So you have realized the value of a dental treatment coordinator to your dental practice growth. You have designated a space in which they will talk to patients.
Now, who will the treatment coordinator be?
Just to be clear, let’s start by recapping definitions and explanations. What is a dental treatment coordinator? And what happens in the many dental practices where the treatment coordinator position is NOT filled?
Dental Treatment Coordinator Description
According to carifree.com, “a treatment coordinator is the face of the clinic. They are the person who helps patients understand their treatment plan and puts it into action.” A dental treatment coordinator is a person who provides the link between the clinical diagnosis and a patient on your schedule. They explain the treatment and its value, present the cost and the input of insurance, and arrange payment. In short, they sell the complex-care treatments that profitable dentistry requires.
What a Dental Treatment Coordinator Eliminates
The treatment coordinator position is intended to eliminate, for high-value cases, the typical scenario, one that is exceedingly detrimental to dental practice growth. Here’s what it looks like: The patient is released from the doctor and hygienist and turned over to the front-office staff to be presented with a neatly typed treatment plan complete with both the amount that insurance will cover and the amount that the patient is expected to pay. The patient is asked to look it over and sign.
Although at first glance, this seems like a magnificently reasonable and efficient process, the chances of a complex-care patient becoming transfixed by sticker shock are HIGH! Dentistry costs far more than the average person expects, yet dental practitioners and their staff easily forget this fact due to their daily familiarity with treatments that cost thousands of dollars. Many times, our transfixed patient will ask to take the plan home to think about it and talk it over with their family. They thus become another line item on your incomplete treatment list.
As you know, top-tier dental practices have found a way around this common problem. And you are about to join their ranks with your dedicated treatment coordinator.
Who Should the Dental Treatment Coordinator Be?
The question then becomes this: What kind of person should form this this link? What are the essential characteristics necessary for overcoming the objections and showing patients the value of the treatment so they sign up for the treatment they need rather than falling through the cracks?
Here are some starters:
- Dental knowledge and an agreement with the philosophy of the dentist.
- An attractive, poised, professional appearance
- Top-quality communication skills and an ability to “sell” the treatment and its benefits
- An organized, systematic approach and presentation that patients can understand
- Intimate knowledge of the ins and outs of dental insurance.
- Enough self-assurance to present the bottom-line figure with eye contact and ask the patient to sign.
- Positivity and a conviction of the wonderful changes that dentistry can bring to patients’ lives.
Presenting the value of the treatment FIRST to the patient is also very, very important as we mentioned in the first part of this series. Your treatment coordinator must establish the value of the treatment beyond doubt before presenting the investment needed to procure the treatment. Reach the patient at a deep emotional level with the difference that the treatment will make in their life. (This trait is one of the most important and a dental treatment coordinator who possesses it will be able to reach extraordinarily high close rates – and contribute amazingly to your bottom line.)
Using this list of traits, choose and hire a dedicated dental treatment coordinator for your office. A good choice will lead to tremendous dental practice growth and no one will ever want to return to the previous situation where you lacked someone to fill this position.
We’ll look in future blog posts at best practices during the actual conversations between the treatment coordinator and the patients.
For more help on transforming your practice, reach out to Client Connection Group today. We have a wealth of resources for dental practice growth through social media implant advertising and we would love to discuss your dreams for your practice with you today!