By: Howard Farran, DDS, MBA, MAGD, Publisher, DentalTown Magazine

The phone rings and Tracy, our patient services check-in associate answers saying, “Thank-you for calling Today’s Dental, this is Tracy, I can help you.” Patient, “Hello, I am a new patient and I would like to make an appointment to have my teeth cleaned.” Tracy, “Before we can schedule your cleaning we will need to have you come in for an initial exam with the doctor. We will take a full-mouth series x-ray and also a panoramic x-ray. The doctor will do a complete examination, check for oral cancer, measure your gums and do a treatment plan of any work you may need. Based on your examination, we can schedule your cleaning appointment.” OR Tracy, “We can’t schedule you for a cleaning because we don’t know what type of cleaning you need until the doctor does the diagnosis.” OR Tracy, “This is our office policy!”

Sound familiar? Patients need to be educated on the different “types” of cleanings. At my office we have our cleaning case types broken down. (see case type chart to the right)

Our patients sign a case-type treatment plan form at their examination appointment. The forms explain the need for the multiple cleanings and also the appointment times needed along with the fees with their insurance breakdown. These forms work very well in our practice. The patients leave well informed and educated on the treatment needed. We scan the signed form into Kodak SoftDent, which allows us to view the form at their next appointment. This eliminates the guesswork at check-out. Patients and staff all agree on what is to be collected at their next visits. Listed on the following page are the forms we use.

If you would like a digital copy of Today's Dental Periodontitis Protocol in a word document, send an email to howard@dentaltown.com.