Therowshow

Three options for treatment consents . . . PROS and CONS for each method

Any time you are trying to choose between option 1, option 2 and option 3, there are always pros and cons to think about. Your patients rely on you to provide the details between a bridge, implant and partial denture because they don’t always know what questions to ask. The same goes for trying to choose between option 1, option 2 and option 3 in your Dentrix software when deciding on how you are going to deal with consent forms for these treatment options. Yes, there are three different options for how you could deal with patient consent forms and I am going to give you some pros and cons for using each method.

Option 1 – Scan and shred using your existing paper consent forms

PROS – Your logo can be on the form so, when your patient takes it home, the branding for your office follows the patient home. The form can be as long as you want it to be. There is no character limit. Most likely the form is in a Word Document so you can edit it anytime you want. The forms would be nicely organized in the Document Center because your team would select the correct folder when they scan it.
CONS – This method uses paper. If you are trying to be paperless, this defeats the purpose. Your team will have to scan the form, which takes time. A scanned document becomes an image and uses more space on your server drive than an electronic form. The form does not automatically get locked up into history unless you sign it again in the Document Center.

Option 2 – Use the consent forms in the treatment plan module/panel

PROS – The consent forms are linked directly to the treatment plan case. The signature is captured electronically, creating an electronic form instead of a paper form. The details are automatically sent to the Document Center and put into their own folder.
CONS – It’s not very pretty. You do not have the formatting and branding options with these consent forms so you will have to compromise on style. There is a character limit so you will need to get creative if your consent forms are wordy. The form does not automatically get locked into history unless you sign the form in the Document Center.

Option 3 – Use the Questionnaire Module for consent forms.

PROS – This method is truly an electronic form because it is not saved as an image and uses electronic signatures. The formatting is much more customizable and looks like a nice form. You can capture up to three signatures if you need to and, when signed, the form is automatically locked into history. The forms are easy to use and nicely organized in the Questionnaire Module. You could upload these forms to your website or iPad for patients to fill out.
CONS – You still cannot put your logo on the questionnaire. The form is date stamped but not directly attached to the treatment plan.

Whichever option you choose in your practice, it is important to have that informed consent from the patient. The consent forms should be in a place that is easy for your team to use, edit and manage. It’s a personal choice. Hopefully this information will help you make the best choice for your office.

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3 Ways for Effective Intra-Office Communications

Every office is unique. You might be a specialty practice, a group practice or a solo practitioner. You

may have a team of 5 or a team or 25, but you all have one thing in common … Post-it notes and messages everywhere. Almost every front office I walk into has colored Post-it notes all over the desk and almost every doctor has piles of charts on his or her desk. I hope you all have stock in the 3M company for all the colored sticky notes you use. Let’s figure out a way to clean this all up.

Let’s look three effective options for improving your Intra-Office Communications. This relates to how you all communicate with each other inside of your practice. Since you all live in your practice management software all day, I want you to create an Intra-Office Communication system within your Dentrix software because this will help you be as efficient and productive as possible.

My favorite option is to use the Office Journal for communicating with your team. Did you know that not only every patient has an Office Journal but every team member as well? You can create your own TO-DO list or put a task on someone else’s TO-DO list. What if your doctor needs to write you a narrative or phone in a new RX for a patient? What if you need to remember to call a patient back in April or send in your doctor’s license renewal by June 1^st. Putting a Reminder on the Office Journal will solve all of this.

If it is regarding a patient, open the patient’s Office Journal and add a new entry. Add it as a Reminder, give it a due date, put in the provider ID that you are assigning this message to, enter a description and a note. Click OK. Now this message will show up on the patient’s Office Journal and the team member you assigned to.
Now, if it is a message you just want to send to one of your team members, go to the Office Manager and open the Office Journal. Now it will ask you for a provider ID and you can select the team member you want to send a message to. Put it as a Reminder, enter a date, description and your message. Click OK.
The Office Journal can be set up to open automatically when you log in your workstation in the morning. Go to the Office Manager > Maintenance> Practice Setup > Preferences > and then check mark Automatically Launch Office Journal. I would recommend filtering your Office Journal so it will load faster. To do this, click on View at the top of the Office Journal and click on Filters, then select Reminders and give it a beginning balance date and click on Save as Default.

You can use the Appointment Note as a TO-DO list for the entire office. This note is located in the upper left corner of the Appointment Book and it is just a blank piece of paper you can make notes on. Think of it as a big sticky note.
The third option for Intra-Office Communications is to use the Dentrix integrated IM system, Dentalink. You can set up Dentalink and send messages back and forth from workstations to alert team members of things happening. If the hygienist is running behind, he or she can send an IM up to the front alerting them. Or maybe the front office wants to send a message to the doctor’s office workstation. These IM messages show up as a “bubble” in the lower right of the workstation and are good for today only.

Save on Post-it notes, clean up your desk and communicate better with your team with these three options for Intra-Office Communications.

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It's official . . . Care Credit and Dentrix tie the knot

One of the most amazing things happened last week and I have been trying to control my excitement for a while. The number one option in patient financing and the number one option for dental practice management computer systems have finally come together. Yes, CareCredit and Dentrix have tied the knot. It’s official.

Many of you have used the integrated features between Dentrix and CitiHealth Card in the past where you have a specific icon on the patient ledger that you can click on to launch the patient financing application. In the future, I would imagine that CareCredit and Dentrix will come up with a similar type of seamless integration. However, for now, it is still speculation because it is under development and I have been sworn to secrecy.

I am super excited about this partnership because this is probably one of the most asked questions I get … “When will Dentrix be integrated with CareCredit?” My answer has always been, “I hope someday.”

If you would like to read the full press release, CLICK HERE. Please keep an eye out for the latest updates on the integration.

What you need to know if you are already a CitiHealth Card customer . . .

Citi Health Card integration with Dentrix will be discontinued on February 21, 2017 and replaced with a new web page that directs customers to the CareCredit provider portal. The URL to the provider portal is www.carecredit.com/pro.
If an HSPS practice with a Citi Health Card already accepts CareCredit, no work is required.
Citi Health Card practices can go to carecreditlearning.com and use the unique username and password on their new CareCredit card to complete the training and begin accepting CareCredit. This will ensure there is no interruption in their ability to offer promotional financing options.

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Bracing for Hurricane Matthew or any natural disaster

As I write this blog for you all today, I am sitting in a hotel in Jacksonville, Fla., because I am working with an amazing periodontal office with their systems, health history updates and overall practice efficiency. Last night, I spoke to their study club members on some practical measures when it comes to protecting their patient records. It is ironic that, as I write this, we are on the verge of Hurricane Matthew hitting the east coast of Florida … so this post becomes so much more important.

It is up to the practice to make sure that their patients’ Protected Health Information (PHI) is kept confidential, the integrity of the record is sound and your patients’ records are accessible. So as I watch the Weather Channel from my hotel room tonight, I wanted to put together some tips you can follow to help you protect your patient’s information.

Notice what I said “some tips you can follow to help you protect your patient’s information.” It is not the job of your software, your hardware or your office design to ensure the protection of your patient’s data. It is up to you to put systems in place.

Since Florida is on the verge of a Category 4 hurricane, I want to point out a few things that could potentially affect the confidentiality, integrity and accessibility of your patient’s protected health information.

Power outages are going to be a huge issue with this upcoming storm. If you are going to close the office and want to have access to some of your patients’ information for returning calls, phoning in medications or following up with your patients after some surgeries, I would recommend you using Dentrix Mobile. When you use Dentrix Mobile, you have the opportunity to remote in using a mobile device and having access to some of your patients’ critical information.
Make sure an authorized team member has access to the backup of all the patient data in case of flooding or destruction of the practice. The backup of the data might be on an external hard drive or in an online secure backup system. Dentrix has the option of using eBackup to store your patients’ information securely and safely. This would give your practice a good option to access patient data in case of an emergency.
Make sure you have your Business Associate Agreements in place with your outside contractors. What if you are working with a consultant, accountant, attorney or computer company who has access to your patients’ information and they are the ones who are affected by the storm which jeopardizes the confidentiality of your patients’ information?

You can never do too much to prepare for a disaster and you have an obligation to protect your patients’ health information. It is not something you want to take lightly. Seeing this storm and looking back on storms in the past makes me realize we should be prepared for anything.

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Creating rich, meaningful relationships to increase your patient retention

If you have been reading my blog for a while you probably have stumbled across an article or two about Patient Retention and if you have worked with me personally we definitely have discussed ways to improve your patient retention and create more meaningful relationships. In many of my articles you will find tips on where to document these relationship building tidbits about your patients so you can create a dental experience your patients will rave about online.

I met a company recently that shares my view on creating those meaningful relationships and improving your patient retention. Social Dental believes that the best practices deserve the best patients. If you share this belief, read on.

By definition, the best patients are engaged. They’re not just “shoppers” who are looking for the lowest price on a one-time procedure; they’re looking to invest in a long-term relationship. These “above-the-bar” patients keep their appointments. They appreciate the care they receive and they accept and follow through on treatment recommendations. Consequently, these highly engaged patients achieve the best outcomes and the highest levels of patient satisfaction. And engaged patients tend to have friends and family members who are a lot like them. Audience engagement is, of course, the key to a building a successful online presence for your practice. Trust is the currency of the web and being real and authentic online builds trust. Not surprisingly, the most effective way to create engagement is by sharing real photos of real patients. Authentic patient photos (vs. stock photography or manufactured content) open a window into your office culture, helping potential patients feel connected to you before they ever step foot in your office.

Social Dental also makes it easy to quickly request Google Reviews from your patients by getting their attention before the distractions of life take over.

The one thing that makes all of this work is for you and your team to genuinely care about your patients. Otherwise, asking to take a photo with a patient may feel forced and cause your team to feel like they’re imposing. When this happens, the process can feel more like a chore than a celebration and the idea of creating a lasting culture of patient engagement will never take root in your practice.

Developing a culture of appreciation is the most important way to grow your practice—online and offline. Visit www.socialdental.com to schedule a demo and
mention this article and Dayna Johnson and you’ll get a $1000 discount off the set up.

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Find patients with missing email addresses

In our age of technology, more and more people are tethered to their mobile phones, tablets and laptops 24/7. I am not only a practice management coach and trainer, but I am also a dental patient. Like an estimated 88% of smartphone owners*, if you want to contact me and confirm my appointment, the preferred method of contact is email or text message. Many times, the practice is calling patients to confirm their appointments from a back office phone line and the patient might not recognize the phone number … so the call goes to voicemail. In our busy lives, we might not check our voicemail until that evening or a couple days later. By then, it is more than likely after office hours or too late to call back.

If you are using a third-party software for email and/or text messaging, you need to make sure that you are reaching out to as many patients as possible. If you have been spotty on asking for email addresses, you can search your Dentrix software and find patients who have a missing email address. This will help you grow your email list and connect with patients in a more efficient and effective way. You will save time and your patients will appreciate it.

· The first way you can search for patients without an email address is with the Dentrix letter merge feature and generate a list of patients. Go to the Office Manager > Letters & Custom Lists > highlight the Patient Report by Filters > Edit. In the lower left corner, there is a dropdown menu for email. Select only without (see the image below). Check mark patients, but I would not filter it with any other options because then you might skip some people. Click Close and click on the button for Open in List Manager. This will give you a list of patient names who do not have email addresses.

· The second way you can search for patients without an email address is on a daily basis using the Daily Huddle Report. Go to the Office Manager > Analysis > Daily Huddle Report > (see image below). Click on the Selected Patient List > check mark the patients with no email. This will generate a page on the Daily Huddle that will give you a list of patients coming in today. If there is an “x” next to the no email column, then you can ask those patients for their email address.

Communicating with patients using today’s technology and in a way that is more convenient for your patients will increase your confirmations and help increase your patient retention. Do you want to learn more about Patient Retention? CLICK HERE

* Pew Market Research Study

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Recare is the lifeblood of your practice

If you are a general practice or pediatric dental practice, your recare system is the lifeblood of your practice. Your doctor’s schedule feeds off the hygiene patients so it is critical that you have a seamless system. But are your hygiene systems working as well as you think they are? You may have patients falling through the cracks or not receiving the reminders that you think they are.

The most important component of your recare system is the setup and making sure your team understands the details. I want to take some time today to walk you through proper setup, checking your individual patients continuing care, and which report to manage.

First, the setup is key. I wrote a blog post on May 23, 2012, called “KISS your Continuing Care Types,” but obviously not everyone read it so I am going to take some of those tips and re-apply them today. Many offices, understandably, try and create a system for 3-month Perio, 4-month Prophy, etc., by setting up new Continuing Care types but trust me . . . IT DOESN’T WORK! Remember that you can only attach one Continuing Care type to the procedure code. To

understand what I am talking about, go to the Office Manager > Maintenance > Practice Setup > Procedure Code Setup, then highlight the D1110 and click edit. You will notice in the middle of the window there is a >> Auto Continuing Care where you can attach one Continuing Care Type to this code. This means you cannot link up a 4-month Prophy and 6-month Prophy to the same code.

Your options are Prophy and Perio or Recare. You can link the Prophy to the D1110 and the D1120 and the Perio to the D4910, or link the Recare to all three.

After you have this setup corrected, when you schedule your patient for a cleaning, it will link up to the appointment correctly. When you set complete, it will update your patient’s due date.

But what if your patient is a 3-month Perio or 4-month Prophy? How do you get it up update the due date correctly? You can update the patient’s frequency on his or her Family File in the Continuing Care window. Once you change the patient’s recare frequency, then your reports will be accurate. When you schedule the patient for his or her next visit, the system will know when he or she is due.

After you get this setup fixed and the patient’s frequency updated on the Family File, then you can feel confident that your Continuing Care Report is accurate. If you are using the Dentrix eCentral communication manager, you will know that your patients are receiving reminders when they are due. For a full article on the Continuing Care report, CLICK HERE.

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What is the difference between the WebSync and the eSync?

Doctor asks his front desk manager, Tina, “What is that spinning globe thing that runs on my computer at 4 p.m. every day?” Tina replies, “I have no idea, I just abort it when it comes up. It’s so annoying.” The doctor then asks, “Is it something with Dentrix?” and Tina says “Yeah, but not sure what it does.”

Is this a conversation you have had in your practice? Let me clear the air so you can understand what exactly that spinning globe thing is. There are two applications that run on your computers every day, the WebSync and the eSync. They do completely different things, but the one thing they have in common is that they keep many of your eServices running smoothly and up to date. Here are the things you must know about this. . .

· WebSync sends information out. When you use some of the Dentrix eServices, there is information that is sent out to the Dentrix servers so it can be accessed from certain applications. For example, if you are using Dentrix Mobile, the Websync will send patient information, prescription history, and bits of your appointment book to the Dentrix servers so you can access it from anywhere. The WebSync checks your appointment book to see what patients are scheduled so it can upload that information to the Insurance Eligibility feature, the Kiosk for electronic forms, and to the Communication Manager for appointment reminders using email, text, and postcards.
· The eSync brings information back in. If you are using the Questionnaire module for electronic forms and patients are filling out forms via a link from your website or iPad, then the eSync brings that electronic form into your Dentrix software so you can attach it to the patient record. The eSync also brings in those appointment confirmations from the eCentral Communication Manager and changes the status of the appointment to confirm.
· The WebSync runs once a day on one computer. You may want to go around to all your workstations and check the setup in the WebSync Wizard. Click on the DXWeb toolbar > click on the wrench or gear > click on WebSync Wizard and, on the second page in the upper right corner, check “Do not run WebSync automatically.” This will turn it off on this workstation. Then set it to run automatically from one computer (I recommend one of the front office computers that will stay on 24/7).
· The eSync runs in real time 24/7. When a patient fills out an electronic form or clicks the button to confirm their appointment, the eSync recognizes that right away and sends the information to your Dentrix software immediately.

Both the WebSync and the eSync require for you to keep them updated so you always have the latest features and security updates to make sure your software is running to its fullest potential. If you click on the eSync (big red e) and open the Plug In Manager, there is a tab for Available Updates, this is where you will see any updates that need to be done. The WebSync should download any new updates if it is running each day.

I hope this helps clear up any questions or confusion about the differences between eSync and WebSync. Communications is a key component to all dental practices now days and it is important for you to maintain the integrity of the information.

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Do your patients have new insurance benefits for 2016? Help them navigate it and build their trust.

I don’t know about you, but my insurance benefits changed this year … and if I was a patient in your practice, I sure could use a little help figuring it all out. This time of year, many of your patients will be walking in with new benefits. Sometimes they have a card from the insurance company … and sometimes they don’t. Now I am not asking you to take on the role of benefit coordinator for your patients, but many of your patients will need a little guidance. This is one area where you can exceed the level of customer service between your office and the office down the street.

In many cases, I don’t believe your patients want you to manage the benefits for them. They just need a little information so they know the right place to go and who to contact if they have questions. With many of the electronic services available to the dental practice, you can access benefit information much quicker than the patient can and you are much more knowledgeable on what to look for than the average dental patient.

I believe having a conversation with your patients and helping them navigate their plan is a great way to build trust and loyalty with your patients rather than building a wall between you and your patient. When I was working in practice, there were many times the insurance company would say things to our patients that simply weren’t true. If you can provide your patients with information before the insurance agents get to them, you are much better off being pro-active than re-active.

Many patients believe that if your office is “Out of Network,” they cannot be patients at your office. However, in many situations, this is simply not the case. Letting patients know that you can work with their plan (even if it is an out of network plan) might be the difference between them scheduling with you or calling someone else.

I realize that checking benefits can be time-consuming so try and use the online resources available to you. Many insurance carriers have online portals that you can log into and check patient benefits. I would recommend printing a copy of the benefit summary for your patients and letting them know that this is the information you receive from their insurance plan and is what you will use to estimate their out of pocket expenses. Giving the patient a printout of exactly what you see is a great way to not only inform your patients, but also build trust with him or her.

Another way you can check benefits directly from your Dentrix software is to use the Insurance Eligibility through eCentral. This feature is in real time and often provides quicker access to a more comprehensive benefit breakdown. The benefit breakdown you receive from eCentral Insurance Eligibility can also be printed for the patient and also sent to the Dentrix Document Center for future reference. I used this feature in my office and it saved me a ton of time being on the phone and logging into multiple insurance company portals throughout the day. CLICK HERE if you want more information about eCentral Insurance Eligibility.

I am looking forward to an amazing 2016 and I hope you are as well.

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Top 10 features in Dentrix you are not using

In 2003, my dental practice converted from an archaic DOS-based dental software to the impressive and robust Dentrix practice management software. To say the least, I was completely overwhelmed. Two years later, in 2005, I still felt like I hadn’t even scratched the surface of my new powerful software’s potential so I applied to become a Certified Dentrix Trainer in order to learn everything there was to know about the Dentrix program. What better way to learn than to get a certificate?

Now I know that not everyone has the opportunity to become a Dentrix trainer like I did, but with a little self-motivation and some tips from me, you will be well on your way to being a “Dentrix super user.” Since I am working with dental practices every day, I have the unique opportunity to see what features they are using, what features they are not using, and what features they have no idea even exist. My goal today is to give you my top 10 you might not even know exist.

Quick Letters and Letter Merge – Maybe this sounds familiar . . . you have a folder on your desktop with all of your office’s letters you send out to patients, including collection letters, welcome letters, and letters to specialists. When it is time to send a letter, you edit the date, enter the patient’s name, address, and salutation, then sign the letter and scan it into the document center. That process sounds like a lot of work to me. Why not add your custom letters into the Quick Letters or Letter Merge with the proper merge fields and let Dentrix do all the work for you? The best part is it will automatically put a note on the Office Journal and you can “Send to the Dentrix Document Center” without scanning (see #5 on the list). Here are some more blog posts related to this feature . . .

Send letters that make an impact . . . CLICK HERE
Can you write me an excuse note . . . CLICK HERE

Dentrix Mobile – Have you ever been sitting in the comfort of your home watching the weather forecast and hoping that the power doesn’t go out … then suddenly there’s nothing but darkness. You check the office and the power is also out there … so how are you going to let your patients know not to come in? Has your doctor ever been out of town and received a call from a patient requesting a drug refill but he or she has no way of checking the last prescription or the patient’s last visit unless he or she goes into the office? Both of these two common scenarios can be solved just by registering for Dentrix Mobile. It’s included in your Dentrix customer support plan so there is absolutely no excuse for not using this service.

Three reasons you should be using Dentrix Mobile . . . CLICK HERE
A lifeline to your patient info . . . CLICK HERE

Payment Agreements – I wrote an article called “Get it out of your head and into the computer” back in April 2014. The theme of the article was speaking to office managers who store all their verbal payment agreements in their head. What I am seeing is this is still happening, but I am also seeing new doctors purchasing practices with a significant amount of the accounts receivable over 90 days past due or new office managers taking over a practice where there has been no management of the accounts receivable. Using the Payment Agreement feature in Dentrix will not only help you get organized with patients who are making payments, but also allow the entire team to see on the ledger what the arrangement is with the account.

Two options to help you manage your A/R . . . CLICK HERE
Get the info out of your head and into the computer . . . CLICK HERE

Tracking Gratuities and Referrals - Do you know where your new patients are coming from? Are they hearing about you from friends, Google Search, or the ValPak flyer that cost you $15,000 to send out? Your marketing dollars depend on where patients are being referred from so you should know where to continue spending money and where to stop. When a patient refers a new patient, do you give him or her a thank you gift? Would you like to track if you gave the referral source a Starbucks or Home Depot gift card last time or be able to track a referral source’s gratuity history? Tracking referrals and gratuities in Dentrix is super easy and gives the doctor a lot of good information about where to spend marketing dollars … but I find most offices never use this useful tool.

Building relationships one referral at a time . . . CLICK HERE
Keep tight reins on your referred patients . . . CLICK HERE

Sending to the Dentrix Document Center – This will save your team a ton of time in unnecessary scanning, unnecessary wasted paper, and unnecessary hard drive storage space. When you scan a document into the Document Center, it takes many more steps and the file size of a scanned document is about 100 times larger (just a guess) than that of a file send electronically through the Dentrix Document Center printer driver. Anything you want to print can be virtually printed to the Document Center for file storage. This is such an amazing yet underused feature.

A little known secret . . . CLICK HERE

Perfect Day Scheduling – Close your eyes for a moment and imagine if you could see your patients on time, complete 80% of your production goal before lunch, get out for lunch on time, and finish your day without pulling the roller skates out of the closet. This can be a reality if you create it. Take control of your appointment book with Perfect Day Scheduling. When you use perfect day scheduling, your team knows exactly how to schedule because you have mapped it out for them. There is no room for error.

What if everyday could be a perfect day . . . CLICK HERE
The new patient experience, scheduling the appointment . . . CLICK HERE

Goal Tracking – Every dental practice has production and collection goals they need to meet in order to keep the financial state of the business healthy. I always encourage doctors to share these goals with the team and be transparent with the key performance numbers with the team. There are several places in Dentrix to watch and monitor your practice goals so the team can strategize and work together on exceeding the goals. You can monitor your goals on the monthly calendar, Practice Advisor Report, and the Daily Huddle.

Let's do some goal setting . . . CLICK HERE
Looking ahead to . . . CLICK HERE

More Information Button – Have you ever been on the phone with a mom and she wants to know when her three kids and husband are scheduled next for all their future appointments … but you’re not sure what’s the most efficient way to find all these appointments for the entire family? Try the More Information button and I can guarantee you will fall in love with this super quick search tool. You can find the More Information feature on all Dentrix modules. When you are selecting a patient anywhere in Dentrix, you will see it at the lower left corner of the window.
Create Batch of Primary Dental Claims – Are you sure you have batched and sent off all your insurance claims from last week? How about last month? Use this second pair of eyes to double check and make sure all your claims have been sent out. Not only will this give you peace of mind, but also keep your accounts receivable out of the 90-day past due column.

Are all your insurance claims going out . . . CLICK HERE

Patient-Friendly Descriptions – Do your patients often ask what a “resin 2surf, post” or a “Crown-porc fused noble metal” is? Or is your practice in an area where English is not the primary language for many of your patients? If you would like to create a treatment plan that your patients would more easily understand and helps them understand what each procedure is, then start using patient-friendly descriptions. With Dentrix G6.1, it is even easier to use because you can edit these descriptions in the procedure code edit.

No speak English, no worries . . . CLICK HERE

Have fun experimenting with these features and working toward increasing your level of efficiency and customer service. Drop me a line at dayna@raedentalmanagement.comif you have other questions. I’m happy to help.

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Imagine if your patient could book a hygiene visit just like making dinner reservations?

I was in an office this last week that is using a web-based software solution for their email, text messaging, appointment reminders, and appointment requests. It integrates well with Dentrix. However, when a patient requests an appointment, it becomes a challenge communicating with the patient if the appointment time isn’t available in the Dentrix appointment book. Often, what happens is that the patient assumes he or she will get the time requested when probably 9 out of 10 times the office is fully booked during the requested time. Then the patient either shows up for the appointment anyway and has to be rescheduled or the patient is frustrated because the appointment time he or she wanted is not available. There is a big difference between requesting an appointment and online booking.

What if booking your dental visit was just like making dinner reservations through OpenTable? If the patient could see only open times, then it would eliminate the frustrations between the office and the patient when the patient requests an appointment time that is not available. I know that, with the office I was in last week, this would make a world of difference. The amount of emails and voicemails that were going back and forth to try and get this patient booked was extremely time-consuming.

Now close your eyes and imagine what it would look like if the email or text message continuing care reminder contained a link where the patient could book an appointment with his or her favorite hygienist on a day and time that not only worked for the patient but is also open in the office’s Dentrix appointment book. Keep your eyes closed for a minute and imagine that you are still in full control of the situation. Yes, you say what is open and what isn’t (I know this is important because I was a scheduling coordinator once J).

Now open your eyes and let me bring you into reality with Dentrix Online Booking . . . launching in the first quarter of 2016. You can be a part of this technology movement by pre-registering for this service and receive 50% off the price. CLICK HERE to reserve your place in line.

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What if your lab cases were linked to the patient chart . . . would you be interested?

There is so much more that goes into going paperless than eliminating your paper chart. Since launching my Path to Paperless coaching and presentation, I have watched the digital landscape evolve significantly. With the addition of the HIPAA Security Rule in 2005, dramatic changes had to occur in order for the dental practice to become compliant with the exchange of electronically protected health information. To this day, many dental practices are still not compliant with the HIPAA Security Rule.

One of the most challenging information exchanges is in the form of images and digital impressions to your lab. My goals is to find solutions that are have a user-friendly interface for the team, seamless integration into your practice management software, and a low-cost price tagfor the office. I found that with DDX. This web-based software solution has it all.

When I found out that DDX is woven right in to the Dentrix Patient Chart, Document Center, and Lab Case Manager, I knew I had to get the word out. Here are some of the ways DDX and Dentrix talk to each other.

You will get a new tab at the bottom of your Dentrix Chart, along with the Progress Notes and Clinical Notes tabs. This gives you and your team easy access to your digital lab files.
When you create a lab case, DDX automatically creates a clinical note in the patient’s chart, avoiding any missed documentation.
DDX is fully integrated with the Dentrix Lab Case Manager for better case management and scheduling.
All lab case summaries are automatically entered into the Document Center as a PDF file. This makes it easily accessible for review or transferring to another provider.

If you are using Dentrix G5 or higher, you have probably seen the DDX icon on your tool bar and wondered what it does. If this is a solution you or your doctors are looking for in your practice, CLICK HERE to learn more.

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Remind and Confirm the entire family with one message

Do you have a practice where you have several patients from the same family come in together on the same day for their dental visits? If so, this blog post is for you.

I am a huge fan of automation in your continuing care and appointment reminder system.

Automating these systems not only helps your front office team be more efficient, but also helps make sure patients don’t fall through the cracks. We not only want these systems efficient for the dental team, but also for the patients. This is why eCentral has added . . . . drum roll please!!!

Family Reminders

The new family reminders are available for email, text, and postcards so your practice can choose which method you want to setup. The email and postcard will show all family members and the start time of each appointment where the text message will show all family members and the earliest start time. When the appointment reminder is replied with a confirmation, it will confirm for every family member with one reply.

Update your software now to take advantages of these amazing eCentral features and stop the confusion of multiple appointment reminders. If you want these features in your office, call the Dentrix sales department today at 800-336-8749.

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Thank you for scheduling with our office

One thing I would be asked after scheduling a patient for an appointment on a daily basis was, “Can you email that to me?” My answer always was, “Sure, I will do it right now.” Then I would open up my Microsoft Outlook and manually send the patient an email at his or her request. It was a time-consuming task, but my patients were happy. If we could somehow automate this task, we would have happy patients and happy teams, right?

Well . . . Dentrix eCentral has made this a reality! When you schedule a new patient or an existing patient, the eCentral Communication will send out automated correspondence with all their appointment details. You have the option of sending out a customized email, text message, or postcard. Since you have the option of customizing the email to make it personal for your practice, why not include a link where your new patients can click to be directed to the new patient forms?

These new features sends the Dentrix eCentral Communication manager into overdrive. It makes me excited to see all the new features making a huge impact on the daily lives of the front office team’s efficiency and giving our patients the tools they need to manage their appointments.

CLICK HERE for more information on these exciting new features.

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Why do I need encrypted email?

Let’s picture a postcard. This mode of communication is perfect for documenting your latest trip laden with landmark pictures on the front and a simple “Wish you were here” written on the back. Anyone can flip over the postcard, read your sentiments. You’d never write anything too personal knowing this postcard can be an open book. No need to safeguard this innocent letter.

Now imagine if it has your social security number written on the back under your name. Not so innocent anymore! This is exactly what an email is. A regular email is open for anyone to view while in transit to its recipient. Now imagine a letter, duct taped and carried by an armored van to the recipient. This is an encrypted email.

As a Covered Entity, you are responsible, by HIPAA law, for safeguarding your patient’s data.

Anytime electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) is being sent in an email, HIPAA recommends implementing procedures to ensure secure transmission and storage. The easiest way to do this is to utilize an encrypted email system.

Ideally, look for a provider that offers the option to send regular vs. encrypted mail. For example with Aspida Mail it is triggered by a keyword, encrypt in the subject or body of an email. If that keyword is omitted, all emails flow as usual.

Additionally, if you are receiving ePHI to your email, verify you are implementing secure storage procedures. Typically, (free) Gmail, Aol & Yahoo Mail do not store securely.

Additional Tips:

Opening Emails

Use a mail solution that has antivirus and a robust spam filter enabled.
Inspect all email messages thoroughly, including the senders address.
Do not open any email that looks suspicious. If you do not know the sender, treat it as suspicious email.

Sending Emails

Confirm the email address with which you are sending information.
Do not put any ePHI in the subject line of an encrypted email – this information is still transmitted through an unsecure environment.

By familiarizing yourself and your team about these email procedures, you’ve taken the first steps to protection. The next step would be to figure out what works best for your practice and come up with a plan for implementation. And don’t forget, documentation of all policies and procedures is key!

CLICK HERE for more info on Aspida email solutions

About the Author:

Laura Miller is Compliance Manager of Aspida, has quickly established itself as an industry leader in providing compliance security products and services for healthcare providers.

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Top 5 things to bring the miracle of technology to life

During my 22 years in dentistry, I have been both the trainer and the trainee when it comes to implementing new technology in the dental practice. People who know me see me as kind of a computer geek.

The satisfaction of getting a new computer, network or piece of technology to work was the thrill of the hunt. It’s amazing sometimes that it all works together.

The miracle that all the technology works together is actually not a miracle at all—it takes planning and professional help. It doesn’t just happen. There are five critical things to consider when purchasing a new piece of technology, whether it is for the clinical or business side of your practice. These five things will not only help bring this miracle to life but also make sure your team is as efficient as it can be:

CLICK HERE to continue reading my full article on DPR

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Thinking of implementing electronic forms? This is a must read

Which one are you … “chartless” or “paperless?” It is interesting when I talk with dental practices how they use these two terms interchangeably. Most people don’t see a difference. But put yourself in the patient’s shoes and there is a huge difference. If your office sends the patient paper forms to fill out before their appointment, sends the patient a PDF attachment of your new patient forms, or if you send your patients to your website where they have to download a PDF form, your office is ”chartless” not “paperless.”

Put yourself in your patients’ shoes and think about how much more convenient it would be if they could click on a link, fill out your forms, and be done with it. Wouldn’t it be even more convenient if the office team could direct an elderly patient’s caregiver or family member to assist in the paperwork? Implementing this type of technology creates a paperless environment and is simple and cost-effective.

When you are ready to go “paperless” and implement electronic forms, there are three things that often get overlooked.

Give your patients options for filling out the forms. My number one option is directing the patient or caregiver to your website. This not only drives traffic to your website so they can see all your services, meet your team, and get directions, but they can fill out the forms from the comfort of their home or work computer. However, there will be circumstances where the patient does not have access to a computer or they forget, so make sure to have plan B available. Plan B is not “give the patient the forms on paper and scan them in.” This is not acceptable. Set up a consult room, check-in station or have a tablet available for the patient to fill out your electronic forms. If the patient does not know how to use a computer, it does not take that long to interview them and fill in the form for them.
Layout your treatment rooms in a way so you have at least one monitor that the patient can view and can be pulled within reading view. Having a monitor within reading distance allows your clinical team to easily review the forms with the patient. Also, this allows you to have your patient read over your consent forms as well.
Don’t forget the electronic signature devices. Since there is no paper, you will need to capture the signature via a signature device, similar to making purchases at a store on a credit card machine. My recommendation is start small with one signature device for every four treatment rooms and one or two at the front desk. Most signature devices are USB so they can be easily moved from room to room similar to a sensor.

Whenever you are implementing a new technology like electronic forms where the patient will be doing the work, make sure your team does a practice run so they can understand the patient experience. The technology needs to be user-friendly. If any of your team members have trouble with the technology, more than likely your patients will too.

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Patient reviews and Family messenging . . . Whoo Hoo!

Electronic correspondence such as e-mail and text messaging has become one of the most sought-after services in the dental offices. I am often asked, “Who do you use for sending e-mails to your patients?” My response is, “I use the Dentrix eCentral program.” What I love about the eCentral program is how much control I have over the customization and it’s integrated with my Dentrix software. Now eCentral has enhanced its product by adding three amazing features.

I know, for me, reviews are extremely important when I am choosing a restaurant or nail salon because I want to know other people’s experiences. The same goes for the dental office and that is why eCentral is now offering reviews as part of the new patient post-appointment survey. Patients submitting a favorable review will be prompted to post their review to Facebook, Google+, and Yelp. Then, in the patient review dashboard, you can see which reviews were automatically posted to your website and add or remove reviews based on a more detailed examination of the content. The dashboard also provides an overview of your practice rating and other useful statistics.

One of the questions I would get from practices is, “How can we just send mom one message for all the kids’ appointments?” In the past, I would have to regretfully say it wasn’t an option, but now, thanks to all your requests, the development team has made it a reality. This will definitely eliminate a lot of the confusion with multiple reminders for multiple family members and the entire family can be confirmed with just one reply. Whoo-hoo!

People are using their mobile phones more and more as their only source of communication so Dentrix eCentral has optimized the e-mail reminder to be more mobile-friendly. It is easier to read and interact with the reminder with a mobile device.

I am extremely excited to announce to you these new feature enhancements. Since I am no longer working in a practice, I will have to live vicariously through you to enjoy these new features. Enjoy!

For more information on the eCentral suite of services, CLICKHERE

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Top 5 products from the Business of Dentistry Conference

Now that I am all caught up on my emails and voicemail messages after being in Las Vegas for the Dentrix Business of DentistryConference, I can fill you in on some of the new and exciting products I saw over the weekend. Since I was teaching six classes while I was there, launching my own awesome product (see below), and talking with the vendors, I had an opportunity to see and hear what dental offices are asking for. With that in mind, here are my top five new products I saw at the Business of DentistryConference and I want you to know about.

The PPO Analyzer for Dentrix – Not because it is my product, but it generates the most beneficial reports you can have if your office is using fee schedules in Dentrix … and it is such a great value, priced at only $300. If you are looking for statistics on your PPO patients to help you make better decisions on your PPO plans, then this is a must-have for your practice. For more information, CLICK HERE.
Practice Safeguard – Are you ready to see financial security as it should be? Practice SafeGuard is a web service for doctors that alerts you to problematic ledger entries the moment they’re submitted. At the same time, it rolls your financial history into real-time business trends and performance metrics. For more information, CLICK HERE
·         Prevent potential issues with 24×7 monitoring and instant transaction alerts
·         Understand and respond to threats with issue explanations and recommendations
·         Drill into entry details and log your actions for documentation
·         Slice and dice your financial data with flexible analytics–premium users
·         Schedule reports to hit any inbox at any frequency–premium users
Text2Floss – What if you received a text message that said, “Did you floss yesterday?” Would you dig through your purse or glove box and look for that floss kit you just got from your dentist? This new app will do just that and so much more. For more information, CLICK HERE
ImageRamp for Dentrix – Are you looking for a streamlined way to scan into the Dentrix Document Center, organize your documents better, and be able to enter more detailed notes? This new product allows you to enter the document information in one place using easy-to-use dropdown menus. Also, if you need to create a new folder, you can do it without having to add it into Dentrix first. For more information, CLICK HERE
RecordLinc – In an age of HIPAA compliance, the dental office is constantly looking for secure ways of sharing information between their patients and other healthcare providers. RecordLinc is a powerful, easy-to-use, and secure web-based portal where dentists can upload and share their patients' X-rays and related records when they refer their patients to specialists such as orthodontists, oral and maxillofacial surgeons, and endodontists. The system links dentists and specialists together in a virtual team environment that supports real-time case planning and ongoing collaboration through online study clubs. RecordLinc is a platform that provides a consistent means of coordinating multidisciplinary patient cases by consolidating the history of work effort on each patient into a single, centralized location. RecordLinc provides a history of collaborative patient care from start to finish and allows users to access X-rays and related records. RecordLinc provides a means to create notes that are shared across various disciplines involved in the care of the patient. For more information, CLICK HERE

I hope to see you all at the Business of Dentistry next year!

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ePrescribe . . . eKnowledge . . . eAccess . . . EHR

Our dental world is slowly changing from a world of pens and paper to a world of clicking and typing. Until now, the only state to mandate Electronic Health Records (EHRs) is Minnesota. However, many states will be following in its footsteps in the very near future. Having a paperless chart is more than just typing in the clinical notes or painting pictures on the tooth chart. It is about being able to coordinate your patient care with other providers and sharing information within the medical and dental communities. Even though this accessibility of patient information is still evolving, we as dental providers can start using what we have available right now.

Dentrix has partnered with Allscripts® to bring you electronic prescriptions. Being able to partner with your patient’s pharmacist will give you the ability to know potentially dangerous drug-to-drug interactions, drug allergies, dosage errors, and other problems that can occur with written or phoned-in prescriptions. This is what EHR is all about. Providing better patient care is why we do what we do.

If you have read any of my other blogs about going paperless, you know how much I stress efficiency. With ePrescribe, there are many features to create more efficiency.

Speed the medication process when you send and track electronic prescriptions with any participating pharmacy
Provide a seamless patient experience when you store pharmacy favorites by practice or patient for automatic prescription fulfillment before the patient leaves your office
Improve patient safety with automatic drug interaction checking, dosage checks, adverse reaction checks, and duplicate therapy checks
Access any information reported through the Surescripts network by other providers
Simplify prescription renewals by receiving and managing refill requests from pharmacies online, with accessible patient medication history

ePrescribe is available now in all but four states (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana). There is no download or hardware required. It is a subscription model that is a web-based solution for your practice to send prescriptions electronically to retail and mail order pharmacies directly from Dentrix. The only requirement within Dentrix is that you must enable secure passwords to use it and be using Dentrix G5 or later.

CLICK HERE for more information or if you are using G5 click on the ePrescribe icon on the toolbar.

CLICK HERE if your office needs HIPAA training or a Risk Analysis.

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