body odor (I had a dentist in early in my career who discovered
he was losing patients because of his off-putting
sad that not a single employee would even mention to him!).
easily accessible or is just in the wrong part of town.
These are but a few ugly truths. And, fortunately, the symptoms
are visible, right in front of us and if we are smart about
it, they will lead us directly to the solutions.
In nearly every example above, by the way, I found these
facts out about my own practice. I was not immune; but like
problems we discovered. We did the tough stuff like changing
job duties, hiring better people, and terminated employees,
including dentists and hygienists, that didn’t want to be part
of the solution (ergo, they were part of the problem).
That’s just business.
So, if you’re experiencing:
- An empty hygiene schedule and you have more than 1,500
“active” patients
- Cancellations and no-shows at an ever-increasing rate
- A case acceptance rate below 80% for new patients
- Lack of response to your marketing
- Declining production (which leads to declining collections)
- An exodus of patients with insurance who’ve “switched”
providers
- Turnover in employees that’s unusually high
- Declining referrals from patients
- No reviews or few if any positive, 5-star online reviews
your business (which means you’re paying bills more than
30 days late)
…these are all symptoms of deeper issues in your practice
that require YOU to dig in, seek the truth and address them
head on.
If you don’t, your practice’s decline will continue at an ever
increasing rate. And, your most precious, valuable asset,
your practice, will decline in value every year you’re not
growing it.
The old business axiom, “If you’re not growing, you’re dying,”
is especially true when it comes to establishing a value for
your practice. Stagnant growth is NOT what a buyer wants
to see, unless they’re an “opportunity” buyer looking for a
failing practice they can poach for a bargain basement price,
Now, when it comes to losing patients, that 10% to 15% annual
attrition your practice experiences is due to the following
reasons:
Some die, some move, some change insurance plans, and
some leave due to the indifference they feel – in other words,
they don’t know you care about them, so they have a hard
time caring about you.
What’s more, I’ve discovered few dentists underestimate
their number of active patients. Instead, most dentists believe
their patient base is far bigger than it actually is. Why?
They include in their count those who are actually inactive
patients – those without a next appointment or those who’ve
left but didn’t tell you they were leaving.
TRUTH: If you’ve a desire to reverse the decline in your
practice, I won’t sugar coat it: it’ll take an investment in time,
energy, and money, and you’ll face tough decisions – in many
cases, decisions that required your attention long ago which
you ignored or put off.
This is the work entrepreneurs must do – and you are one.
You must seek out truth, face facts and make the tough decisions
required that are in the best interest of your business.
If you are unwilling to do that, while this may sound mean
spirited, it’s just how it must be: sell your practice, get out
focus on delivering great clinical care and leave the business
side to someone else.
Many dentists hire a consultant to achieve what I’ve laid out.
unless you learn what it is they are doing so you can repeat
it later, you’ll be writing yet another check in no time to have
them come back and repeat the process.
In my view, your advisors ought to be viewed as truth tellers
and teachers and someone who’s willing to challenge you
and your thinking. There are also consultants who can be
trainers and systems creators for your unique practice. Nei-
Sure, you can hire them for that, but what message does that
send to your employees? Is it the message you want to send?
Would you rather they viewed you differently and respected
you?
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