What My Foundation Repair Contractor Taught Me About Case Presentations
Have you ever had to have major work done on your house? As in, repairs that are totally un-fun. Maybe a new HVAC, plumbing, mold remediation? Issues that lie just under the surface and may not even be causing any known or visible issues yet?
Does that sound AT ALL familiar?
Any chance that a conversation with your patients about a non-yet painful but imminent abscess sounds a little like those home repairs? Not a fun remodel (cosmetic or ortho anyone?), or on the other side of the spectrum – my basement is flooded (holy moly doc, this hurts, please get me out of pain) where immediate resolution is required.
We recently dealt with some of these, “wait, what exactly is going on under the surface?” issues at our home, and paraded contractor after contractor through for evaluation, assessment and proposal to solve our problem. As I sat across from these experts in their arena, I couldn’t help but draw the parallels with diagnosis and case presentations with your patients.
Here are my observations:
- How much homework have they done before sitting down in your chair? I will tell you, that the poor contractor who was last in line dealt with a far more informed consumer than the first.
- Presentations and the right tools are great, but only half the battle.
- Scripts that are surface-level and robotic create a wedge in the relationship and hurt communication.
- The right tools, leveraged in a path of co-discovery and partnership are where I felt most connected and trusting in the provider.
- When we think about presenting options, opt A may be more comprehensive, opt B may feel more temporary or incomplete, but opt C always exists of doing nothing.
- Your patients may or may not be seeking second opinions.
- There’s a human on the other side of that presentation, who is coming to you with preferences, biases, preconceived notions about dentistry. How do we meet them where they are?
- You may have a better sense of what to present, or at least how to present, if you take the time to understand the consumer sitting across from you.
Ultimately, those providers who took the time to ask thoughtful questions and understand with sincerity what was most important to us, were who we ultimately chose to complete the work. Have you articulated clearly, and provided training on how you want case presentations handled in your practice Here are a few questions for discussion with your team to get you started:
- How do you think about case presentation?
- What tools are you leveraging for diagnosis and case presentation that help your patients make an informed decision?
- When do patients move forward with treatment and when do they select option C?
- How can we effectively track case acceptance?
I’m certainly no expert at hiring contractors, but if you’re looking for ways as a dental practice owner or team to fight to retain your independence, increase top line revenue, surgically attack overhead, create the practice of your dreams, and keep patient care at the center of everything you do, I’m always grateful for the opportunity to help. If you ever want to chat or have questions, please drop me a line or grab time on my calendar.
