In this day and age of high tech many dentists in our country ponder the question about educating their patients. The next question they ask is, "If we educate our patient, will the patient follow what s/he has learned?" It seems that dentists have reached the conclusion that "Dental IQ" has a monetary barrier.
If the total dental work is less than $3500 then educating the patient is important for case acceptance. If the treatment plan is more than $3500 then increasing the dental knowledge may not land the case. Here is what you need to know about dental case acceptance.
Dentists have their own unique way of presenting their diagnosis to each patient. They can do the analysis and then suggest or recommend the best treatment plan to preserve the oral health as well as present a healthy set of teeth.
The dentist must assume that the patient will follow through with what s/he suggests the treatment plan should follow. If each patient is made aware of what may or may not happen in the future, should the medical care not be provided, this should be reason enough for the patient to agree to the treatment plan. However, what the dentist has not taken into consideration are such things as money, the fear of having the work done, lack of dental insurance, and other factors that cause the patient to think twice.
Most dentists agree that patients will agree to a treatment plan of $3500 or less. This is because it does not cause too many hardships or inconveniences. The more expensive the services the more chances the patient may decline the treatment plan, or stall and postpone the treatment.
Some dentists have learned that it is first wiser to learn about and understand the patients situation. Find out, upfront, the concerns the patient has. Then, after knowing and understanding these conditions, the dentist can try to work with all of these given factors. Dentists claim that this not only saves times for everyone concerned but will also make them more comfortable with the dentist and his or her practice.
Dentists are now being educated in ways to deal with these different situations. Other considerations they need to know and understand include evaluating how dentistry will fit into the patients' life. Will it be an inconvenience or cause problems? The dentist needs to know about their financial abilities, health issues, and so forth. Personal knowledge, such as a newly divorced patient or one that is recently married, a new job, the birth of a baby are all key factors in order to evaluate the patients.
These situations are often referred to by dentists as the "fit factors." This involves getting in touch with your patient and understanding their overall situation. Once this information has been obtained it allows the dentist to help fit dentistry into the patients situation.
So, now we get back to the "Dental IQ." It seems significant that every dentist do his/her homework in order to have a better understanding of every patient. If the dentist knows, upfront, that the patient does not have dental insurance and makes minimum wage, then can the dentist be realistic in assuming the patient can afford a high tech bridge at a price of $7500? By knowing the situation in advance, the dentist might be able to offer an alternative that fits within the patients' budget for the dental practice consulting. This will give a higher probability of dental case acceptance.
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