Dynamic Data Newsletter - Autumn 2005

DYNAMIC DATA NEWSLETTER™

A complimentary e-newsletter from Linda Miles for the professional dental community.

For subscription (or unsubscribe) details, as well as Miles & Associates contact information, please see the end of this newsletter.

Miles & Associates
P.O. Box 6249
Virginia Beach, VA 23456
757.721.3332
757.721-2892 (Fax)
800.922.0866 Toll-free
www.DentalManagementU.com

Dear Doctors and Dental Team,

It has been a very unsettling past three months with the total destruction along the MS Gulf Coast and LA. For those of us who have never experienced anything of that magnitude we can only hope that the lives of those survivors will soon begin to take on some form of normalcy. Our heart goes out everyone and especially our clients and their dental teams who have been affected and now must spend the remainder of 2005 getting back on track or relocating.

OPERATION BRIGHT HOPE TO THE RESCUE

A very creative dentist, Dr. Greg Ayers from SC, called me within days of Katrina to say that he wished to do something important to help the survivors. He came up with the idea of OBH (Operation Bright Hope) within a week and the program is now on it's way to becoming bright hope for not only the 2005 disasters but those in the future. With 100% of the proceeds going to the Relief Effort and the Salvation Army who stepped up to the plate right after the hurricanes, I am proud to serve on the Advisory Board of such an elite program with a sincere call to action for dentists and their teams. Thanks to Tim Breiding of Breiding Marketing, Charlotte, NC for the complimentary logo and to TNT Dental for offering to develop OBHs website as a gift.

OPERATION BRIGHT HOPE

Sponsored by: ULTADENT and DISCUS DENTAL

  • OBH runs through March 31, 2006                                    
  • Nationwide Teeth Whitening program (UPPER/LOWER trays for $200). What a Deal!!
  • Opportunity for the Drs, Dental Team, and patients to play an important part in the recovery efforts for those devastated by the recent Hurricanes
  • 100% of the money will go towards The Salvation Army
  • Patients will make their tax deductible check out to the Salvation Army (essentially the patient gets a $200 donation and walks away with white teeth in a couple of weeks!!)
  • BEST OF ALL: Ultradent and Discus Dental are donating the Whitening kits for FREE! 
  • Everyone can make a difference...5000 patients X $200 = $1 Million Dollars
  • Talk it up with dentists in your community, study clubs, society meetings
  • For more information contact: Greg Ayers, DMD

(864)-297-6365
docdivot@aol.com

*Send all proceeds to:

Operation Bright Hope
201 Old Boiling Springs Rd.
Greer, SC  29650

PRACTICE HEALTH IN GENERAL THE PAST 3 MONTHS

The question we are hearing from audiences and clients these days..Has the devastation of bad weather, sky-high gas prices, the threat of heating oil heat being double in price, and the sluggish stock market had a negative effect on practices in the US the second half of 2005? I must say that the summer months were banner highs for many of our clients with a distinct slow down in 50% of the practices in September..almost like the bottom fell out after the strongest of highs. And more broken appointments than the practices ever recorded!

The media definitely plays a role in spending habits and this trickles down to every small and large business. Some practices we are monitoring have had a 28-45% increase this year, while some of them are only in the teens percentage increase-wise. Typically the practices we spend a day with every year tend to get on track and stay there increase-wise year after year. None of the practices are lower than last year but many report that patients are more reluctant this past few months to spend money on bigger cases until they see how the rest of the year pans out for family expenditures. And in the SE, whether they will have a job if the work the patients do is related to the lay-offs after this hurricane season.

A NOTE FROM CHAR SWEENEY, SENIOR CONSULTANT, LLM&A

As Linda has shared, some parts of the country are experiencing an economic slow down. When and if this is affecting your practice, it is an excellent time to use as an opportunity to "sharpen your ax," so to speak.

Rather than sitting back, being nervous or panicking about the lighter schedule, I'd suggest you condense the schedule, and use the open hours as organizational time for yourself and your entire team. The end of the year is an ideal time to regroup, reorganize, reprioritize, and perform those tasks that you never "have time for."

Spreading three and a half days of clinical care over four or four and a half days is not productive or efficient. It is better to evaluate the schedule, reduce your clinical hours, and spend the remaining half-day per week performing tasks that will help to improve the practice productivity long term. Now is an excellent time to place "treatment recovery" calls to patients with incomplete treatment plans and insurance benefit remaining. It's an ideal time to contact patients regarding their past due preventive care, to enable them to enjoy the holidays with a clean, healthy smile and to prevent dental emergencies.

Clinical staff can "catch up" on inventory control, shopping for the best values for supplies, as well as assist the business staff in patient recovery calls. The commitment between the patients and the clinical staff, (the providers of care), is always stronger than the relationship between the patient and the business staff. As a result, hygienists and dental assistants get excellent results when making these calls. Keeping the schedule full is a total team effort.

Take time to "sharpen your ax," make the best of the remainder of the year, and start 2006 stronger than ever.

AUGUST, SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER NOTES

After a weekend in West Virginia for our town, high school and family reunions that take place each summer, and the Dentists Who Care Conference in South Padre Island, TX, I had the next few weeks off to create our newest two-day workshop specifically for Practice Administrators. So many dentists are struggling to give 2005 care (which is very much more time-consuming than ten years ago before all the new technology and advanced treatment modalities came about) while also being their own personnel director, marketing chairperson, budget and overhead comptroller, facility and equipment expert, and Jack/Jane of all trades. Not only does this become an overwhelming chore and take up dozens of hours per week, it creates a less than ideal situation for the family members of the dentist who need and want those non-patient hours.

If the practice is small with only three or four team members, the dentist is more than likely still the Practice Administrator. But as the practice grows, the role of the Practice Administrator becomes a must in busy practices. Knowing how to hire, train and trust this valued key employee is paramount to the success of the PA. Knowing how to introduce this person to the rest of the team to get their support and acceptance of a middle management person is an important element. Even with the PA in place, the dentist-owner must be very much in tune with the health of his or her own practice at all times, but not bogged down with the day to day details of trying to be a great dentist as well as a great manager.

Topics for this new course include: The Why's and How's of Hiring a Practice Administrator, Determining the Long-Term Success of the PA, The PA's Sphere of Responsibilities, Enhanced Management Systems (Scheduling, Recall/Reactivation, Charting, Collections, Inventory, Insurance and Verbal Skills), Personnel Management (Getting the Entire Team on Board With the Practice Vision and Happily Accountable), Budget and Overhead Control, How to Become an On-Site Consultant, and Leadership at All Levels. The date is January 13-14 at the Holiday Inn, Lido Beach, Sarasota, FL. Email lindamiles@cox.net for a copy of the brochure or call 800-922-0866 to have one mailed to you.

September was a busy month beginning with the Kodak Users Meeting in San Francisco, which was a well-attended and very informative weekend. Kodak Dental Systems is making a very strong presence in the advanced technology and integration arena of dentistry and has enlisted the help of well trained on-site support people to deliver the goods and make sure the dentist and team know how to use it. The biggest concern to dentists is buying all the new technology and not having the team's daily interest in utilization. I commend the dentists who brought their entire teams to the hands-on programs as well as the Kodak lectures. And what better city than San Francisco to enjoy an Indian summer weekend? The East Coast KDS Users Meeting in October was very well attended and again a joy to be part of with many of my speaking friends. The consultant's and Kodak Trainer's panel of Q&A's along with the hands-on technical training were two of the favorite parts of the meeting.

Consulting with a practice in Austin, TX was another highlight of September. Looking forward to the results each month of this already good two-doctor practice will be a rewarding experience for the next ten months and beyond. Already, with more defined duties at the desk, I can see great improvements in the foundation of this practice getting better with each month's monitor and their monthly teleconference calls. After the visit to Austin, it was great seeing all my friends again at the Fort Worth District Dental Meeting on September 23. The Texan audiences are some of the best and most appreciative of all..so I loved being in four cities in Texas in 2005.

On October 1, I was in one of my favorite hotels and cities, Opryland in Nashville for the AOS (American Orthodontic Society) meeting. Mr. Tom Chapman, the AOS Executive Director did a fine job of coordination for that meeting. Seeing so many friends, former clients and seminar attendees made it a very special weekend. Having dinner with Virginia Sullivan Stokes and her husband John Stokes while in their fair city was one of the highlights of the year. Many of you knew Virginia as she worked with LLM&A as a seminar coordinator for 7 years during the 90's. Reminiscing about all the places we visited during those seven years was such fun. Virginia and John are both retired and enjoying the role of active grand parenting and traveling.

ADA/ADMC HIGHLIGHTS

Philadelphia was a colorful spot for the fall ADA and Academy of Dental Management Consultants Meetings. Membership was strong at both meetings and the Exhibit floor was buzzing with the latest in equipment and technology displays. I've been a member of the Academy of Dental Management Consultants for over a decade and it was truly the best meeting this year, bar none. Special thanks to Tim Breiding, President; Katherine Eitel, this year's meeting planner and President Elect; and Susan DiGiambattista, the Executive Director, for a wonderful three days. I was so impressed with Katherine's Phone Skills Training Calls whereby her company calls the dental practice, records the way the new patient inquiry call is handled (pre-agreed upon by the person answering the phone that such a call will come in but they do not know when), that I have asked Katherine to allow me to include her service information in this quarter's Dynamic Data.

Katherine's training program helps answer common questions and concerns that stump most scheduling coordinators such as: "Are you on my insurance plan?" or "How much do you charge for a crown?" or "Can't I just get my teeth cleaned?"  If you are marketing internally, externally or both, then you need to know that your administrative team can answer these and other questions exceptionally well all the time! Why would we spend money on marketing and then leave the phone calls to chance? Does "This call may be recorded for quality assurance" sound familiar?

Utilizing the help of an expert to train and transform your telephone skills is one of the best ways to improve your results. This training is available through an audio CD program complete with an interactive workbook, TeleClasses (one hour topic driven mini courses you attend over your telephone line), and in-office training. Add to that the ability of the expert to place a quality assurance training call (when the team is ready). The expert carefully listens and evaluates the way your phone calls are handled. This is by far the best way to know if the most important instrument in your office is being handled properly. The most amazing part of this revolutionary service is that a digital copy of the call is sent to the doctor and the participant along with a detailed report. This report celebrates everything that went well in the call and gives feedback and suggestions on what could be improved in order to help the practice achieve its goals and leverage its marketing plan.  Because Katherine has worked in the past for a very busy practice as an administrator, she understands the multiple tasks an administrative coordinator must handle and how difficult it can be to be brilliant on the phone all the time!  She works hard to "set the team up for success."  She is also careful about keeping the training call a safe and positive learning experience by assuring that no one, other than the doctor and the participant (and possibly the consultant if they referred the office) hears the recording without permission.  She ensures that the report gives specific feedback so that the employee feels hopeful and confident about how to become the very best they can be.  She even provides (free of charge) a 7 minute introductory CD about the training call concept for the team to listen to and discuss.  

The cost of the service can be recouped in one phone call. Think of how many dollars you have lost over the life of your practice when the phone was not handled well. Ever wonder why you have new patient no-shows? Ever wonder why some dentists have tremendous case acceptance and others have lukewarm results? ... It all starts with the initial phone call to your office. This could be a hidden killer in your practice. Order your Phone Skills Training Call today and see how your scheduling coordinator measures up. Hopefully the results will surprise you pleasantly! Only $695.

Call 1-800-595-7060 (PST), or learn more about the service http://www.katherineeitel.com/products.htm  

WE'RE GROWING OUR CONSULTING FIRM

EXCITING NEWS: Over the past few years, I have tried controlling the growth of our consulting division. And at one time...even thought of selling that division to concentrate more on seminars, product development and the Speaking Consulting Network. The demand for our consultants has increased dramatically in the past few months. As dentist slow down, our consultants get busier helping practices use their slow time to re-group. And today more dentists realize that their team needs to be well trained, well-versed in positive communication skills, and positively motivated and directed, so the need for our services in both the consulting division and the two-day workshops forces our growth. We are happy to bring on board two very talented dental consultants/speakers who will be joining the LLM&A team in January. Our added service benefit is that we have also created a new position to manage our consulting division, our Director of Client Services, from Colorado. Watch for the winter edition of DYNAMIC DATA for their official introductions and welcome to our team.

CLINICAL EFFICIENCY TIPS

The Operator Seating Review page just went live.  It is at http://www.posturedontics.com/seating_review.html.

Thanks,

Bethany

Bethany Valachi, MS, PT, CEAS
Director, Posturedontics, LLC
2225 SW Scenic Drive
Portland, OR 97225
Tel: 503.291.5121
Fax: 503.291.1678
www.posturedontics.com

ADDITIONAL CLINICAL TIPS

The entire Instrument Management System line has been developed with the goal of meeting the office's global needs of safer sterilization protocols, increasing profitability through reduced expenses and increased productivity. What a solution!! We've been very busy here at Hu-Friedy in trying to get the word out about IMS (cassettes) to individuals who consult, lecture, and train on sterilization and overall office efficiency.

Hu-Friedy is the leading provider of instruments and instrument management systems. Dentists who are on the cutting edge are using IMS today. They understand the benefits that this simple change can make to their practice and the entire dental experience for the patient. Let me share some of the benefits they realize on a daily basis.

  • By having the right instrument chair-side, the Dentist is able to provide superior patient care. Now, there are fewer interruptions caused by looking for instruments. This not only saves time, but also reduces the stress incurred by the dental team and the patient.
  • IMS helps manage your assets and operational costs. The IMS system neatly organizes and securely protects instrument during the entire cleaning process. This results in fewer lost and damaged instruments.
  • IMS allows for safer practices - the fully enclosed and locked cassette reduces the chance for sharps injuries during transportation and cleaning. The staff no longer touches or scrubs the instruments - providing everyone greater peace of mind.
  • IMS optimizes flow and productivity - research shows that offices that use IMS save an hour per day (10 minutes per procedure). Now your team of professionals are able to use their expertise productively, rather than doing non-value added tasks like washing or sorting instruments.
  • In addition, IMS creates a clean and professional environment. The presentation of a sterilized package to the patients is appreciated and places them at great ease while in the chair.
  • Dental teams that use IMS are happier. The system reduces the unnecessary stress of trying to process instruments and meet production goals. The team appreciates the ease, simplicity and safety that the system offers. We've even heard of Dentist using IMS as a marketing tool when hiring new staff.

Most of these benefits are similarly expressed in our new 8 minute IMS video featuring your very own ADMC member Jackie Dorst of Safe Practice, Dr. John Molinari of University of Detroit Mercy, Dr. Edward "Pat" Allen, and Dr. Peter Haupers. A copy of this video can be sent to your attention by replying to this email. Once you've seen the video please let me know your thoughts about its message.

Kind regards,

Patrick - A. Lindsay

Phone (773) 975-3975 ext. 4405Fax   (773) 975-0995

HYGIENE COMPLIMENTARY NEWSBRIEF 

Get free tips and techniques to BOOST your hygiene department with Inspired Hygiene's free monthly E-zine. Click here to get your free subscription!  

"Go to  www.InspiredHygiene.com and click on the "Free Tips" button".

A WORD FROM ONE OF MY MENTORS: NIDO QUBEIN

What Motivates Your Employees?

"I just can't seem to motivate these people."

I often hear that from corporate leaders. I tell them: "Stop trying. You'll never be able to motivate them."

The advice of a quitter?

Not at all, because the next thing I tell them is this: "They're already motivated. Find out what it is that motivates them, and use this knowledge to channel their energy in the direction you want it to go."

Some people are like water in a faucet. It's already motivated to flow, but it doesn't have the opportunity until you open the tap. Your people may be bursting with energy and waiting only for you to provide them the opportunity to use it constructively.

Others are like mountain streams, which flow swiftly but follow their own courses. If you want them to turn your wheel, you have to provide them with a channel. Your organization may be full of people who are moving energetically toward their own goals. Your challenge is to open up inviting channels that will focus their energy on corporate goals.

Remember that people don't do things for your reasons. They act for their own reasons. Your challenge is to provide them with good reasons to do what you want them to do.

Those reasons may involve either gain or pain. When the gain from changing a behavior outweighs the comfort of remaining in a rut, a person will change. When the pain of remaining in a certain behavior outweighs the discomfort of leaving the rut, a person will change.

Pride is a powerful motivator. Everybody is proud of something. When you know what makes your people proud, you can use that insight to channel their motivation.

But remember: You can't change people. You can only change their behaviors. To change their behaviors, you must change their feelings and beliefs.

You may think that what they feel and believe is wrong-headed and preposterous. But to them, perception is reality, and what they perceive seems perfectly reasonable and rational. Understand that and respect their perceptions. Then you'll be in a better position to change them to the reality you perceive.

You consistently get the behaviors you consistently expect and reinforce. Look for ways to reward employees for doing the things you want them to do. Conversely, use disincentives to discourage the behavior you don't want to see. You'll find yourself leading an organization of motivated employees with energies focused on the things you want to accomplish.

Quick Links...

Contact Information

email: vicki@nidoqubein.com
phone: (336) 889-3010
web: http://www.nidoqubein.com  

CHECK OUT OUR UPDATED WEBSITE BY TNT DENTAL

Our website has been updated all of you who know, updating is an on-going process. Thanks to Tim Healy and the folks at TNT Dental, the task is easier than with any other site designers. Check out our new products and services. Order our new and just released Dental Business Conference 12 DVD library to bring your new team members up to the same quality level of your existing team members. Or rejuvenate long-term staff (or dentists) that may not have the passion for the profession they once had. Our site is: www.DentalManagementU.com. Check out my remainder of 2005 and 2006 speaking itinerary and come join us on the road during the next 15 months. Also check out the Speaking Consulting Network at www.speakingconsultingnetwork.com and join us for SCNs 10th Anniversary Celebration in Phoenix 2006 (May 20th-22ndd). Corporations, we are extending our exhibitors and sponsorships in 2006 with nine additional openings. Our goal is to have 130 top-notch speakers, consultants, dental writers and product developers. Plus 20-30 of the top dental journal editors, and representatives of dental companies for an exciting three days. If you have ever thought of speaking, consulting or writing, these three days will change your life. If you are already accomplished in these fields, come and discover what is missing for moving your career to an exciting new level of success if making connections is important.

Happy Holidays,  

Linda Miles, CSP, CMC, CEO
And the Linda Miles and Associates Team

Please keep in mind this newsletter is being offered complimentary in response to the many requests to stay in touch with our clients and followers. If you wish to unsubscribe to Dynamic Data please send an e-mail message to lindamiles@cox.net to let us know.

Miles & Associates' corporate headquarters may be reached at 800.922.0866. Fax us at 757.721.2892. On the web at www.DentalManagementU.com, or via email at lindamiles@cox.net

Miles & Associates - Autumn 2005

Linda L Miles & Associates
P.O. Box 6249
Virginia Beach, VA 23456-0249
Phone: 757.721.3332
FAX: 757.721.2892
800.922.0866 Toll-free