Exceptional Dental Practice Management

Operation Stop Decay

   

"A man never stands as tall as when he kneels to help a child."

~Knights of Pythagoras~

2009 is almost here and many look forward with hope as well as trepidation.  Maybe this is the perfect time to look outside ourselves and look for a way to help others.  Mac Lee, a dentist in Edna, Texas wants everyone to get involved in Operation Stop Decay.  What if you could help a child avoid years of pain by educating them about how to take care of their teeth?  Do you realize what a difference that could make in a person's life?  Read Mac's message below, visit his website and get involved.  You have nothing to lose and may just find yourself involved in something that takes some of the focus off of the bad economy and leaves you standing tall.  Here's Mac's message:

    February and dental health month is just around the corner.  I represent Operation Stop Decay (OSD), a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on oral health.  As a new grassroots movement, we are concentrating on young children, ages PreK - 2nd grade as our first target.  Their minds are open, they get excited about new information and they are a lot smarter than we sometimes give them credit for.  And, personally I would rather help prevent decay in this age group than work on them.

    OSD's Board of Directors has made the decision to provide our educational material fee of charge to anyone who is interested.  The material was created to be given in a teacher/student scenario which makes it perfect for a dental health month function in your local school system, whether it is private or public.  

    If you want to help and make a difference in your community, all you have to do is:

1.  Call the proper contact at the school(s) you want to work with.
2. Ask them to go to www.operationstopdecay.com
3. Download the educational material and review it.
   

 
    If the superintendent, principal, or teacher is interested, all they have to do is:

1.  Print the material which consists of the Teacher's Guide and the Activity Book (Combination of 26 pages)
2. Then they make one copy of the Teacher's Guide for every teacher in the targeted grade.
3. Make one copy of the activity book for each student.
4. All the teacher has to do is open the Teacher's Guide and start reading.  There is no preparation, no needed instructions, etc. and the program contains important subjects that help many teachers reach state teaching requirements such as health, social skills, problem solving, etc.
   

    So, what do you think?  Is this something you'll make a priority this year?  There are a lot of kids out there that will be happy if you do.

 

"I Think It's A Good Idea"

 Here's Ed Horrell's weekly newsletter.  He's talking about how to treat other business associates.  I'd like you to read it and then I'll talk about how this relates to managers and the staff they lead.

I want to tell you about a couple of business associates of mine.

They are both successful and overall, good guys.  I have had dinner with each of them within the past two weeks and observed something which I want to share.

The first associate seemed to take the waitstaff lightly and as an interruption of our conversation.  He paid little attention to the presentation made (you know, the specials, etc) and somewhat took the work of the waiter as an inconvenience.  He made little eye contact and never said thanks or showed any appreciation for the service.  I noted that the service we received was okay, but not special.

The second associate, eating another time but at the same restaurant, was more appreciative of the waiter.  He got his name, used it during dinner, made eye contact with the waiter, and thanked him for service.

Now, guess which person got the best service?  Right, the one which treated the staff with a little kindness.

The point is this....want to get good service?  Try treating the service provider with the same courtesy you would give to your customers and the same courtesy you would like to receive.  Teach your customer contacts to do the same.

You'll own your customers.

     I've been in a restaurant with a group of my husband's business associates and their wives.  One boorish man treated our waitress horrendously. I was furious with him, but I hesitated to say anything because he was my husband's associate.  I noticed that the rest of us tried being very kind to the waitress, but I felt like we let her down. When I asked my husband why he didn't say anything, he said this guy always acted that way.  I think he'll act that way until someone calls him on it.
    So, think about how you treat your staff or how you let others treat them.  I try to be respectful and considerate of our staff, but I have to admit that there have been times when I've lost my patience.  When that has happened, I've gone to them or called them and apologized.  I've never yelled, don't get me wrong, but I know I've shown aggravation or disappointment rather than patience or encouragement.  When I do that, I am failing in my job.  I am paid to do it right and to keep personal feelings out of it.  It's confusing though; when things are going well, it inspires them if I tell them how proud I am of them, but if things are not so great, my personal feelings can be devastating to them.  That is because they care about what I think of them.  Now, that's a compliment to me and I have to live up to it. 
    Here's a tricky one; how do you let others treat your staff?  By that I mean, how do you let the patients treat your staff?  I know that we are there to serve our patients, but we are not there to be verbally abused by them. I will ask the staff member to leave the room and ask the patient to accompany me to my office. I will let the patient know that we value them as a patient, but we will not let our staff be treated badly. They are then invited to return another day for their treatment.  I will not expect a staff member to re-enter the situation until everyone has had a chance to relax and consider a better way to proceed.  Dentistry and hygiene are intimate services and an upset hygienist or assistant can't do as good a job as a calm one.  There should be no hostility during treatment from the professional or the patient.  In one situation, the patient decided not to remain with the practice.  That's fine, it's his right to choose a practice that will allow him to be abusive.  In both other cases the patient apologized and all was fine. I am not talking about the abruptness a nervous patient might exhibit, I'm talking about verbal abuse.  You know it when you see it. As I understood with my husband's colleague, abusive people will continue their behavior until someone stops them.  We don't miss the patient that chose to leave the practice, but I can guarantee you we would miss our staff member if she chose to leave us. 

    "I think it's a good idea."
Mahatma Ghandi when asked what he thought of Western Civilization.  

Who Or What Is Answering Your Phone?

    Here is Ed Horrell's weekly newsletter:

I get asked often about the use of Automated Attendants or Integrated Voice Response (IVR) systems in answering calls from customers.  Just this week, I was involved in some discussion with a friend regarding their use proposed use of an Automated Attendant for their successful real estate company. 

I suggested that they think strongly about using this to answer calls from prospective customers, especially if thoses customers don't call frequently.  If customers call often, I don't have as much of a problem with them.  But in the instances where you might be competing for new customers, that first impression is awfully important. 

In any event, if you decide you must have some sort of automated answering, here are some tips you might want to remember:

1) Make the greetings brief.  Write them, cut them down, then cut them down again.

2) Make them simple and short.  Don't give me more than about three options to remember.  I'm not going to remember them, I'm going to play them back, and this defeats the whole purpose.

3) Make the recorded voice sound kind.  Forget the professionally recorded digital voice and get a polite sounding regional person to speak for you.  Make me feel 'at home'.

4) Try it yourself before you go live.  Have someone else try it.  Then work with it until it is perfect. 

Remember...this is your front door.  This may be the first impression I have of you and your firm.

Make it special....you'll own your customers.

eh

    I almost didn't print it today because I dislike automated answering devices so much.  There is a specialist that we occasionally call that uses this system.  I hate calling them.  It may save the practice time, but it wastes the caller's time.  Patients hate to have their time wasted.  They hate sitting in the waiting room, so you can imagine that they don't like waiting for the correct option to come up on those phone calls.  It's one thing to deal with an answering machine during the hours that the practice is closed, that's better than nothing, but to deal with one when the practice is open?  That sends the message that,"we're so busy that we can't answer our phone."  The patient may play that out into, "They're so busy they won't treat me like an individual when I get there.  I'll wait a long time and then they'll be impersonal while treating me.  I'd better go somewhere else."  That's not what you want. 
    The voice on the phone or answering machine is so important.  The person has to sound pleasant and happy.  Pleasant alone isn't enough.  There are all kinds of pleasant people.  Pleasant and happy makes people want to meet that great person.  I called a new doctor I'm thinking of switching to the other day.  This doctor came highly recommended by two people.  The phone was answered by a pleasant, happy, welcoming person who immediately made my problem her business and concern.  She wants me to feel better and she's sure her boss is the one who can make it happen.  "Don't you worry honey, we'll get you better."  Now, the use of the word honey is risky.  You have to really mean it to use it or it will just sound condescending.  She meant it and it felt caring.  She will help her boss own my trust.  Does the person at your office sound pleasant and happy?  How about your answering machine?  Maybe you should call it and see how it makes you feel.  What's your impression of what that person was feeling while they were talking?  Were they bored, rushed or enthusiastic?  Everything matters.  Every nuance makes a statement.  Pay attention to those little things.

Start With One Person

    Here is Ed Horrells weekly newsletter:

I was fortunate enough to be asked to speak to a group at St. Jude Children's Research Center/ALSAC this past week.

I realized that they actually have two types of customers...children themselves and the donors who make the treatment possible for the children. For those readers who might not be familiar with St. Jude, the hospital treats child cancer patients with no charge to the patient.  Not one patient has ever paid for treatment.

You may be thinking 'what does this have to do with customer service?'.  The answer is simple.

The staff and donor support groups have adopted the vision of Danny Thomas, who founded St. Jude Hospital as a result of a prayer he made before he became famous.  They have replaced indifference with his values of kindness. 

I took a tour of the hospital and you could sense the care and support that poured throughout the hospital as well as the Donor Support area. Each of them feels as if they are doing something of value in their work.

Each of your employees is doing something valuable in their work.  They may not be saving lives, but they are contributing to their company and the lives of those around them.  Do you make them feel that what they do is important?

If you do, they will pass that on to your customers....and you'll own your customers. If we don't make them feel important, they'll pass that indifference to your customers as well.

A legendary story tells of a man who passed a construction site.  He asked the first worker what he was doing.  'I'm cutting some stone' the worker replied.

He asked the second worker the same question. 'I'm building a cornerstone' was the second workers reply.

The third worker was asked what he was doing.  'I'm building a cathedral' was his proud answer.

linda,do you think your employees would rather cut stone or build cathedrals?

See you shortly.

eh

    So, do you make the people you manage feel that what they do is important?  Do they feel that it is of equal importance to what you do and what others in the practice do?  That may be the sticking point.  There is a hierarchy in many dental practices that put the dentist and hygienist at the top of the scale regarding their importance IN the practice.  They may be looked at as professional providers and the rest of the staff as auxiliaries.  What you must look at is everyone's importance TO the practice.  In our own office this week we've been reminded of the importance of the person at the front desk.  We managed without one but we didn't thrive without that person.  We basically treaded water until someone came along to let us get back to swimming happily along.  If someone seems to feel unrecognized in your staff try to find out why and help them with it.  If you react with indifference to their feelings you may let a situation that would have had an easy solution grow into something that becomes unmanageable and end up with an employee who resorts to indifference to protect them self from feeling unworthy of esteem. Don't take the easy way out and assume they're being unreasonable in their expectations.   First, seek to understand what the problem is without assuming or deciding that the employee is too complex, then work together to make thinks better.  That act alone may be all you need to do.  For Danny Thomas, it all came from a desire to improve his own life.  The prayer he offered made it possible for him to help many others join him in improving a multitude of lives.  Start small.  Start with one person on your staff who needs it the most.   Watch how many lives they will impact positively in your practice.  Imagine how many they go on to help.  Wouldn't that be something to aspire to?

Who Cares About Indifference?

 Please tell me that no one on your team shows indifference when dealing with your patients.  Someone does?  Sometimes?  Is that bad?  Well, yes, even one instance of indifference can cost you not only that patient, but every other patient who finds out about it as well.  At the very least, you won't own those patients.  Here's Ed Horrell's weekly newsletter.  He talks about an incident at Starbuck's, my favorite coffee shop.

My travel companion and I were in the Memphis airport waiting on our flight to Key Largo. Having plenty of time, we decided to get some coffee at Starbucks and sit for a while.

As we stood in the line at the Starbucks, we were behind an elderly lady.  As she got to the front of the line to place her order, she noticed the tray of pastries which were displayed at the counter.

She put her finger directly on the glass protecting the pastries, making sure there was no question as to what she was ordering, and politely said "I'll have this sweetroll".

"We don't have sweetrolls" snapped the Starbucks waitress. 

"What is this, then?" asked the lady.

"It's a Danish" replied Ms. Starbucks, in an "I'm in a real hurry" tone of voice.

I don't know if that lady bought the Danish or not, but I DO know that Starbucks won't be getting any Danishes or anything else out of THIS guy.

This lady was simply doing what Starbucks hopes everyone will do....trying to buy something from them.  What she got was a cup of coffee served with a nice helping of indifference.

What difference should it have made if she had said "I'll have this rolled up hunk of dough covered with sugar and artificial fruit flavoring?"

The Starbucks chick was simply too busy to respond with kindness...she opted for indifference...and lost one customer forever.  Me.  I also hope the elderly lady starts getting her coffee somewhere else.

At the Miami airport, we stopped for a cup of coffee early Sunday morning. 

The Burger King coffee, located next to Starbucks, was delicious.

Watch YOUR company for signs of indifference.  Replace them with values, such as kindness, dignity, and respect...and you'll own your customers.

    Doesn't that story make you cringe for the little old lady?  You've probably been treated that way somewhere before and you have to admit, it gets inside.  For a fleeting moment, you accept that it has something to do with you.  With the way you're dressed, the way you spoke or something else about you.  After a minute you decide, "Hey it doesn't matter, they should have treated me better than that!"  You feel angry for being made to feel bad about yourself, even for that split second.  If you've ever shown irritation, indifference, or lack of compassion to your patients, that's the feeling they're getting, as well.  I've seen it happen and felt their discomfort.  Someone asks a question that sounds abrupt or sarcastic and the response isn't controlled by reason, but by emotion.  You can see it on the staff member's face and you can see it on the patient's face.  Watching, you may try to intercede and smooth things over, but the damage has been done.  It only takes a moment to wipe out years of good communication.  One person on a team that can't or won't communicate with care is one who should be aked to change and if they can't, they shouldn't be there.
     Another place indifference can hurt a team is when it occurs within the team.  An indifferent boss signals the team that they are just a means to an end for him/her.  It says, "I don't really care about having you here, but I need a hygienist, an assistant, a receptionist, so that I can do my work.  You happen to be it for the moment so get it done."  Teams like that aren't happy or excited, they just exist, for now, until someone who cares comes along, That boss will own them. People stay in places like that, with people who make them feel needed and appreciated. Everyone wants to feel important and validated in their job. It's what they do every day.  We should want them to love it.  How about between the staff?  It's terrible to see staff become indifferent to each other and the feelings of their teammates.  Usually it results in cliques and backbiting.  There is so much tension when this happens that all the focus rests on the interactions between the staff members and there's nothing left for the patients.  They are ushered in and out like cattle so that the staff can get back to what's really on their mind;  talking about each other or fighting between each other.  Any way you look at it, who'd want to be a patient there?  Isn't it better to have a staff that cares deeply about each other and really knows each other?  Patients sense that, too, and who wouldn't want to be a patient in a place that exudes happiness and harmony?
    Make your staff (and yourself) aware of Ed's story.  Read it to them at your morning huddle.  Have them try to scan themselves as they go through their day for feelings of indifference and have them note whether that feeling made it to the patient.  The results conversation could be the making of a great staff meeting.  This is the stuff that makes the difference in a practice. 

 By the way, I still go to Starbuck's because they make consistently great vanilla latte's, but if Ed discovers a place that make consistently great vanilla latte's and passes his kindness evaluation, I'll be switching.  Starbuck's doesn't own me anymore, and they did before I read Ed's story.  That's not the kind of "word of mouth" advertising any company wants.  Make sure you create the kind you want for your practice.
 

The Platinum Rule

  I'm a day late with Ed Horrell's Kindness Revolution newsletter. Well, like they say, better late than never so here you go:

Martha Rogers knows customer relationship management. Rogers is a judge for the Customer Service category of the Inc. Web Awards 2000, a founding partner of the Peppers and Rogers Group, and the coauthor of The One to One Manager , among other books.

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When she's a customer, Rogers hates nothing more than being treated like everyone else. And that unfortunately is how most companies treat their customers -- like peas in a pod.

Ask Rogers for examples of companies that treat her differently from other customers, and she cites American Airlines, which "remembers" what she tells the airline every time she calls or logs on to its Web site. Consequently, American offers her individualized information -- not just what a flight to Reno costs this week. "They know my zip code and what school system I'm in, and as a result, they send a message that says, 'Welcome back, Martha, we'd like to offer your family a vacation package for spring break.' This is customer service on steroids," says Rogers.

How can a company that's a fraction of the size of American Airlines reach such a lofty standard? Rogers offers these pointers:

Identify your customers individually. "If I can't remember the problem you had six months ago, or I don't learn from this transaction a way that will help me consistently serve you better in the future, then it's an isolated incident," says Rogers. "That's better than nothing, but it's far from building a relationship. So the first thing I need to be able to do is identify you as you every time you come in, through any channel."

Determine the value of your customers and treat them accordingly. "This means I recognize that you are of greater value than Martha is, and therefore I'm going to make different offers to you or spend more resources on you."

Get your customers to interact with you. "If I can learn something from you, I can give you what's best for you and give your next-door neighbor what's best for your next-door neighbor."

Use that information to customize your site. "I'd like to see these sites go beyond 'Welcome back, Martha.' I'd like them to pull together an automated message that's relevant to me based on information I've given them, not based on everything that's true about my demographic group," says Rogers.

Remember. Linda, it all comes to eliminating indifference.

    I wasn't quite sure I understood the what was meant by "recognize that you are of greater value than Martha is" and it kind of bothered me a little so I emailed Ed for clarification.  This is how he explained it:

What is being expressed is the combination of identifying your customer
characteristics (i.e. learning something about them as individuals as
opposed to numbers) and realizing that some of your customers fall into a
more "prioritized' category and, as such, expect a different level of
service.  This is exampled by different classes of airline flights,
different colored American Express Cards, etc.

 What this means to me is that each patient has individual expectations of what they want from their dental practice. Patients who want the highest quality dental work will accept the optimal treatment that is presented to them.  They also expect that they will be seen on time, treated like VIPs and given priority for appointment times.  Some patients want to be seen on an emergency only basis and have very low expectations of their dental team.  They don't enjoy being at the office and want to get in and get out.  You can give both patient the care they want on their terms.  Spend the extra effort on the patient who appreciates it and do your best to raise the other patient dental IQ so that they can understand the difference preventative care can mean for them.  A friend of mine calls this the platinum rule:  Treat people the way they want to be treated.
 

Service To Patients - Are You Unreasonable? Why Not?

    As you know I've been copying Ed Horrell's weekly newsletter here for you.  This week's gives you a sample of what's in his, book The Kindness Revolution.

    An associate of mine tells a story which occured at Christmas a couple of years ago.  It further explains how a company can "own" their customer.

My friend bought a sweater for his Dad.  They exchanged gifts Christmas Eve afternoon and the sweater didn't fit. 

My friend called LL Bean, the store that sold the sweater.  He tells the story saying "I didn't expect anybody to be there on Christmas Eve...I just called out of the blue."

Not only did he get a person on the phone, but he described the problem and the customer service rep and asked how to handle the return after the holidays. 

"You put the sweater back in the package and send it back to us at your first convenience.  We'll have another sweater out tonight so your father can enjoy it tomorrow (Christmas day)."

Needless to say, L L Bean owns my friend. 

Do I need to tell you where he shops now...a lot?

Do your company a favor and go to http://www.llbean.com/customerService/aboutLLBean/golden_rule.html?feat=gn

You'll see what the values of this company are about.  Do you communicate YOUR company's values on your web site.  Or do you just talk about service?

Urban legend has it that some people will call LL Bean's service department just to talk to the friendly folks. 

They own their customers.

eh

Edward Horrell
Speaker, Author, Consultant
Horrell Communications
901.757.3768
www.edhorrell.com


 As you can see the customer was expecting service that would be reasonable for most companies.  LL Bean is unreasonable when it comes to customer service.  And their customers love them for it.  Good enough doesn't cut it as far as LL Bean is concerned.  Their customers get better than that.  That's why they own their customers.
    How about your patients?  Do they deserve better than good enough?  Does your whole team believe that and want to provide unreasonably great service?  Let me give you a personal example of an opportunity to provide great service that was almost there, and then ruined by a poor choice of words.  I've been a client at my hair salon for 10 years.  I rarely cancel an appointment and I spend a lot of money there.  Last week I wasn't feeling well and regretfully canceled my appointment.  It's hard to get an appointment there, I usually book two in advance.  So, when I called to try to reschedule, I was expecting to be told I'd have to wait until my next scheduled appointment.  I was told to come the next week at 5:00, the owner would work a little late for me.  I was thrilled and felt well taken care of, until...the receptionist said, "You should be thankful, Martha is making a big sacrifice for you."  All of a sudden my elation deflated.  She should have kept her mouth closed and waited for the thanks I was about to gush at her.  Instead, she made me start thinking of all the times I waited a half hour because Martha was running late.  Of all the money I spend buying my hair products there, as well as having my hair high-lighted and cut.  Of the fact that there is a new, hip salon down the street from my office that stays open in the evening, which is much more convenient for me. I felt like she expected me to come in groveling my gratitude while looking at the floor in shame. Get the feeling I've got?  They don't own me, they're just renting me. Now that the hip, new salon is there, I may decide to give them a try. It's too bad they weren't unreasonable, I'm willing to be owned and to pay good money for it, too.

Elderly Patients - Lonely Hearts?

    Valentine's Day is this week.  It's a holiday that's purely fun and pretty, too.  Everything about it is pink and full of love.  Try to think about a few of your elderly patients.  Is there anyone that seems nostalgic about a lost spouse or just plain lonely?  Why not send them a Valentine from your staff?  It may just mean the world to them and bring back happy memories. 
    Last week I wrote about Ed Horrell's 10 minute challenge to do something kind for someone once a day.  Here's an easy one.  Have everyone on the staff choose one patient to send a Valentine to.  You can run a homemade one off on the computer if you don't have any around.  You can also e-mail one from Blue Mountain or Hallmark if your patient has e-mail.  We have many of our patient's e-mail addresses and I often e-mail greetings to them for special occasions or illness.  Imagine calling to cancel an appointment because you're sick and receiving a get-well e-mail.  It's one of those things that help you own your patients, not rent them.

Focus On the Kindness Revolution

    I wrote a few weeks ago about Ed Horrell's book, The Kindness Revolution.  He just e-mailed me a link to a video  that he did about it.  In the video he asks everyone to commit to spending 10 minutes a day involved in an act of kindness for someone else.
    Does that seem like something you could do?  You probably get opportunities all day long and just don't realize it.  We had an elderly patient today who was to have her front tooth extracted.  She is in failing health and happens to be the mother of one of my good friends.  She was always feisty and a little ornery, but now she's pretty tame and tired.  As she was receiving her anesthetic, I looked at her face and could see she probably doesn't have too much time left.  We were very busy today.  Our assisting student wasn't there, the panorex had broken and I needed to call the service people, I didn't feel so good myself and I had another room to clean up.  A little voice inside me said to stay with her and talk for a while.  I know she doesn't go out too much and she probably would have enjoyed the conversation.  I ignored the voice and made the phone call, intending to come right back and visit with her.  Well, I didn't.  I dashed in to try to get that other room cleaned up.  The voice was still whispering and I was still ignoring.  When we were ready to start, we went into the room and she had fallen asleep.  Her mouth was open and for a second I thought the worst.  She was fine and had gotten a little nap in.  It didn't bother her that I hadn't sat with her.  It bothered me.  I missed the opportunity to be a part of the kindness revolution.  I could have made her day brighter.  The cleaning would have waited.  So would the phone call.  The opportunity to make her feel more cared for is lost today. 
    Next time I'll listen to the voice and enjoy the patient.  When you ignore an opportunity to be kind to someone, you may be taking away their opportunity to be kind to you as well.  With kindness, what goes around often comes back around.  Set the revolution in motion with your 10 minute act today.

Are You Ready For A Revolution?

    I just read a new book that I loved.  It's called The Kindness Revolution by Ed Horrell from Amacom books.  Ed takes a look at companies that have great reputations for outstanding customer service.  The one thing he has found  they all have in common is kindness.  It starts with how they treat their employees, spreads from employee to employee, and then becomes the way the employees treat the customers.  Our patients are our customers.  They pay for the service we provide.  Are our staff members in the trenches every day or are they "ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen" like they are at the Ritz-Carlton hotels?  Do they strive for excellence, but knowing that inevitably problems will arise, are they prepared to respond with the same desire to make things right as the employees at FedEx?  At Mrs. Fields cookies "Good enough never is."  Is 'good enough', enough for your patients?  The book is so enjoyable to read and Mr. Horrell gives many great real life examples of both good and poor customer service.  I did a synopsis of his main points for our staff and we are covering it in our monthly staff meetings.  Read this book and decide what you want to be known for.