The New Patient Coordinator Joe Steven Jr., DDS

We are always evolving in our quest for the ideal protocols to improve our business. I really believe we have finally found the best protocol for processing new patients in our office. It only took me 32 years to figure it out. I guess that’s why they call it the “practice” of dentistry.

Over the years we have had several different ways of processing new patients. As the size of our office and team grew, we made modifications to it. For the last 10 years I had an idea about how I wanted to do it, just didn’t for various reasons. But, because of some changes in our personnel, I decided to go for it.

We have nine treatment rooms, four of which are scheduled for hygiene each day. Seven months ago, we had four full-time hygienists, and added one more because one of our assistants just graduated from hygiene school.

I decided to create a new position in the office which we call the New Patient Coordinator (NPC). We rotate that position each day among three of our hygienists and one of our assistants. One of those four people is pre-assigned the position of NPC each day. We average about 75 new patients each month, which averages out to about four to five new patients a day.

Now, before you think I’ve totally lost it because I’m paying hygienists to do something that an entry-level person can do, let me explain how it works. In Kansas, hygienists can give anesthetic. Obviously the NPC position isn’t a full-time job so they precede me into my treatment rooms and give anesthetic for me. Many days I hardly give any injections at all, which I love, and the time savings and reduced stress is great. To me, that more than compensates paying a hygiene salary to my NPC.

When a new patient comes in, the front desk calls the NPC on the radio headset to let her know. A NPC Post-it note is adhered to the patient’s chart. This is a checklist of items that need to be done by the NPC to process this new patient properly. I have to admit that prior to this new position in our office, many of these things were “hit and miss” as far as getting done. I know it is important to do all of these things every time, and that’s why we created this position.

The first thing they do is take the new patient into our consultation room to take a photo that gets laminated on the outside of the patient folder. We use an inexpensive “point and shoot” camera and take two photos: a full face and a close-up of their smile. We print out a two-plex photo and adhere it to the folder with Photo Savers. This not only impresses the patients, it is also valuable to us when talking on the phone since we can easily identify a patient who hasn’t been in for years. It’s also great for when an auxillary goes out front to greet a patient in a reception area full of people. Or, when one of my office administrators brings me a chart for a patient’s problem who hasn’t been in for a while. Many times simply looking at the photo reminds me of the particular situation and makes it easier for me to resolve the matter. I like having the close-up smile shot because it is a constant reminder of any possible cosmetic concerns that we need to bring up with the patient. If you’re not doing these new patient photos, you might want to consider doing so. They have many great benefits!

Then the NPC reviews their medical history. If there is a need to contact their medical doctor, they do so. If there are unanswered responses on our health history as there are many times, they get it completed. Then, they take the patient’s blood pressure and record it on the patient’s chart. In 32 years, we have never taken blood pressure as part of the new patient exam. We decided it’s about time! I know many offices have been doing this for years, but most do not. Now we do, and it is done on every patient. It is a valuable service. And yes, we do refer some of these patients to their medical doctor when we get high readings. It’s just another service that we really should be providing our patients, and it sets the tone for new patients that we are very thorough and concerned about their overall health.

Keep in mind that the sequence of these things change all the time depending on the situation and the patient’s needs. Obviously, if the new patient is swollen or in a lot of pain, we will take the photo at a later visit. But, the bright orange Postit note stays on the patient’s chart until all things are completed. At the bottom of the note is where the NPC writes his/her name so that if anyone has any questions pertaining to these records, we know who to talk to.

Too many offices miss opportunities to take the proper and needed X-rays especially with non-insured patients. This checklist is a reminder to the NPC to be sure and propose to the patient what X-rays are recommended, and then relay that information to the clinical staff that will be seeing that patient next. Many times the NPC will take those X-rays herself if time allows.

During these initial conversations with the patient, the NPC will discuss the patient’s possible interest in whitening their teeth. We don’t use any set scripts or dialogue. The NPC simply eases that in somewhere while going through this checklist. One way is to just ask the patient if they have ever tried any whitening products on their teeth before. That usually starts the conversation, then go from there. Once again, this is another missed opportunity in many practices.

Another “hit and miss” duty that we haven’t been very consistent about for the past 32 years (until now) is sending out “Welcome to Our Practice” greeting cards and a “Thank You for Referring” card when appropriate. For 20 years at our seminars I’ve talked about how important these little tasks are for helping build our practices. But, in most offices there is not a system in place to be sure that they get done in a timely matter, or at all.

We used to keep an assortment of various greeting cards in the office – which was always a mess! We would run out of cards or envelopes, and it wasn’t easy to keep them organized and supplied properly. We don’t do that anymore. We use a Web-based company called Send Out Cards (SOC) that does it all for us and costs less than when we were doing it ourselves. Every business should use this service to stay in touch with their clients. Plus, I use it for my personal use when I want to send a greeting card to a friend or family member.

The NPC can take care of many of the things that get tossed to the wayside because the receptionist and the doctor are busy. I would be remiss if I didn’t point out how important this checklist is in getting the most complete information possible from our new patients, especially their medical history. Too many times, these histories are not reviewed properly or the patient’s medical doctor has not been contacted concerning the patient’s medical condition and it ends up in court. With this checklist these situations might be avoided.

You can get these bright orange NPC Post-it notes from KISCO, and use as is until you design your own. Then, we can order you custom ones if you’d like to specifically meet your NPC checklist guidelines. Either way, I think you will quickly see how valuable the simple idea of an NPC is for developing a more successful practice!