In a busy office, finding appointment time can be time-consuming and frustrating. Most scheduling coordinators I work with have created a system of using the day or week view, looking for open time. As you flip the red arrow moving forward and then forward again, the anxiety level starts to go up as your patient sits on the phone with you while you look for the first open time slot.

But what if you could narrow down your search and have the computer generate a list of the open time for you based on certain criteria instead of the endless clicking through the appointment book? Using the Dentrix search tool, you can customize your search for the patient you have on the phone and the conversation with your patient would be directed at exactly what they are looking for.

Here is how I would envision a conversation with a patient calling in to schedule an appointment with their favorite dental hygienist . . . .

Patient: Hi Dayna, this is Linda Jacobsen. I just received your email that I am due for my checkup.

Dayna: Great! Thank you for calling. Let’s find a time for you. Do you still want to schedule with Jenny? (I know she likes Jenny because I have noted it as her PROV2 in the Family File)

Linda: Yes, Jenny is the only person I want to see.

Dayna: Jenny works on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Which day works best for you?

Linda: A Wednesday afternoon would work best.

Dayna: Great, let me plug in that information and see what I can come up with for you.

Now I would open up my Scheduling search tool and see the list of dates and times that will work with Linda’s window. Select the parameters in the search tool that match your patient’s requests and click on Search/View. This will give you a list of available openings in your schedule and you can now go through the list with Linda and see which date she wants.

You have not only made it more personal for your patient but you have also eliminated the day to day or week to week endless search.