Last month I did a blog post about ways to increase profitability at your dental practice. After all, isn’t that every business owners goal?
With this in mind I thought it would be a good time to talk about specific procedures you can start to do to increase that revenue. This month I am going to focus on endodontics.
I found a great article here, which was written by 3 wonderful and successful dentists about how to incorporate endo into your practice. If you want to read the whole thing, follow the link, if not, here are the highlights of the article.
#1 Recognize Initial Limits
When we first start out at anything we do, we are newbies. Do you remember when you first started working on real live patients? Remember how much SLOWER you were then compared to now?
When you are new to endodontics it is important to evaluate your scheduling. The experts recommend to initially schedule the procedure for 90 minute blocks with a goal to reduce it to 60 minutes after 6 months.
This allows you to perform the procedure correctly without feeling rushed and also keeps your customer service high for your regular patients. The last thing you want to do is alienate your good patients while trying to grow a new skill.
#2 Learn Which Canals To Refer
A great referral network is a must as it is never worth the stress of taking on a project beyond your skill set. Not knowing when to refer is what gets most dentists in trouble with endo procedures.
You don’t want to be the dentist behind the dreaded “root canal stories” and increase patients fears which will be shared. This also erodes trust and confidence in your patients and is a potential for more lost business than anything else.
Proper case selection is paramount when you are starting out.
#3 Develop A Marketing Plan For Your New Skills
When you mention root canal to a patient, if the dental assistant sitting next to you scrunches up their face but never utters a word, you have just lost that patients trust in your abilities.
I know you have seen it happen before, quite possibly in your own practice. It is vitally important that along with learning the proper skill set that you develop a marketing plan for these new skills and please include your dental staff in those plans.
Scripting can be one of the most challenging skills for a team to develop and we know from past experience that a patient needs to hear something 5 to 7 times before they make a decision to move forward with a procedure.
Be proactive in your vision for adding endo services into your practice. Your team should be part of the solution, not part of the problem.
One of the best things about endodontics is you can get started with an investment of about $4000, which can easily be made back up within a handful of root canals. This makes your ROI outstanding and a great way to increase overall profitability!
~Jason
