The selling of dentistry?



My son and I are on vacation and we were discussing dental practice and the different ways dentists choose to run their practice. He told me about a practice he was familiar with where the dentist would explain what treatments a patient needed and then would leave the room so that a financial coordinator would come in to discuss the costs and payments needed. I explained to him that this is not how I do it in my practice. I believe the model he mentioned can sometimes intimidate patients into accepting expensive treatment plans because they are embarrassed to make the doctor come back into the room and ask more questions. The fact is it is relatively easy for a dentist to present a treatment plan when costs are not discussed. A financial coordinator can answer many of a patients questions, but not all.  This may be especially true when a patient would like to hear more about the pro's and cons of any alternative treatments. While a financial coordinator  may be knowledgable about options,  she is not a dentist and may  not be competent to fully  evaluate an individual patient' s  clinical situation.

In my practice I present both the treatment plan and explain the cost to a patient before leaving the room. If the patient accepts my treatment usually I then have them talk to my financial coordinator to arrange for any payments that will be required. I do it this way because cost of treatment does enter into decisions about  a treatment plan and I do not think I should leave until my patient helps to choose the treatment most appropriate for them. That being said, I believe that not fully discussing alternatives  may  increase treatment acceptance of a particular treatment option because many patients are reticent to have the dentist return to the treatment room to explain other choices and whether they might be good for their situation.

Although my approach can lead to more lengthly discussions with patients,  I feel it is more transparent and actually more honest. Of course I too am "selling" my dental services, but I do not delegate the discussions about money solely to my financial secretary. Also if a patient wants to have my preferred treatment plan but can not afford to complete it all in the immediate future, I am free to suggest a staged alternative that eventually will accomplish the same goal, albeit in a more drawn out manner.

My son and I continued to have an interesting discussion and although we disagreed on some points,  I can understand his preference for my colleagues approach, because it requires  less skill to explain a patients problems and suggest solutions and then leave the room .  Probably it is not surprising that this method of "selling dentistry" is not uncommon and is employed in many medical practices as well, since the doctor's time is considered too valuable to be spent in discussions involving finances and these can be delegated to a staff member who can afford to take the time to fully discuss financial matters with patients. The financial manager is free to ask the doctor to return to talk with the patient if needed. Also some patients can be embarrassed discussing money with their doctors.

I believe there is room for each technique.  Patients tend to become used to the way a practice functions. It only tends to  become a problem when there is a change from way to another, since people are usually most comfortable with what they are used to and can become upset if a practices  routine is changed. Young dentists who take over a retiring dentists practice would be wise to study how the dentist conducts his or her practice and keep things as similar as possible, at least until they gain the trust of their patients.

from Ask Dr. Spindel - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-selling-of-dentistry_24.html - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/

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