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ePaper created 2015-11-12, 17:51:56 | version 1.38.0
practice management _ TC role I _The TC concept A TC is someone in your practice who, with the right skills and training, will facilitate the new patient process. He or she bridges the gap between the new patient, the practice and the staff. The TC promotes and sells the practice and its services by demonstrating their true value to prospective patients, frees up the practitioner’s time, increases case acceptance ratios and, resultantly, increases practice profits. Consider the time spent by the practitioner with the new patient and calculate how much of that time is non-diagnostic. A TC can often reduce up to 60 per cent of practitioner–patient time. Rather thanthisbeingabarriertopatients—whichisindeed what many practitioners perceive to be the case— in my experience, patients actually feel much more at ease with the TC and therefore better informed. Doctor time is not always doctor time. As a typi- cal example: if an new patient appointment is 30 minutes, but the clinical part is actually only 15 minutes, there is potentially 15 minutes still available. Think about the impact an additional 15 minutes for every new patient in the appoint- ment diary could have. A good TC will manage all aspects of the patient journey, from referral to case start, and potentially increase your case starts. He or she is the first point of contact. People buy from people, so the develop- ment of a relationship and establishing of rapport between the TC and the new patient are crucial to the success of your conversion from referral to start of treatment. The TC informally chats to the new patient prior to consultation. This helps not only to foster rapport but also to gain a better idea of the patient’s needs and wants. I recommend to all my TCs to be present at the consultation to listen and understand clinically what is and is not possible in order to allow the TC todeterminehowheorshewillconductatop-notch case presentation. The TC carries out the case pres- entation, reiterates the treatment options available to the patient, discusses these, answers any ques- tions the patient may have, and clarifies proposed treatment. He or she also discusses the informed consent, shows before and after photographs of similar cases, and addresses any barriers or con- cerns the patient may have. The TC also explains the financial options and determines the most suitable payment method for the patient’s needs, as well as preparesthewalk-outpack.Thevalueofawalk-out pack should not be underestimated and should reflect the values of the practice, including all in- formationthepatientneeds,thefinanceagreement or contract, diagnostic report, photographs of the patient(anexcellentmarketingtool),informedcon- sent and anything else the practitioner feels adds value to the consultation. Toomanynewpatientsarelostduetolackoffol- low-up.AgoodTCfollowsupandprovidesmonthly information on patient conversions to assist with strategic planning. All practices should have a pa- tient journey tracker. _Filling the role: An internal solution? Therearenohardandfastrules.Itdependsupon the size and aspirations of your practice and the qualities of existing members of your team. If you have a team member who fulfils the characteristics of a TC and he or she wants the challenge, then the answer is yes. Keep in mind that you may well need to fill that person’s current position. Some practices streamline job descriptions al- lowing them to create the new role without having to hire another staff member. Whether it is a full- time role or not depends upon various factors, including the size of the practice; the number of practitioners,chairsandpatients;andtheprofitas- pirations. Many practices implement the role and monitor its progress and impact. This often helps the team to accept the change and gives the practitioner the opportunity to assess any training needs of the TC and to access how remuneration will be affected. The role of your TC should fit in with your prac- tice’s culture and aspirations for patient care. How- ever you choose to implement the role, the only guarantee is that you will benefit enormously. Augmenting your team with a well-trained TC can reap tremendous rewards for you, the team and yourpatients.ATC’stailoredandpersonalapproach to care, follow-up and communication with pa- tients fosters trust and increases patient satis- faction and retention._ I 35CAD/CAM 4_2015 Lina Craven is founder and Director of Dynamic Perceptions,an orthodontic management consultancy and training firm in Stone in the UK, and has many years of practice-based experience. She can be contacted at info@linacraven.com. CAD/CAM_about the author CAD0415_34-35_Craven 06.11.15 12:15 Seite 2 CAD0415_34-35_Craven 06.11.1512:15 Seite 2