You can’t do any dentistry if the patients don’t accept it and pay for it. Your ability to get cases accepted is what determines the ceiling of your practice. Recent surveys show that the average practice has outstanding treatment in 60% of it’s charts—that’s a lot of treatment that’s not being accepted!

This is where the Treatment Coordinator comes in. Your business (and income) will go up and down depending on the skills of the Treatment Coordinator.

And more than any other front office position, the Treatment Coordinator needs to be very good at their job in to make it a viable position.

Objectives:

Communication & Case Acceptance:

• Handle the financial discussion smoothly
• Do the perfect “hand off” from the Doctor to the Treatment Coordinator when presenting a treatment plan
• Help patients see the need for their treatment plan
• Overcome barriers or objections to accepting and paying for treatment
• Review options so the patient opts for the ideal treatment plan for them
• Understand the different types of patients and personalities—and the best approach for each one
• Complete the financial discussion and scheduling so that patients show up and pay for their treatment

Insurance:

• Understand dental insurance and how it works
• Estimate benefits
• Maximize insurance benefits
• Work with different fee schedules
• Deal with all the ins-and-outs of different insurances

Patient finances:

• Collect copayments for small cases
• Make financial arrangements for medium and large cases
• Work with payment options including prepayment, in-house payment plans and third-party financing

Organizational:

• Take responsibility for the whole patient base to ensure everyone gets the treatment they need to get fully healthy
• Get patients with outstanding treatment back in and completed
• Analyze metrics relevant to their job
• Manage their time
• Monitor and be in control of the practice’s income
• Coordinate with the other team members to ensure no patient “slips through the cracks”

6 CE Hours