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New Patients
This varies from office to office but it always seems to
work out better when they are on the doctor’s side first.
They are usually scheduled for one hour and as soon as they
get to an operatory, a free assistant (most dentists have
at least two) takes an FMX, charts restorations, and does
a preliminary questionnaire about the types of foods and snacks,
dental history etc. Then they can signal a hygienist that
has downtime, or might be waiting for a doctor’s exam
to come in and probe. Probing in school seemed to take forever,
however once you get your system down and by using and assistant
it shouldn't take longer than five minutes. Once that's finished
you can get an idea as to what periodontal classification
they are and the doctor comes in and does a complete exam
and will diagnose the periodontal disease, caries, oral cancer
exam, etc. This helps out they hygienist tremendously because
when doing new patients one of the most frustrating things
to deal with is to have to sit there and do the treatment
planning, sequencing, insurance estimates, etc. This can be
done sufficiently by an assistant or someone at the front
desk and it will not take away valuable production time out
of your schedule.
Also remember, first impressions are very important! You
want to have the best operatory, and staff of any office in
town. Take a seat in your chair and look around. What does
the patient see from their eye level? Is the overhead light
streaky or full of finger prints? Are there cobwebs or dirt
on the window in front of them? Are there ladybugs in the
light on the ceiling? Is there dust on the edges of the vent
in the ceiling? Are the counter tops free of excessive clutter?
These are areas the patient will be looking at the most, so
make sure they are clean!
You can find other hints and tricks in the New Grad section
to the right. Check them out!
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