Welcome to Dental Unscripted

Welcome to Dental Unscripted, a podcast brand that meets doctors wherever they are at in their professional journey. We talk about starting a practice, buying a practice, and running a practice. We cover a lot of ground on this channel!

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Dental Unscripted

Should Your Dental Team Know the Practice's Numbers?

Ask most dental practice owners whether their team should know the numbers, and the gut reaction is usually, "Of course they should." But walk into about any dental office and a very different reality exists, nine out of ten times. Practice owners aren't sharing financial metrics with their team at all. That's the reality that Mike Dinsio and Paula Quinn tackle head-on in a recent episode of Dental Unscripted. Why is that, and is it impacting your business?

The reason most doctors stay quiet? Is it an insecurity? Are they afraid the team assumes they're rolling in money?  Are they avoiding the conversation entirely just so they don't have to address the elephant in the room? The irony is that by avoiding it, they miss a massive opportunity to motivate their staff and grow their practice. We even discuss how the younger generation like Gen Z's need a narrative and story behind why they are doing what they are doing. They need to know the 'Why".

Numbers Tell a Story - So Make It the Right One!

Paula Quinn makes an important distinction – it's not about sharing your overhead percentage or take-home pay... It's about connecting the numbers to a result. When a team understands that hitting a certain target or goal is what will fund that new laser, the Cavitron, or even updated patient bathrooms, those numbers stop feeling like a doctor's personal financial profit report and start feeling like a shared goal.

People (especially younger team members) want a purpose. They want to know the "why" behind the work. Framing production goals as a reflection of patient care quality is one of the most effective ways to do it. 

• Are patients trusting you enough to keep their appointments?
• Are they accepting treatment recommendations? 
• Are they returning or referring friends and family? 

These are care questions, not just revenue questions and the numbers reveal both at once.

Front Office: The Metrics That Matter

For front office team members, the most important numbers to track include:

            
• Reappointment rate: What percentage of patients are leaving with their next appointment scheduled? A healthy target is 85% or better
            
• Treatment acceptance rate: Industry average hovers around 39% (same-day acceptance). If your team knows this benchmark, they can understand why enrollment conversations matter.
            
• Cancellation and no-show rate: Low cancellation rates aren't just a scheduling win; they're a signal that patients trust and value the practice.

Hygienists - Connect Care to Productivity

Hygienists often don't realize the financial and clinical weight their role carries. Key numbers for the hygiene department include:

            
• Reappointment rate: Same principle as above, but hygiene is often where the relationship with the patient lives long-term.
            
• Periodontal diagnosis rate: Are active perio cases being identified and treated? This is both a clinical and a revenue metric.
            
• Production per hour: A well-rounded hygienist performing prophy, x-rays, fluoride, and necessary therapy should be producing at least three times their hourly wage.

Associate Doctors - Diagnose, Present, & Track

For associate dentists or producing doctors, the two numbers that matter most are simple:   

            
1. How much are you diagnosing each month? CE trips affect doctors inspiration/motivation, burnout does too, distractions at home show up in the numbers. We keep saying it... "Numbers Tell a Story."
            
2. How much is being accepted same-day? Same-day acceptance is a direct reflection of how well value is being communicated chair side. Are you passively stating that this is an issue that you should think about taking care of, or are you discussing the effect of putting it off and delaying treatment.

Paula also stats that same-day treatment as an underrated metric. When a patient is already in the chair and trust is high, that's the best opportunity to complete additional treatment, especially from the hygiene department. Tracking whether those moments are being captured tells you a lot about your team's clinical conversations and relationships with your patients.

The Bottom Line

Every department front office, hygiene, and clinical has numbers worth tracking. None of these metrics need to include the doctor's salary or practice overhead. What they do need to include is a clear connection between performance and purpose: better numbers mean better care, better-equipped offices, and better experiences for patients and staff alike.

Stop treating the numbers like a secret that only the owner of the practice or office manager discuss together in the corner. Start treating them like a shared mission.

Want more insights like this? Mike Dinsio and Paula Quinn dig into the real-world challenges of running and growing a dental practice every week on Dental Unscripted. Watch more episodes and access their full content library at nxlevelconsultants.com/resources/dental-podcast/