By: Mark Murphy DDS
This topic originally appeared on Pankey.org. Dr. Murphy granted permission for igniteDDS to share with our readers.
It can take years to gain the experience of increasing your case acceptance. You have to be consistent in doing your job. The fact that a patient’s genuine intentions might not be immediately clear is one of the reasons it can seem so difficult. The ability to recognize what advice or information will actually resonate with a patient is a sixth sense that we must develop.
Two aspects of case acceptance in particular often go ignored because they either seem too obvious or are just not as fun to dive into: offering individualized options and making sure patients understand insurance.
Individualized Options for Case Acceptance
You may think the concept of individualized options is a no-brainer, but that isn’t necessarily the case from a patient’s perspective. If you’re willing to provide this extra level of specificity, you can put many ‘maybe’ patients right into the ‘yes’ category.
Many large investments are paid in installments, so why not do the same with dental care? Offering financing or other piecemeal payment options to patients is a game changer. It also makes comprehensive dental care accessible to a broader demographic. That in and of itself is valuable.
When dealing with patients, break the payment options down into easily understandable terms. Tell them the total fee, but decrease the stress by making it clear that there are different ways they can arrange to pay, including pre-pay, pay as you go, and Care Credit. Using a term like Care Credit is helpful because everyone is familiar with the idea of credit. When they ask for more information, you can lay out the details of payment plans.
Understanding Insurance for Case Acceptance
The real role of insurance is a mystery to most patients. Some may deliberately avoid understanding it because of how convoluted and frustrating it can be. They may have an entitlement mindset complete with the belief that the only healthcare they can indulge in is the kind covered by insurance.
Before you ever even look in a patient’s mouth, my advice is to have the insurance talk in low-stress language. Explain the actual definition of insurance and describe how dental insurance functions more as a maintenance plan. Use analogies to clarify the fact that just like with car insurance, its more of a backup fund than a way to pay for necessary yearly interventions such as a new tire or oil changes.
These are 2 ways that will help you increase your case acceptance, on patients with financial concerns. If you’re looking to engage patients so that they own their present condition and ask for help, I recommend The Pankey Institute Course – Creating Great Case Acceptance.
Enrich your dental practice with world-class education and patients who pay with gratitude and appreciation.
