Posted 02-03-17

3 Numbers Critical for a Successful 2017
by Jen McGuire, Field Marketing Manager, Henry Schein Dental

To no one’s surprise, 2016 was unfortunately not the year that dentistry came roaring back. Dental practice production continues to be flat across the country. Dental visits remain low and two out of five dentists report they are not busy enough. Insurance reimbursements continue to decrease profitability. Many dentists are challenged by how to grow, or simply maintain, a practice in this environment. We can hope things get better in 2017, or we can plan for a better 2017.

In the dental practice, there are 3 potential areas of growth: hygiene production, doctor production, and radiography. Within these areas, there are only 3 ways to grow production. First you can do more: see more patients or increase the number of procedures in the same amount of hours worked per week, by becoming more efficient. Your second option is to offer more services: add new sources of revenue through implant placement, orthodontic procedures, new hygiene procedures, such as fluoride varnish and expanded periodontal management. The third way is to charge more: evaluate fees in your area, insurance plan reimbursements, and increase fees where appropriate. To determine which of these growth options is most feasible for your practice you need to understand where the opportunities are in each of the three major areas of your practice.

Hygiene Production - How many patients met your hygiene standard of care in 2016?

The average dental practice has more than 200 patients that missed a recommended hygiene visit. Your hygiene standard of care, the number of hygiene visits you would like your patients to have per year, is the foundation of your practice. Hygiene visits not only impact hygiene production, but doctor production and radiography as well. If a patient misses a hygiene visit, we lose the opportunity to identify restorative treatment needs, and the opportunity to meet the patient’s radiography needs. Benchmark how many patients met your hygiene standard of care this year and set a goal for increasing that number in 2017. Most practices could increase hygiene production by $25,000+ without adding a single new patient, just by ensuring all active patients kept their recommended hygiene appointments.

Doctor Production - What procedures generate the most production in your practice?

Are you spending your time performing the most profitable and enjoyable procedures? Review your procedure mix that is included in a Henry Schein Practice Analysis, to determine if you are practicing the procedures you prefer at fees that are appropriate for your area. Small fee adjustments can help you balance your procedure mix and improve practice profitability.

Radiography - How many patients met your standard of care for radiography?

The average office has more than 400 patients that missed a recommended major film. Implementing a successful radiography program that follows the doctor’s standard of care is the most immediate return on investment for a dental practice in terms of time and resources. Patients rely on your guidance for radiography decisions; do not allow patients to base health care decisions on what an employer is willing to pay for. A thorough review of a patient’s record at least one day prior to appointment, allows for proper identification and notation of when past radiographs were taken and eligibility at the upcoming visit. Perform periodic radiography audits to ensure your standard of care is being met.

Using the Henry Schein Practice Analysis, we can examine the 3 areas of potential growth and identify the largest opportunities in your practice. Providing strategies will help you to increase production for a more profitable practice. After receiving a Practice Analysis, practice production increases by $90,000 on average.

Request your Henry Schein Practice Analysis to plan for a successful 2017.

With more than a decade of marketing experience in the health-care industry, Jen McGuire now leads the marketing of Henry Schein Dental's Business Solutions. Jen developed and launched dentistry's first wellness program, Total Health Beyond the Mouth. Contact her at (800) 372-4346 or at jen.mcguire@henryschein.com.