical radiographic and periodontal protocols which holds Doctors, Hygienists, Team and patients to a new set of standards. Aligned Dental Partners can help change the mindset and provide additional clinical and operational guidance to success. The following are some best-practices and tips from our experts to help you identify where hygiene revenue opportunities exist in your practice!
How should my hygiene department be performing?
- The hygiene department should account for 30-40% of total practice production
- 30-35% of the hygiene revenue should come from treating periodontal disease
- 50-55% of restorative work should be diagnosed at the hygiene appointment
- 99% of patients should be pre-appointed for their hygiene re-care visit – this retention is what keeps patients coming back!
- Hygiene production per hour for a single column should generate $150/hour+
- Hygiene production per hour for accelerated hygiene should generate $250/hour+
How can I reach these targets?
- Define your periodontal treatment protocol, communicate it to your team, and FOLLOW it!
- Update new patient protocols and communication skills.
- Create targets/goals for the hygiene department that every team member is fully aware of and held accountable for reaching together.
- Know where you stand in relationship to the goals today!
- Bring new patients in through the hygiene department where they are given a comprehensive exam and treatment is “teed-up” for the doctor.
- Pre-appoint hygiene patient for recall before they leave the operatory.
- Schedule for high production in hygiene like you would the doctor.
- Running an accelerated hygiene schedule can be a tool if the practice is a good fit for that model.
Ask yourself:
- “How does my practice measure up to the targets provided?”
- “Do I have targets for my hygiene department that the team is fully aware of?”
- “Does my practice set hygiene goals, or do the hygienists just come in and work their schedule?”
- “If there is a gap in the goal versus the current state, do we have tools to provide to facilitate growth?”
Aligned Dental Partners helps create high-performing dental hygiene teams for practices and groups throughout North America. For help with your practice, and a free one-hour consultation on how to improve your hygiene team…
- Contact Us to Discuss your Practice
- Learn more about Aligned Dental Partners
- Schedule a Call