Dental Tribune United Kingdom

August 1-7, 2011United Kingdom Edition page 11DTß 12 Implant Tribune control of the dental practice? The treatment plan should include information about payment terms. Can payment be made in stages (no more than four to avoid conflict with con- sumer credit regulations)? Are interest free and/or low inter- est rate finance options avail- able? Do you offer a warranty for the successful integration of the implant? Be aware that if you offer a patient the option of either pay- ing in full for the treatment at a discounted price or of spread- ing the cost of the full fee with finance, you will be in breach of the Consumer Credit Act. When interest-free finance is offered, the cash price and the interest free price must be the same. I double-checked this with my lo- cal Trading Standards Manager and he confirmed it to be the case, referring me to The Con- sumer Credit (Total Charge for Credit) Regulations 2010, which came into force in February this year. In the treatment plan pack, why not include a printed leaflet giving general information about dental implants? Written in eas- ily understood language (use the Plain English Campaign website to help you), it should answer many questions patients will have. It may also get passed to friends and relatives and result in referrals. And now for the patient co- ordinator: Here is part of my report of a conversation I had with a poten- tial implant patient, while acting as a remote patient coordinator for a practice. She is well aware that the treatment is something that she has to have done but she resents being in that position. She has the money to proceed but keeps focusing on what else she could do with it. She has no issues with the practice. Last year she was going to go ahead with the treatment because she was in frequent pain. However, the pain has subsided and with it her res- olution to proceed… The treatment was costed at £25,600 – a significant potential income for a practice. It took me seven attempts over four days to speak with her, which I eventu- ally did by ringing her mobile phone. Lack of space prevents me detailing the full range of duties of a patient coordinator. How- ever, in relation to treatment plans they should discuss these with patients a day or two after they leave the practice. A phone call in the evening will find most patients relaxed but with queries (and possibly concerns) about the plan – having discussed it with relatives and/or friends. The patient coordinator should answer queries (being conversant in the procedure is an obvious must) and allay any concerns. This is not a pure sales role but the patient coordinator must put across all the benefits to persuade the patient to pro- ceed with what is, after all, clini- cally necessary treatment. If you’re sceptical about the value of a patient coordinator, the conversion rate over a three- month period was 44 per cent in one of my practices and 33 per cent in another. On average, up- take in treatment increases by at least 25 per cent. Practices referred these patients to me be- cause they appeared to be unde- cided. DT About the author Jacqui Goss is the managing partner of Yes!RESULTS. By using Yes!RESULTS dental practices see an increase in treatment plan take-up, improved pa- tient satisfaction and more appoint- ments resulting from general enquir- ies. Yes!RESULTS turns good practices into great practices. Jacqui Goss Managing Partner, Yes!RESULTS Ashton House Sale Cheshire M33 6HE Tel: 084566 448066 Mob: 07795 562617 Email: jacqui@yesresults.co.uk Website: www.yesresults.co.uk Twitter: @Yesresults www.facebook.com/Yesresults http://uk.linkedin.com/in/jacquigoss Prices for most things are made clear - however, dental costs aren’t and can come as a shock to patients