The production of dentists can vary greatly. Some dentists produce well over $1,000,000, while others produce a few hundred thousand dollars. So, why the difference?
There are a lot of factors to consider when it comes to the ability of a dentist to be productive. How a doctor approaches patients and situations is critical. Let’s review a few components that can improve your productivity (in no particular order):
COMMUNICATION SKILLS
The average dentist’s case acceptance for established patients is 50-60% and only 25-35% for new patients. That’s wild because most of what we prescribe for patients is need-based and will save them money in the end. Acceptance is low because communication is poor. If you can boost your case acceptance by even 10%, it would dramatically increase revenue for your practice. Most of us have millions of dollars in untreated dentistry over a few years. And no, in most cases, it isn’t about the money; that is just the excuse we hear and choose to accept. People buy the things they want; we didn’t make a case to demonstrate to the patient that dentistry is valuable and applies to what is important to them.
SCHEDULE
Either you own it, or your patients do. An office should not have more than 9% of failed appointments on the hygiene schedule and less than 1% on the doctor’s schedule. It is easy to blame the economy, the patients, and COVID, yet the reality is that those are only excuses for the lack of systems an office has in place. There are other components of scheduling that can affect your productivity, such as when and how you schedule certain procedures. The most important of all is communication--the words we use (or don’t use) have a massive effect on this. Improving ourselves, our communication, and our systems will fix any cancellation issues you run into.
SKILL SET
Increasing your skill set gives you more procedures to provide and more knowledge to have better conversations surrounding the value of dentistry. If you only provide fillings and crowns, this severely limits not only what you can offer a patient but also keeps you near the lower end of profitability. If you don’t have a full schedule for weeks, then you might want to look at increasing your skill set. If you have a full schedule that is unproductive, you probably should investigate efficient and higher-end services.
COLLECTIONS
While most focus tends to be on how to produce more, many tend to forget that actually collecting that money is just as important. One should have over a 99% collection rate, but the average dentist has 91%, with many well below that. First, collect the money before the work is done. Second, create value and treat the patient well. Third, have very accurate insurance estimates. If you do those things, you will have fewer collection issues.
EFFICIENCY
Finding ways to get more done in the same hour is huge for our ability to generate a good income in less time; to work less. This is the difference between busy and productive. Empower your team to do what you pay them to do. The way we were trained to do things in dental school was not necessarily the best way; it was only the best way to teach it.
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At the end of the day, to be a high producer, you can’t just get the dentistry right; you have to get everything right. There is no gold pill or easy road; there are many small tricks that equate to better outcomes. Learning to find better ways and learning from those who have done it before me has made an enormous impact on my career and life. Stop placing self-limiting beliefs on yourself and stop making excuses. Start listening to those who have done what you want to do, hire a coach, put in the work, and be consistent.
About the author
Dr. Megan Shelton is a restorative and cosmetic dentist in Southern California. Dr. Shelton attended the University of Louisville School of Dentistry. She continued her education at the Kois Center and graduated in 2021 and is now a Mentor at the center. Her training allows her to predictably treat patients with complex problems. She is known as a leader in her industry for her profitability and implementation of digital dentistry, restorative materials, responsible esthetics, and continuing education into her private practice and is now coaching other dentist CEO’s to do the same through her consulting firm, Shelton Solutions. @doctormeganshelton @sheltonsolutions_