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May 2009 | Web Exclusive All roads lead to hygiene Creating high-tech/high-touch continuing care at your practice will not only enhance the patient experience, it will make your job and your team’s job more fulfilling.  Photo: Andy Sotiriou/Getty Images In your dental practice, do you struggle with the challenge of remaining viable in this economy as well as the desire to incorporate the new technologies that seem to be coming at you faster than a speeding bullet? Which goal comes first for your practice—high tech or high touch? It is important to realize you can’t be productive and profitable or incorporate the latest in high tech without the commitment and support of your patients. And patient relationships will not deepen without high touch. In the Pride Institute’s (prideinstitute.com) 30 years of experience analyzing the successes and challenges of practices nationwide, it’s become clear that practices consistently miss the opportunity to create “high touch” because the team is not focused on creating a continuing care department that goes far beyond delivering a prophy. Not sure where your practice fits in? There are ways you can assess and change your current model to become a high-tech/high-touch practice that provides patients with optimal care. Your patients aren’t cars We all know the traditional hygiene recall appointment has changed (and hallelujah for that!). Why? Even the term “recall” suggests “I am not human; I am a car with a part that isn’t working so I am scheduled for maintenance.” And during the maintenance visit, the mechanic always finds several other parts to fix, costing much more than planned. No hygienist or dentist wants to be perceived in the same role as a car mechanic. The hygienists who have worked in this traditional model have been “occupational” in focus. By contrast, today’s continuing care appointment is the practice’s primary tool to:
Hygienists who participate in this new model have a “professional” focus to their roles (which, by the way, is significantly more fulfilling to anyone who wants to affect people’s lives). Your hygienist, your partner Does your continuing care department have a philosophy of care that supports and promotes a high-tech/high-touch vision? What do hygienists need to know to get the outcomes just described? First, hygienists in your practice must know—as part of their job description—that they are your “professional” copilots in each patient’s quest for long-term oral health. This means they are responsible for delivering advanced technological periodontal care efficiently and effectively, and they are accountable for supporting and promoting restorative and esthetic needs that will benefit patients and support the practice’s long-term goals. Assess the situation Once the foundational roles have been established, it is vital to conduct a diagnostic assessment of your hygiene department to make sure everything is being done to support this new model. There are key indicators from diagnostic assessments that can help you analyze your practice’s continuing care. These questions can be immediately used to assess whether your department is “occupational” or “professional” and what the next priorities should be for continuous improvement (See “The assessment” and “Setting priorities”). If you have the courage and conviction to analyze these questions honestly with your team, you should uncover a treasure chest full of opportunity to improve your patients’ oral health and your hygiene processes. But you’re the dentist. And I bet your head is spinning and you are already saying “My hygienist would never a) be able to say this or b) be willing to do this.” So my challenge is to you. Don’t think your patients aren’t turning to the hygienist 100% of the time and asking “Should I?” I work closely with hygienists across the country and can tell you these professionals want to deliver the best care. They are waiting for the structure and guidance to be able to continuously grow. Those who are not should not be working in your dental practice. Talk it out A great step zero to begin to create the momentum for a high-tech/high-touch continuing care department is to have a philosophy meeting with your hygienists and team. The meeting should include discussion about the team’s vision in continuing care and if it reflects the outcomes the team most desires. Is it a vision of periodontal therapy and long-term support of function and appearance concerns? If yes, this means an analysis of a random sample of patient charts would show proactive disease prevention and intervention happening on most of your patients through treatment plans customized to meet their unique needs, right? Or are you “just a cleaning” based practice? Having a deep discussion, problem analysis and solutions focused to address the above is a clear mandate for new, upgraded processes for continuing care. So which comes first—high tech or high touch? All roads lead to hygiene.
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