Dental Consultants Raising Expectations for Dental Hygiene

For many years the dental hygiene department has been known as a loss leader. We live in a new era of dentistry. If you have specific systems in place you will add value to your patient services, increase case acceptances, and increase your dental business profits. Throughout the past several years, advances in science and technology have affected all types of businesses, including the dental industry. Over past ten years alone, the developments that have occurred in dentistry have surpassed those of the entire history of our profession. These changes have had a wonderful impact on the diversity of services that we offer our patients. One of the significant changes occurring within the dental profession directly affecting today’s dental hygienist is the impact of communication and case acceptance that is expected to occur for the patient in the hygiene chair. Hygienists have never before had a role so important in affecting the case acceptance of their patient’s comprehensive treatment plan. Dental Consultants have the background to pull from to stay abreast of new advances in technology and science. We have all had course work in patient education. However, many of us have not had the opportunity to study advances in the Science of Communication.

The Hygienist? Verbal Synopsis to The Doctor

As hygienists, we know numerous patients listen to us. But, until the doctor confirms the diagnosis, they are not 100 percent convinced of the need for treatment. A complete and thorough verbal synopsis provided by the hygienist to the doctor is crucial to case acceptance. When the doctor enters the room, the monitor should show images of the teeth with the most significant fracture lines. With a split screen showing quadrant images, the hygienist should also capture a picture of bleeding upon instrumentation around any fractured fillings, as well as whatever is the most significant change that will occur from cosmetic dentistry - for example, overlapping teeth, a “gummy” smile, etc. The images that are shown set the framework for the doctor’s exam. Remember, the doctor is coming from another patient (or two) and must instantaneously connect to the patient in the hygiene chair. Whatever Dental Consultants can do to provide that connection, both visually and verbally, will help expedite the doctor’s exam and communication to the patient.

Repetitive Communication

It is the hygienist’s responsibility to continue to review the restorative and esthetics within the structured process of the science of communication each time you see the patient. Each communication time is not as long; however, it is our responsibility to continue to communicate as long as the patient says he/she is still interested. The hygienist’s expertise is stimulating the desire for the patient to move forward with treatment says Dental Consultants. The hygienist’s confidence will increase as the patients schedule their treatment from the hygiene operatory. Surveys indicate that it takes the average patient an average of three hygiene visits to say yes to treatment, if the hygienist is dedicated to reviewing the process of the science of communication each time. This is a very important point to the whole advanced communication process. In this article’s case presentation scenario, we did not get case acceptance today. However, the process was very different than the style of patient education that is common during a hygiene procedure. There was enough stimulation of desire for the patient to move forward and make a commitment to the consultation appointment with the doctor. The treatment coordinator is now scheduling an appointment with the doctor and all of the decision makers for the treatment to be accepted versus the patient going into the treatment-pending file. The hygienist also has the additional appointments of periodontal therapy to repeat the communication. The science of communication is a fun process once you learn the skills, and both you and your patients will reap the benefits of the successful outcome!

Hygienist’s Role

Hygienists play a huge role in the growth of a dental practice today. In fact, the hygiene department should be the second-largest profit center in the dental practice. Think of the dental hygienist as an ambassador for the dental practice. Indeed, the hygienist is in a very unique position, spending a large majority of one-on-one time with patients in the chair. The hygienist is first in line to present the risks and benefits of preventive and aesthetic dental treatments. The dental hygienist can, thus, set the stage to help patients accept treatment plans, large and small. Furthermore, when a hygienist sees the same patients multiple times a year, he or she has a chance to develop personal relationships with these patients — and this means building more trust. This added trust will, then, make patients more likely to listen to the hygienist’s treatment plan suggestions and more likely to ask the hygienist for help in their decision-making process. The particular function of the dental hygienist in terms of patient care could be quite varied. Dental hygienists may perform several dental operations. They’re able to also educate on correct dental health care states Dental Consultants. Yet usually, they carry out rigorous diagnosis of one’s dental state to check and stop periodontal illnesses. Yet regardless of these different roles of a dental hygienist, their principal focus is still central to the upkeep of oral wellness. One ought to have the ability to use skills practiced from dental hygienist schools from evaluating, diagnosing, planning, applying and consequently evaluation of the treatment solution.

Dental Consultants Raising Expectations for Dental Hygiene