The Best Practices Show with Kirk Behrendt

Is Private Practice Dead?

Episode #420 with Corinne Jameson-Kuehl, RDH, BS

DSOs have become more prevalent. But it doesn't mean private practice is dead! In fact, it’s thriving, and Kirk Behrendt brings in Corinne Jameson-Kuehl, owner of Custom Dental Solutions, to share her knowledge and experience to help you succeed in getting started. Whether you're buying a new practice, starting from scratch, going group or solo, she offers her best practices so you can achieve your practice goals and thrive. To learn more, listen to Episode 420 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Private practice dentistry is still alive and thriving.

Understand the key foundational pieces for success.

Be aware of innocent misunderstandings to avoid.

Prepare appropriately so you're more likely to succeed.  

Quotes:

“We’ve seen through the years with dentistry, private practice can thrive and really do well with the right parameters in place. I don't believe, as a whole, a lot of our new owners need anything other than a really good foundation to start their practices, get a few pieces in place that maybe they didn't learn in dental school, and then, at the right time, bring in their consulting group to ramp up their production and evaluate efficiencies and all these types of things. And they really can manage quite effectively on their own without giving some outside company a percentage of what they're working so hard for on a day-to-day basis.” (4:10—4:51)

“There are a few pieces that [practice owners] need in place to be successful. Number one, we want to make sure they get credentialed appropriately. If they're going to be in an environment where it is insurance-based versus fee-for-service, which most new owners, we encourage they need to take some insurances and they need to build that rapport before they would even consider going fee-for-service. So, fraudulently, a lot of these people do not get credentialed appropriately and they think they can work under the previous owner’s name or their license or something, which is big fraud.” (5:54—6:27)

“I just told a new owner the other day, because she said, ‘Well, I don't know about this. I don't know about that.’ And I said, ‘We just need to start. We just need to protect it from the beginning. You can bring all the fancy stuff later, after the smoke clears. But we do need to have policies of what's expected of you as an employer, and then what's expected of them as employees. And then, written job descriptions. We need that in place as well before we start hiring people. Or if we’re transitioning with the team that the previous owner had, is there a transition agreement in place? What does that look like? How are we moving forward with that relationship?’ So, those are foundational.” (6:58—7:36)

“There truly are some innocent misunderstandings about [the credentialing] process, and I think people mean well when they just don't understand, and they think it’s okay. The reality is, each licensed professional, meaning a dentist, needs to apply for their own credential with that insurance company. So, if they're purchasing a practice where they're Delta Premier — which is wonderful; this is great — they themselves need to apply for that as well. It is fraud to work under the previous owner’s Premiere status or anything like that. And unfortunately, we see that all the time. And most of the time, it truly is innocent. People really don't know any better. But I would really hate to have somebody who’s just starting off start off on the wrong foot simply because they just didn't do their research to know that this is what needs to be in place.”  (8:14—9:05)

“You can have different providers in the same location taking different insurances. But it is a nightmare for the administrators and for the schedulers as well, because we

Transitioning from People-Dependent to Systems-Driven

Episode #419 with Heather Crockett

It’s great to have that awesome team member who does everything and runs the show. But what happens if they leave? That's right — they take all that greatness with them! Your practice needs to stop being people-dependent and start being systems-driven, and Kirk Behrendt brings in Heather Crockett, one of ACT’s amazing Lead Practice Coaches, to share how. One important tool is predictability, and you can achieve that with a great system. To learn how to create great systems for success, listen to Episode 419 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

There is no greater gift than predictability and systems.

Systems save you thousands of hours in the long run.

With systems in place, you can focus on things that matter.

When you become systems-driven, your costs decrease.

Your systems will eventually become second nature.

Quotes:

“When you're people-dependent as an entrepreneur, that means Judy does everything. Judy knows how to do this. Judy knows how to do that. Judy knows everything. And so, it makes my life better that Judy knows how to do it all. Well, there's a downside to that. Judy may leave someday, and she takes it all with her.” (2:16—2:32)

“The other downside is that when you're too people-dependent versus systems-dependent, you become dependent on adding more energy and more hands to a problem. So, you have three people at the front desk, and they're awesome. But they're taxed because you don't have any systems in place. And so, they come to you, and they go, ‘Doc, we’re stressed.’ And you go, ‘I know. Let me help.’ And they go, ‘We need somebody.’ And you don't have any organization. You don't have any systems. You don't have any checklists. And so, you go, ‘Hire somebody. I don't even care. Just put an ad.’ And you keep throwing person, after person, after person at the problem.” (2:33—3:13)

“When you're people-dependent, your team compensation is going to skyrocket. It’s probably going to be in the 30% range, which is going to drive your overall overhead way up to the high 60s or low 70s, or maybe even the 80s. And one thing happens: nobody’s happy with their compensation. You aren't happy, and they aren't happy.” (3:27—3:48)

“A lot of times, when you move to being systems-driven, your costs go down. Now, here’s a caveat: you're not paying your team less. You could actually make an argument you're going to pay them more. It’s just that they're not trying to figure everything out, every day, uniquely, for every patient; we’ve got systems in place.” (4:40—4:57)

“Think about the amount of time it takes for a team member to figure out how to do something, especially if they're a new hire, or to do something again that they’ve only done once or twice. It takes a long time. And yes, it takes time to document and implement a system. However, it saves you hours in the future. Not only that, but you make it the same across the board so that everyone is doing a task the same way every time it’s completed.” (5:07—5:38)

“Here’s what's important to you as a dental practice owner. When we talk about systems, systems allow you to give the best energy to things that matter most. Which, when you have a system in place, you can actually give your energy to the best currency in your practice, which is relationships.” (7:08—7:22)

“You need predictability. Predictability only comes from systems. And you have to improve these systems time, over time, over time. And so, what it allows you to do, again, is you can give your best energy to things that matter most. That's why some people can do so much in such little time, because they’ve got a great system in place.” (8:50—9:09)

“If a patient is coming in for an emergency appointment, rather than having the clinical...

Incorporating More Oral Pathology in Your Dental Practice

Episode #418 with Dr. Ashley Clark

Survival rates for oral cancers are not great. So, the best thing to do is to actively prevent them.  And today, Kirk Behrendt brings in Dr. Ashley Clark, Division Chief of Oral Pathology at the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry, to share the importance of early detection, the steps to take when you come across a case, and how to communicate your findings without terrifying your patients. Screening every patient, every time, can help save a life! To learn more, listen to Episode 418 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Early detection is critical to preventing oral cancers.

Screen every patient, every time, for oral cancer.

Adequately train team members to look for signs.

Never ignore leukoplakia. It can become cancerous.

Communicate clearly without scaring your patients.

Quotes:

“Oral cancer is probably the biggest thing we deal with — the most important thing that we deal with, specifically squamous cell carcinoma — and survival rates aren't getting any better. They really haven't significantly improved. So, my passion is to get the information out there, catch it before it turns into cancer. That's my main goal, is to educate as many general dentists, specifically, as possible on how to find leukoplakia, what it looks like, what it can mimic, and what to do about it so we can hopefully prevent these oral squamous cell carcinomas from happening.” (2:25—3:02)

“The five-year survival rate for oral cancer that is HPV-negative is 45% to 50%, overall. And that doesn't include the fact that they're going to have a pretty disfiguring surgery to try to get the cancer out, plus or minus radiation where they might lose saliva and have to deal with those quality-of-life issues. So, if we can catch leukoplakia as it’s in its dysplastic phase, surgically removing it lowers that risk of that patient having oral cancer by 50%. So, that's where we are. I will say that the rates of HPV-negative oral cancer have declined, and that correlates with the decline in smoking. But the survival rates still aren't great.” (3:14—4:04)

“[The decline in HPV-negative oral cancer risk] directly correlates with the decline in smoking. About 80% of patients with HPV-negative oral cancer are pretty heavy smokers — or people who smoke pretty heavily, I'd rather say. But one interesting thing that’s happening is between the ages of 18 and 44, there's been this cohort of young women who have been getting tongue cancers without any risk factors — no HPV, no tobacco, no alcohol. So, that's another thing I like to get out. Don't ignore your 30-year-old female patient who has a white tongue lesion, because incidents have grown 0.06% every year for like 20 years. So, that's another group that might be getting overlooked.” (4:09—4:56)

“I think other healthcare professionals who are focusing on the teeth might forget to look at the soft tissue. That's not a value judgment — I did it myself several times when I was in charge of looking at teeth. I forgot, or I was focused in on that pathology. So, I think it could be really easy to focus in on the crown you're doing and forget about doing an oral cancer screening. So, I think doing them every patient, every time, is one thing upon which we could improve.” (5:34—5:57)

“Another [important] thing is to not ignore leukoplakia, especially if it’s on the gingiva. Sometimes, leukoplakia doesn't really look that scary — especially proliferative verrucous leukoplakia. Initially, it doesn't look that scary. But if it’s left untreated, nearly 100% will eventually turn into cancer. So, don't ignore things that could come down the road.” (6:04—6:26)

“I train a lot of dental hygienists. And they actually find a ton of lesions, in my experience. They...

Alignment Starts at the Top

Episode #417 with Courtney Dalton

Of your entire life, 30% of your time will be spent at work. So, why not make it a great place to be? And to help you make that happen, Kirk Behrendt brings back Courtney Dalton, one of ACT’s amazing coaches, to talk about how to proactively create alignment with your team for a healthy, happy, high-functioning practice. If you want to set your team up for success, listen to Episode 417 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Alignment starts with leadership.

Set your team up for success.

Communicate expectations clearly.

Lean and fall into your core values.

Create time for team check-ins.

Quotes:

“If you're a one-doctor practice or a multi-doctor practice, [core values and alignment] trickles down into everything that the practice does and who they are. So, if you have someone, either on the doctor team or on that leadership team, that's not in line with core values, that's not aligned with a purpose or a vision, the team themselves won't have that energy and buy-in that you're really hoping that they have. So, one person who doesn't really sit well can really be a detriment to the success of the team.” (2:53—3:28)

“Your leadership is so important. If they are functioning in an unhealthy way, the team sees that and they're going to follow, every time. So, having alignment overall is just — you have to have it.” (4:27—4:41)

“There was one team member, the leadership, who the doctors really felt was quite valuable, and she wore the office manager hat, ‘We’ll drown if we get rid of her. We need to know everything before we can find someone else.’ What they didn't realize until a lot of discussion and a lot of peeling back the layers, was that the problem was this person. She wasn't a good core values fit. That air, when you walk into the room — you know when you can feel that there's something off? It was caused because of a lack of alignment, because of this person, wrong person for the seat that she was in. Doesn't mean she was a bad person. She just wasn't the best fit for that role within the practice, and it caused a lot of issues in the team. And in hindsight, we had a meeting not long ago, and the dynamic of the meeting with her gone was amazing.” (6:09—7:17)

“Patrick Lencioni said nothing trumps organizational health — nothing in business — except the lack of it.” (8:30—8:37)

“[Core values are] so important. And practices don't always realize that. They think because they're great on paper, they're going to translate and be great within the practice. But I think it’s important to ask deeper questions surrounding your core values. Lean into them. Fall into them. Use them to help guide your decisions. And when you do that, the right choice is much more clear for the benefit of the practice.” (10:22—10:55)

“Another thing we say all the time, set their lane up for success. How do you do that? Clear expectations. What can we specifically, measurably, ‘Here’s what I expect from you. And in return, here’s what you can expect from me,’ so that that conflict moment, we can shrink it down. We’re never going to make it go away completely; we’re imperfect people. But if we can even out those expectation-and-reality moments, wouldn't that be great? And to avoid or at least minimize the conflict that comes up later down the road.” (15:24—15:59)

“All unresolved conflict becomes a crisis — all. We just don't know when.” (17:08—17:15)

“Most practices, I don't think, are really doing a lot of check-ins with their teams. So, we think of a check-in as the dreaded review where we have to talk about things with a dollar attached to it for that team member. When you do a quarterly check-in or set your frequency of those check-ins, that teammate is coming prepared with the information. They’re...

Automation For Your Team to Feel More Human

Episode #416 with Dr. Ryan Hungate

What do your patients and team members have in common? Most likely, they are spoiled by tech and automation. Whether through Amazon, banking, or DoorDash, people automate things they don't want to do. So, why hasn't dentistry done the same? Today, Kirk Behrendt invites Dr. Ryan Hungate, former Apple employee and founder of Simplifeye, to explain why you need automation for your front desk team and how it can make their work more human. To learn more about Simplifeye and the ways it will benefit your practice, listen to Episode 416 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Today, technology can do things better.

Technology and humans are complementary.

Automation doesn't mean removing jobs.

Automate tasks that your team members dislike.

Most patients want automation.

Quotes:

“We have to acknowledge that our front desk team doesn't wake up, stretch in the morning, and go, ‘Man, I can't wait to go schedule 30 patients! Man, I can't wait to go reconcile 80 transactions in electronic health records!’ That’s not what they're excited about. And I'm guessing, interestingly enough, doctors aren't excited about actually drilling the tooth. We love talking with patients. Your front desk team loves talking with patients.” (14:01—14:30)

“It’s the in-between stuff that's boring. Right? We don't want to do that stuff anyway, so what if we could take those in-between things, the scheduling of patients, the reconciling of payments, the verification of benefits, whatever it might be, and automate it? A lot of people will look at that and go, ‘Well, with automation, aren't you removing jobs?’ No — no. Hell no. We’re allowing people to be more human. We’re turning them bionic. That's the best part. We’re going to allow you to do the stuff that you want to do and love and take away the stuff that you didn't want to do anyway.” (14:51—15:22)

“We also have to realize that our front desk team is pretty overworked right now. We kind of pile on them. And what does that mean? Well, meaning that if you take phones, for example, this is for a majority of doctors out there, 12% of dentists have direct scheduling. That's it — just 12%. So, if you want an easy leg up on your competition, go all-out direct scheduling. But on top of that, because phone calls are so interruptive, your front desk also misses 30% of the phone calls. That's the best front desks, by the way.” (15:39—16:17)

“Think about the way that you want to schedule an appointment with your doctor. Like, when you go see a dermatologist, are you excited to call them up and find an appointment? . . . Now, imagine that doctor, tomorrow, said, ‘You know what? I'm going to get rid of all this. And now, the only way that you can communicate with me again is via phone.’ What would you think? You would think, ‘This is upsetting.’ But you might even think something worse: ‘I'm going to find another doctor.’ Because now, you've had a taste of [automation]. And even better yet, even if a patient hasn't had a taste of how good that can be, they have somewhere else — with Uber, with Amazon, with any online retail store or experience in their life. Postmates, who’s going to bring you food at the tip of your fingers, wherever you want to, DoorDash, whatever it might be, all these things are happening.” (16:32—17:32)

“Traditionally, people have been averse to some of this technology. Why? Because, okay, I'm going to open up my schedule to have somebody else, some technology, schedule appointments for me. That's nerve-wracking because, guess what? They used to not be able to do it as well as Bobbi at the front desk. Bobbi’s better. Well, I'm happy to say that there's now technology that can do it. In fact, maybe better than Bobbi.”...

Failure Is an Option

Episode #415 with Dr. Jim Otten

No one does perfect dentistry — no one. Failures can happen, even when you do the best work possible. So, why are dentists obsessed with perfection? Failure has its benefits, and Kirk Behrendt invites Dr. Jim Otten, co-instructor of Global Diagnosis Education, to share the lessons he learned from failing so you can develop a healthy mindset and attitude for when things don't go as planned. Each failure can be a step to success! To take the first step, listen to Episode 415 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Failure is going to happen, eventually.

Each failure can be a step to success.

Be willing to take risks and next steps.

Focus on the most important things.  

Manage your patients’ expectations.

Quotes:

“In dentistry, we can have a bit of ambiguity tolerance. Can't we? We can have failure. We will experience failure at some level. I always loved the quote that Jack Nicklaus had. He was talking about any round of golf he played in his professional career, and he said, ‘Of the shots that I take, of the 67, 70 strokes that I take, maybe two of them are exactly the way I wanted in that round. The rest of it is to miss it well.’ So, if he was to have that perfection mindset of, ‘I have to hit every shot perfect. It has to fall exactly where I want it,’ he would've never achieved what he achieved. And every dentist should think the same way.” (6:50—7:33)

“If you don't pull the trigger and take imperfect action, be willing to take imperfect action and risk — minimize your risk, now, but risk — you'll never grow.” (7:36—7:48)

“All of us suffer, in some way, from our limitations that we have around our thoughts and our ability. And oftentimes, we get frozen.” (7:51—8:03)

“The best lessons in life I ever learned were from the biggest failures I had, because they challenge you to reach down into your core, discover who you are, and how you're going to reframe the rest of your future and move forward.” (8:28—8:44)

“If you don't like the game you're in, it’s like Scott O'Neil says, change the game. It’s time to change the game. If you don't like what you're doing, if you're not satisfied, if you're not feeling enriched by this, it’s time to change the game. Well, how do you do that? You have to be willing to take risks, and you have to be willing to take the next step.” (11:11—11:29)

“The first step, I think, is a matter of awareness. And when I say that, I think about the quote that Maya Angelou has. She says, ‘If you must look back, do so forgivingly. If you look forward, do so prayerfully. But the wisest course is to be present in the present, gratefully.’ And I think that's the first step, is to allow yourself the forgiveness for anything that you are trying to pull forward from the past. That's done. If you did your best and it didn't work out, it didn't work out. And your future is something that you certainly want to focus on. But be present in the moment. What can you do each day?” (17:23—18:17)

“You have the time that you create. You have control. And it really depends on your level of passion and commitment, whether you're willing to take time to start making progress. So, it sounds harsh, but we all have the same amount of time, and we all have the same structure of time. It just depends on how you want to use it.” (20:35—21:03)

“I always wanted to be the best I could be. I always wanted to be my best and try to do my best. And I noticed that my best effort, in similar circumstances, wasn't working out as good on some patients as in others. And I started thinking, ‘What's going on? I'm doing the same things, same techniques, got the same preps, making the same impressions, using the same materials, using the same lab. This patient’s doing good. This one’s breaking teeth.’...

Mastering Case Acceptance: The Question is the Answer

Episode #414 with Jenni Poulos

Your practice is built on one thing: your patients’ trust. So, how do you get your patients to open up, listen, and engage with what you are saying? To help you master this area of case acceptance, Kirk Behrendt brings back Jenni Poulos, one of ACT’s lead coaches, with expert advice for building trust, rapport, and understanding so that your patients say yes to treatment. Removing fear is the first step! For easy-to-implement tips to increase your patients’ comfort and connection, listen to Episode 414 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Make patients feel safe, heard, and understood.

Understand patients’ brain function during stress or fear.

Be aware of patients’ verbal and body language cues.

Recognize when you have rapport with your patients.

Ask good, open-ended questions to engage your patients.

Quotes:

“When patients sit in your chair, they're nervous, oftentimes. It doesn't matter if it’s the first time the patient has come in to see you or if they’ve been there five, 10, 15 times. If they're experiencing an issue, if they're experiencing pain, or if you're sharing with them something that's new, if they don't trust you, if they don't feel comfortable with you, they're going to have a hard time hearing what you're saying, understanding what you're saying, and engaging in their treatment, being an active partner in their treatment.” (2:42—3:15)

“How well you communicate determines how far you go in dentistry.” (4:26—4:29)

“The success of the practice really relies upon your ability to have patients say yes to treatment. So, we want to know how we can get them to say yes, build trusting relationships, and really beyond that, we want to create long-term, committed patients that will refer to the practice.” (5:19—5:39)

“Rapport is about building relationships that get us to some level of mutual understanding that makes communication easier. We don't want to run right into our ops, sit down next to our patient, and spend no time establishing relationships, building connection. Because if we do, we are not in rapport with our patients. We are not creating an environment in which they are open to communication, open to hearing and engaging. So, I really want you to always be asking yourself, before you begin telling a patient anything about the treatment that they need that you're proposing, I want you to think about, ‘Am I in rapport with this patient?’” (8:21—9:12)

“You want to be good at paying attention to and reading patients’ body language. Body language does not lie. Nonverbal cues are 55% of communication. By language is 38%. Only 7% is what we say. So, we want to pay attention to, ‘What does the patient’s body language tell me? What is their eye contact telling me?’ And we want to be attentive to the tone and pace of our patients’ language and how our tone and pace is in alignment with that of our patients. This is going to help us build relationships. It’s going to help us get in rapport if we can pay attention to some of these things.” (10:11—11:02)

“If you don't read cues and body language, you can inadvertently scare and confuse patients. If someone comes in and they're very closed off and nervous, and your energy levels are too high and you're too excited, you're going to set them off a little bit. They're not going to feel comfortable. They're not going to feel like you see them. So, these are things that we need to be attentive to when we walk into a room.” (11:03—11:31)

“When we’re looking at body language, really, what we’re asking is, ‘Is a patient open to me, or are they closed? Are they open to hearing what's going on, or are they closed off?’ There are some really easy cues that you can look for with your patient, even just identifying a...

Building Your Cosmetic Practice Within Your Practice

Episode #413 with Dr. John Cranham

If you had to guess, how many of your patients dislike their smile? You've got more than you think! Some of your patients just aren't talking to you about it. Whether it’s whitening, veneers, or bonding, there is a growing demand for these types of procedures. And to help you build this area of your practice, Kirk Behrendt brings in Dr. John Cranham, co-founder of Cranham-Culp Digital Dental, with the best advice for getting started. To learn how to build your cosmetic practice within your practice, listen to Episode 413 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Balance your general and specialty procedures.

Intentionally block out time for your larger cases.

Understand your patients’ problems and desires.

Cosmetics can be a gateway to better oral health.

Visualization and planning are especially important.

Quotes:

“What I love about cosmetic dentistry is that, with my training and background in occlusion from Dr. Peter Dawson, I learned really early that there were a lot of people that had ugly smiles because of underlying functional problems. And form follows function, and function follows form, and it became my gateway into restoring and helping people become more healthy, biologically and functionally, even though they may have been driven by esthetics.” (4:03—4:33)

“The practice within the practice, to me, is figuring out how much of my time as a general dentist that I'm going to spend doing specialty procedures, and what is going to be my balance on the general side doing my bread-and-butter.” (6:15—6:30)

“I think the healthiest practices that I've seen in the people that I've coached and taught over the years are those ones that have this really healthy general practice. They’ve got a couple hygienists, and they are good at bread-and-butter dentistry and single crowns, and they’ve got a good perio department, and all the things that make for a healthy general dental business. And if you can get to the point where your salary and your bills are being paid out of that general practice, and then you take two, three, four days a month to block to do a large case, well, after you pay the lab bill, all that money falls to the bottom line and it becomes your fastest way to really significantly increase your income.” (8:27—9:15)

“The one thing you've got to remember about cosmetic dentistry is, the occlusion can be dead-on, the restorations can be fitted perfect, perfect margins or near-perfect margins. But if the patient doesn't love it, it’s kind of a failure.” (13:53—14:10)

“There's a definite process, when you go to the specialty side, that I think a lot of dentists underestimate.” (17:29—17:38)

“When I do a smile design case, I want the temporaries to blow [the patient’s] socks off. I want them to look at the mirror and be thrilled with where we’re going. And that only happens with a process of data collection, having time to do that, having time to study it, do some designing.” (20:27—20:46)

“For a long time, we taught that you should always bring everybody into the doctor first and do an hour-and-a-half exam, and do full records, and all this stuff. And I tried that, and a lot of the patients were turned off by it because they didn't need all that. So, I think it’s important to first look at your patients through the lens of, what kind of problems do they have, and what are their desires.” (23:19—23:45)

“A great diagnosis, like getting really confident about what is going to be the best plan for this patient, is critical for the patient to accept treatment.” (26:14—26:23)

“As time has gone on, I have learned that the more I can think about a case upfront — and I've done a lot of cases so I can think through things pretty quickly — I know that...

The Future of Facial Esthetics in Dentistry

Episode #412 with Dr. Louis Malcmacher

Botox is just for wrinkles. Right? Not anymore! It is now mainstream in dentistry, and it will continue to grow. And to help you understand the need for dental Botox, Kirk Behrendt brings in Dr. Louis Malcmacher, president of the American Academy of Facial Esthetics, to explain the benefits that offering Botox will have for your patients and your practice. For everything you need to know to get started, listen to Episode 412 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Botox has become mainstream in dentistry.

Fillers and Botox are not just wrinkle removers.

Dental Botox can offer orofacial pain relief.

It can also be a treatment to reduce bruxism.

Studies have proven that Botox is safe and effective.

Patients willingly pay for this recurring service.

Quotes:

“You can learn to do anything, clinically, and be good at it. It’s just training, and practice, and practice. That's the old joke. That's why they call it a “practice,” because you're literally practicing your whole life when you're a dentist.” (5:47—6:01)

“Even if you treat 28 teeth with veneers or crowns and implants, they still have great-looking teeth. A great-looking smile is everything around it. It’s the lips, it’s the cheeks, it’s the folds, it’s the skin. That really is everything else.” (12:43—12:58)

“Dentists are the only healthcare professionals that can practice total facial esthetics. Why? Because we don't only control the teeth anymore. We control everything else with Botox, fillers, and PDO threads in the face to lift up sagging skin, to fill in the cheeks, fill in the folds, the perioral area, make all these wrinkles in my face disappear and patients’ faces disappear. That's why we coined the term facial esthetic dentistry, because now dentistry is literally from here to here, and we can control the whole thing.” (15:20—15:56)

“There are now more dentists doing Botox and fillers than there are dermatologists and plastic surgeons, which, total in the U.S., there are only about 15,000 combined of plastic surgeons and dermatologists. There are at least 20,000, if not more, dentists that are doing this at this point in time.” (16:05—16:23)

“That's the thing that dentists really need to wake up to, is always give people what they want. And the number-one most requested esthetic service in the world is Botox. And fillers for volumizing the face is number two. So, that's what your patients want.” (17:26—17:42)

“We’re so ingrained that, ‘Oh my gosh, my patients are so cheap. They will not go ahead and pay for this unless it’s covered by insurance.’ Not with Botox and fillers.” (18:53—19:03)

“If you're thinking about getting into Botox and fillers, ask this one question on your medical history form as a practice filter . . . ‘Have you ever gotten Botox and dermal fillers before?’ Leave a line, or just give them yes or no. And you will not believe how many patients check yes. And these are the same patients, by the way, that have told you that they don't have the money to fix tooth number 19, the lower first molar, because the insurance doesn't pay enough, or they don't want to fix it.” (19:19—19:59)

“Look at the ADA Health Policy Institute. They have great statistics. They literally go week by week as to what's happened in dental offices through the pandemic, even now post-pandemic for that. Now, even post-pandemic, dentists are way behind. During the pandemic, and even last year, 2021, they were way behind. They were still down 20% in terms of patient volume, patients coming in, production. They had to raise their fees. I mean, you raise your fees and you've got lower patient volume, that's typically not a very good mix for all of that. But those dentists that have been doing...

Overcoming the Obstacles to Comprehensive Dentistry

Episode #411 with Dr. Bill Robbins

Your patients deserve comprehensive dentistry. So, what's stopping you from providing it? Today, Kirk Behrendt brings back Dr. Bill Robbins, one of the creators of the Global Diagnosis system, to help you overcome some of the obstacles to comprehensive dentistry. One of the hardest parts is forming your vision, and Dr. Robbins has a list of advice to help you get started. If you're committed to providing the best care for your patients, listen to Episode 411 of The Best Practices Show!

Main Takeaways:

Have a vision of where you want to go.

Attend study clubs to form that vision.

Find a mentor to help shape your vision.

Hire a consultant early in your career.

Prioritize developing your leadership skills.

Create a team based on your practice.

Develop the skillset you need with CE.

Quotes:

“My “why” is because [comprehensive dentistry] is what patients deserve. I believe that when a new patient comes to me, they're coming to me for two things: they're coming for my expertise, and they're coming for a treatment plan. And I'm going to give them both of those things. And sometimes, they don't need anything but two sealants and bleaching, and I will have spent a fair amount of time doing a comprehensive exam on them. But there's value in that.” (6:03—6:32)

“I consider a comprehensive exam not only to be the right thing to do, but to be a wonderful marketing tool. I've never spent any money on marketing. That's just not been my way. I mean, we've got a website, so that's not true. We do spend money on a website. But other than that, my marketing has always been through word-of-mouth, essentially. And so, I see the comprehensive exam as both what a patient deserves and as a way to get more patients to come in.” (6:47—7:15)

“If a dentist doesn't do a comprehensive exam, then the dentist cannot do comprehensive dentistry.” (9:23—9:29)

“The downside [of a comprehensive exam] is that I waste some time. If you consider time that I could've been doing single-tooth dentistry, I'm wasting it talking to a patient who just needs single-tooth dentistry. I get that. And so, I think there are certainly variations on the theme. It doesn't have to be, every patient gets a comprehensive exam. But every patient that’s going to get comprehensive dentistry has to have a comprehensive exam. I do know that for sure.’ (10:59—11:23)

“I think the hardest part of this whole thing, the absolute hardest part of moving your practice into doing comprehensive dentistry and comprehensive exams is getting a vision of doing it. Because once you get a vision, then you have something that’s out there and all you have to do is figure out the steps to get there. But it’s the belief that that's where you want to be. The problem is that once you get it — you, meaning the dentist — you have to share it with those around you. Because if your family at the office isn't on board, then it ain't going to work out.” (12:57—13:36)

“I think it’s really important to have an older dentist, a mentor, that you admire and who you would like to emulate in terms of practice philosophy, but also personal life and all the other important things, and approach them.” (18:01—18:16)

“Make leadership [your] primary focus ahead of dentistry. Because if they don't see you as a leader in the office, both when you know they're watching you — when they're with you and you're not paying attention to them, they're watching you for sure. And how you manage patients, and how you manage staff problems, and how you manage all of the crap that comes into our lives, that's the most important thing around a dental practice. So, I really think leadership and relationship-based leadership is one of the major keys.”...