Latest / Back in 10 / Episode 23: Treatment Presentation That Builds Trust (Not Pressure)

Transcript

Episode 23: Treatment Presentation That Builds Trust (Not Pressure) · Back in 10

• 0:00
  Chris Stone: Are we ready to talk about treatment?
• 0:02
  Presentation?
• 0:03
  We are ready.
• 0:04
  Alright, here we go, ladies.
• 0:06
  In 3, 2, 1.
• 0:09
  Jennifer Steadman: Back in 10 is a podcast for dental leaders who do it
• 0:12
  all and need 10 minutes to themselves.
• 0:15
  Savanah Carlson: It's about real conversations, not curated ones, the
• 0:18
  kind that happen off the clock behind closed doors, and between the chaos of
• 0:22
  running a practice and running life.
• 0:24
  Jennifer Steadman: Hosted by Savannah Carlson and Jen Stedman, two women who've
• 0:28
  led, learned, and laughed through it all.
• 0:31
  Savanah Carlson: This show brings honest stories, leadership truths, and
• 0:34
  the occasional sassy take on what it really means to lead in dentistry today,
• 0:39
  Jennifer Steadman: because sometimes the best leadership happens when
• 0:42
  you step away for 10 minutes.
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  Savanah Carlson: This is back in 10.
• 0:51
  Hello everyone.
• 0:52
  Welcome to back in 10.
• 0:54
  I'm Savannah.
• 0:56
  Jennifer Steadman: And I'm Jen.
• 0:58
  Savanah Carlson: And on today's episode, we are going to discuss treatment
• 1:02
  presentation that converts, and the communication strategies that help
• 1:08
  to build trust with those patients.
• 1:11
  But before we begin, Jen, how are you doing today?
• 1:16
  Jennifer Steadman: Oh, just ducky, my dear.
• 1:18
  Just ducky, I think it's just one of those days, huh?
• 1:22
  Yeah, it's like a smile and manage type of day.
• 1:26
  It's okay to have an off day, but we are managing sometimes.
• 1:30
  We all just do it.
• 1:31
  And we're here.
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  Ta we're here.
• 1:34
  Yeah, we're we're, I'm actually excited to talk about this topic because
• 1:38
  Me too, I will say as a clinician.
• 1:44
  It's a clinician's job and a provider's job to make sure that they get
• 1:48
  diagnosis right and that they educate the patient so that they understand
• 1:53
  that they need the treatment.
• 1:55
  But then the role of someone on the admin team, whatever their job description,
• 2:00
  whatever their title is, I'll say.
• 2:03
  It's their job to make sure that that patient has the, has a way to pay, right?
• 2:09
  Has a way to get that care.
• 2:10
  So whether it's financing or, you know, payment plans, do not
• 2:15
  recommend in-house payment plans.
• 2:17
  Um, no, you're not a bank.
• 2:19
  Don't act like a bank.
• 2:20
  You're not the bank, not worth, worth it.
• 2:22
  Um, so there's so many different companies that can help to support you with that.
• 2:26
  But having that conversation is really important.
• 2:28
  And you need to know as a clinician that when that patient goes up to
• 2:33
  the front or goes to the admin area, that handoff is gonna be good one,
• 2:37
  that patient's gonna come back to see you so that they can get healthier.
• 2:43
  Savanah Carlson: And I wanna, I wanna go back to something that you said
• 2:46
  about the discussion of treatment needs and that being done by the clinicians.
• 2:51
  And while it is done, obviously by the clinicians, 'cause they are the experts
• 2:56
  in this, the ones doing the exam and the treatment it is really important
• 3:01
  for our clinicians to use everyday language when discussing treatment
• 3:06
  and not clinical jargon patients.
• 3:11
  Wanna feel like you're talking with them, not at them.
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  And sometimes clinical jargon can honestly feel belittling, like,
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  I don't know what you're saying.
• 3:20
  Mm-hmm.
• 3:20
  Um, so relating to your patients in that regard, because patients
• 3:24
  they don't buy dentistry really.
• 3:26
  They buy trust.
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  They buy your trust.
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  And the way that you're, the way that you frame your treatment
• 3:34
  is as much treatment in itself.
• 3:37
  Oh yeah.
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  So you have to apply a treatment to your communication style to sell your
• 3:43
  Jennifer Steadman: treatment, right?
• 3:44
  Yeah, absolutely.
• 3:45
  And even as a hygienist, you know, when we're, say when we're taught in school,
• 3:50
  everything is scaling and root planning.
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  You get out to the real world.
• 3:54
  No one knows what the heck scaling and root planning is.
• 3:57
  No, come on.
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  No one knows that.
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  But you think when you graduate that everyone knows that because
• 4:02
  that's what they teach you.
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  Well, they also teach you to do a prophy in four hours.
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  So that's not real life either.
• 4:08
  But just under the terms and what people understand, um, right, you
• 4:15
  have an active infection, you have periodontal disease, and this is how
• 4:18
  we're going to treat it instead of.
• 4:20
  You need to come back in for scaling route planning.
• 4:23
  I have no clue what you're talking about.
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  So really just, and making sure that, you know, you talk about that jargon, everyone
• 4:30
  on your team needs to use succinct.
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  Yeah.
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  Yep.
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  Savanah Carlson: Right.
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  Everyone needs to be calibrated.
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  I'm not a fan of scripting.
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  However, I think that.
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  A foundation in language, let's say, rather than true scripting.
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  'cause I don't want you to memorize it and then it to sound robotic.
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  I want you to look at a framework, internalize it and make it your own too.
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  Mm-hmm.
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  Like you said, like you have localized periodontitis and
• 4:58
  you need scaling or cleaning.
• 5:00
  I, I mean mm-hmm.
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  Yeah.
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  No one's gonna buy that.
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  No.
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  Look, you, you have an infection.
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  If we don't treat it now, it's gonna spread.
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  And it can cause food loss.
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  So let's handle this now before it gets worse.
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  Right.
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  And the best, it's the best way to stop it.
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  To keep you healthy.
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  Jennifer Steadman: Yeah.
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  Like even a prophylaxis.
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  What?
• 5:22
  Right?
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  Like it's your wellness visit come in.
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  Yeah.
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  Your hygiene appointment.
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  It's your, we're gonna check on everything, see how everything's going.
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  And that's, you know, you are preventing disease at that point, right?
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  It's your preventive appointment versus your, therapy appointment because
• 5:40
  you need to have periodontal therapy.
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  Right.
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  But there's so many different things like that too.
• 5:45
  And even just understanding like, well, why do I need a crown?
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  I don't wanna have a crown.
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  It's a helmet
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  Savanah Carlson: for your
• 5:52
  Jennifer Steadman: tooth.
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  Savanah Carlson: It keeps it strong and protected.
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  Yeah.
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  Honestly, honestly,
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  Jennifer Steadman: don't look like helmets though.
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  Can you imagine?
• 6:00
  I
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  Savanah Carlson: know.
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  Hand to God, I hand to God.
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  I've, I've said that to a patient because I always feel that
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  the treatment needs need to be discussed in the treatment room.
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  When they get to me in the consult room to discuss their appointments
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  and to discuss financials, I. It's my hope that by the time they sit
• 6:21
  down, they don't have any other questions about the treatment at all.
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  But I have said this crown is a helmet.
• 6:30
  It keeps it
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  Jennifer Steadman: strong but it makes sense, right?
• 6:34
  And I don't have long sleeves on today, but like even when I used to do.
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  You know, your periodontal evaluation, first of all, you
• 6:40
  don't say probe because people are like, you're gonna do what to me?
• 6:44
  No thank you.
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  No one wants to be probed.
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  But like showing them what it means, right?
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  Like, use your finger.
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  So I'm gonna use my sleeve just because I don't have long sleeves.
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  And just show them like, this is the pocket, right?
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  And you go around.
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  I used to do that with like my scrub jacket, right?
• 6:58
  'cause it's always tight, tight sleeves for hygiene.
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  But there's so many different things that you can do to help them understand.
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  But as an admin team member, you need to know that those
• 7:07
  conversations have already happened.
• 7:09
  Yeah.
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  And that's why it's important that the team is calibrated on the same
• 7:12
  language that they're using, not the script that they're using.
• 7:17
  Right, because then you're right, it does sound fake and robotic, the same language.
• 7:21
  So what do you call things, right?
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  We call it this, not that we talked before in a previous episode too.
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  Like don't call it the waiting room because then people
• 7:29
  think that they're gonna wait.
• 7:30
  Right?
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  It's the reception area.
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  It's our welcoming area.
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  So just what are you going to call it as a team?
• 7:35
  And then just make sure that everyone's doing the same thing, but when that
• 7:38
  patient comes out to the front, it should not be the first time that
• 7:42
  they're hearing about that treatment.
• 7:43
  Savanah Carlson: No.
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  No, absolutely not.
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  And treatment, treatment really is, it's about preventing pain not being a
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  bandaid for when it, for when it breaks.
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  Which having that foundational language will only help to keep patients as
• 8:01
  healthy as possible from the get go.
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  From the get go.
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  What are.
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  What are common barriers that you faced when you were managing
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  gen when it came to treatment?
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  Like normalizing concerns.
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  Creating buy-in from the patient.
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  Yeah.
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  When
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  Jennifer Steadman: finances Yeah.
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  Like handling the patient's objections.
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  Right.
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  And you, that's when education of your team really comes into play.
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  Savanah Carlson: Yeah.
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  And the
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  Jennifer Steadman: biggest thing is always finances.
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  So you need to remove that barrier.
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  So you need to make sure that you have.
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  Multiple payment solutions for them, not just one.
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  You have to have multiple because they might not be approved on one,
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  but they be approved on another.
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  Right.
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  There's so many different things out there.
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  But you need to remove the barriers, and I think that is, that's the biggest one, is
• 8:54
  it's always finances, so you need to make sure that your office has the resources
• 8:59
  for your team to understand, but also for your patients, so that way they can do it.
• 9:03
  And even.
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  And the, the comfort of their own home.
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  Like they can scan and apply or pre be a pre-approved and
• 9:11
  different things like that too.
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  There's so many different resources out there now.
• 9:15
  Savanah Carlson: And a couple of things that you can say to a patient who has
• 9:20
  concerns about financing, you know, um.
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  I want you to feel comfortable with the treatment plan that the
• 9:29
  doctor discussed with you, and I want you to feel comfortable
• 9:32
  both clinically and financially.
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  So let's go over together, what insurance going to cover, and then what your
• 9:42
  investments going to be and what flexible options that we can offer for you and.
• 9:48
  It's most important that you are cared for, and if it helps, we,
• 9:52
  let's talk about phasing treatments.
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  You don't feel overwhelmed there.
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  I mean, there are ways to just, it's not never just a one and done with a patient.
• 10:00
  You always have to look at the options because the number one goal for any dental
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  practice, this is why we're in business, is to keep people as healthy as possible.
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  Jennifer Steadman: Yeah.
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  And I would say too, don't judge a book by its cover per se, because I've had
• 10:15
  patients that have come in before and just maybe buy their clothes or the
• 10:19
  way that they're dressed or anything.
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  Some of the team members might think that they can't afford it or vice versa, or
• 10:27
  that they could afford it and they can't.
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  Right.
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  So every person, put every person as an equal and just
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  say, ask them the question like.
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  I exactly what you said, right?
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  I want this to be comfortable for you.
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  Yeah.
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  Clinically and and to your wallet.
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  And financially, don't expect that someone can pay $500 a
• 10:46
  month, $300 a month, $200 a month.
• 10:49
  So you need to make sure that you are very flexible in what you can offer
• 10:54
  them That is not you or the bank, right?
• 10:57
  It needs the source.
• 10:59
  Savanah Carlson: Yeah.
• 11:00
  Our job isn't to pressure the patient, it's to mm-hmm.
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  It's to give them the best information available so that they can make
• 11:06
  the best decision that feels right for them and their dental health.
• 11:10
  Correct.
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  Love it.
• 11:13
  Love it.
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  The strongest phrase I would, I would always say, and I, it's, I
• 11:17
  don't know if it's like cliche, if that's even the right word, but
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  like, if you were my family member.
• 11:22
  This is exactly what I would say for you to do too.
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  That can go leaps and bounds too.
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  But you can't just come out of the gate saying that, be like,
• 11:31
  Hey, you're like my ma. Mm-hmm.
• 11:32
  You need to do this treatment.
• 11:33
  You, you gotta get their buy in before you can do that.
• 11:38
  Jennifer Steadman: Absolutely.
• 11:39
  If you were my friends or family, this is the, I would offer them the same
• 11:42
  exact thing that I'm offering you.
• 11:44
  Yeah.
• 11:44
  It's really important that you have also that just level of rapport with them.
• 11:49
  Savanah Carlson: Yeah.
• 11:49
  It's
• 11:49
  Jennifer Steadman: really important.
• 11:51
  Yeah.
• 11:51
  And last thing before we clock out, the doctor or hygienist needs to set
• 11:59
  you up for success and pass that baton in the handoff and say, you know, I.
• 12:06
  Susie, this is the treatment that Dr.
• 12:09
  Smith reviewed with you today, and we talked about the importance of it.
• 12:13
  Savannah, we really need to get her in within the next
• 12:17
  week, two weeks at the most.
• 12:19
  I'm gonna leave you with Savannah.
• 12:21
  You were in great hands with her.
• 12:22
  She's gonna make sure that we can get you in in the next week or
• 12:26
  two and that you're taken care of.
• 12:29
  Done.
• 12:30
  I love that.
• 12:32
  It's, it's really passing that off because they might not know you like
• 12:36
  they know the doctor or the hygienist.
• 12:38
  It's really important that they do that, because if they're not gonna set
• 12:41
  you up for success, you're not setting the patient up for success either.
• 12:44
  Savanah Carlson: Mm-hmm.
• 12:45
  It also, it encourages like a culture of, of listening too.
• 12:50
  Right?
• 12:50
  It's the patient listening to the doctor, the, the.
• 12:56
  Admin team listening to the clinicians on walkout and then everyone listening to the
• 13:02
  patient right before the patient says yes.
• 13:06
  Exactly.
• 13:07
  Exactly.
• 13:08
  Jennifer Steadman: Mm-hmm.
• 13:09
  So there we go.
• 13:10
  So on that note, there we go.
• 13:12
  Savanah Carlson: Yeah, and you know what?
• 13:13
  Celebrate that case acceptance, win as a team.
• 13:17
  Yes.
• 13:17
  You have great
• 13:19
  Jennifer Steadman: communication strategies.
• 13:21
  Yes.
• 13:22
  Well, we are gonna clock out for right now, but thank you everyone for joining
• 13:26
  us today, and we'll see you real soon.
• 13:29
  Savanah Carlson: Communicate effectively.
• 13:31
  Bye!,
• 13:32
  Jennifer Steadman: Thanks for spending a few minutes with us on back in 10.
• 13:35
  If something made you laugh, nod or feel a little more human, share it with a friend
• 13:39
  and make sure that you're subscribed.
• 13:41
  You can also follow us on Instagram at Back in 10 Pod for more behind
• 13:45
  the scenes updates and probably
• 13:48
  a little chaos.
• 13:49
  We're not here to have it all figured out.
• 13:52
  We are just here to tell you the things that we wish someone had told us.
• 13:56
  Savanah Carlson: And remind you that leadership doesn't
• 13:58
  have to be perfect, just real.
• 14:01
  We'll be back in 10 in.