Ever have trouble getting patients to agree to the treatment they need? We talk about how to explain procedures and costs in a way that makes sense to patients and builds trust. By using a few simple communication tips, you’ll find more patients saying “yes” to the care they need – a win-win for them and your practice.

Hi there, and welcome back to the Class Solutions Dental Education Podcast.

I'm your host, Phil Cole, and today we're diving into a topic that affects your production, your profitability, and your patient experience all at the same time, and that's case acceptance.

Let me ask you this.

How many times have you explained a treatment plan and you thought, oh, man, they need this, But I don't think they're going to move forward with it.

Well, you're not alone.

And in this episode, we're going to break down how to communicate treatment in a way that's clear, personal, value driven, so your patients don't just understand what they need, but they also want to say yes to it.

Now, the first thing we got to look at is why patients don't say yes.

And I'm telling you, we see this with our coaches and with almost every doctor actor when we have these conversations.

It comes up with the regular thing of they can't afford it.

Well, it's not always about the money.

And I would say that you just got to get off that mindset.

It's a terrible mindset to have.

And it's one of those things that can take you down into the pit, and you can really concentrate on it so much that you can't get yourself out of thinking anything else.

And you actually what your communication with the patient will get them will be so poor, I should say that it'll get them to say no, and then you just start saying the same thing over again.

See, I told you they can't afford it.

They can't afford it.

But in the meantime, what's happened is you've led them to saying they can't afford it.

So let's get one thing straight then.

Case rejection doesn't always mean the patient can't afford it.

Most of the time.

Most of the time.

And there's all kinds of stats on this, but most of the time, it's about one of these three things.

First of all, they don't even understand what you're recommending.

You know, we get people that just talk over their heads, maybe, or they've, you know, if you've never had a crown before, what does that mean?

Or maybe they've heard something else, like a cap instead of a crown.

Um, so make sure that you.

When you're ready to present that you're ready to present something to them that they know and are going to be able to understand what you're recommending.

Two, you know, they don't understand why they need it.

Like, what's what's the big deal of why I need a crown or I need a root canal or you know, what's, why do I need to have a filling?

Once again, we cannot assume that everybody that comes in has either heard of it or they've, they've had one of these procedures done or something like that.

But instead always look at it as this is the first time and be clear, concise of why they need it.

And third, thirdly, they don't believe it's urgent.

Or I think the biggest thing is, and this is where I really, they just, there's no value behind it.

Like, is it urgent?

Can it wait?

Or once again, same thing with no value.

It's like, okay, so is it really that big of a deal yet?

When they see that, wow, this is really going to help, this is really going to do things for me.

And I can see what they're trying to portray to me or what they're saying that's going to get me, you know, to, to, you know, z, then I need to do this.

So case acceptance isn't, is, is about connection and clarity.

It, it's, it's not pressure.

And I see this a lot of times too when I walk in the offices.

It's just that, you know, you knew, you know, they need it so bad that you just don't want to let them off the hook and you don't want to let them leave without saying yes.

But you also don't want to use fear tactics.

Just helping the patient feel, and I'm telling you over and over again, making helping a patient feel informed and helping them feel comfortable about making this decision is a big deal.

So here's a couple real life stories that we've had happen with our coaches or one where the one that I'm going to tell you too is from a doctor that told me what happened and it changed his way, his thinking forever with his team and everything.

But, you know, we coached a treatment coordinator who used to explain crowns using all kinds of clinical terms.

Right.

And so I just paraphrase it here, but you know, she would we need to restore the integrity of the tooth structure, blah, blah, blah.

And once we got her to understand that a lot of these words to people are just over their head, we then were able to get her to like put it in layman's terms, if you want to put it that way, or make it simple, stupid as some people say.

But once we got her to say something more like if we don't do this, the tooth has a chance of cracking, and it may then turn into a root canal or even an extraction.

You don't want that, do you?

You know, then her acceptance rate jumped up by 25%.

Just a huge, big thing.

But to go back to once again, also, like we started with that, you can't afford it.

Here's a true story that there was a gentleman that came in.

He had no money.

He was poor, very poor.

And the doctor just never, you know, he come in once every five years, his teeth were a mess and everything.

And the doctor would be like, get him in a seat and would fix his emergency, more or less.

And he said, so he calls this time and he wants to set up an appointment.

And we're just like, man, do we really need to set up an appointment with this guy?

Because, you know it's going to be same thing.

He's not going to come back in, he's not going to listen and so forth.

And so we let him in.

He sits down and the doctor says, well, how can I help you today, sir?

And the gentleman sits there and says, I want to get all new implants and I want to have a restored mouth so that I can have a smile.

Now, what do you think?

The first thing is that that doctor admitted to saying, like, get out of my chair.

You can't afford that.

So as he was being nice about it, though, he was doing that more or less trying to get him out of the chair because he's just like, this guy can't afford this.

I'm not going to waste my time.

After he nudged the guy enough times to try to urge him to get out of my chair and leave.

You can't afford it.

The gentleman then said, I know you probably think I can't afford this, but this has been a lifelong dream for me.

And my grandmother died and she left me a million dollars.

And so the first thing is, when I was awarded that million dollars was to call.

I, for once in my life, want to clean up and have a fantastic smile.

That doctor told me that his mouth chin dropped to the floor and how bad he felt when he did that.

And it was at that stage where he said, from that moment on, never again when will I ever, ever judge somebody?

And it brings me up to.

I was at a CE event and, excuse me, and I was listening to a speaker, and he was talking about these kind of situations too, of, you know, don't ever judge people.

You know, judge the book by its cover.

Because he once told me that it was a similar situation to I don't know if any of those who are listening, no.

Duck Dynasty, right?

But then you have the dad.

Phil's always been one of the really, really wealthy man, football player, professional football player, the whole works.

But if you know Duck Dynasty, they're all in camo all the time.

They got their cutoff sleeves, they got their hats and bandanas and big old beards and stuff like that.

And so this speaker was saying, now imagine them coming into your office and you don't know who they are.

And all of a sudden Phil sits down and he sits there and says, similar to this other guy, you know, I want five new implants.

And if you were to take the book by its cover, you would say, oh, come on, man, I can't afford this.

You wouldn't even go back to presenting the other three or looking at the other three things to cover, which was, remember, make sure they understand it.

Give them, give them the understanding of why they need it.

And then, you know, make sure that you show value once you did all those things.

But what he said was, is take that situation, situation.

And now the patient walks out because you didn't even present it to them.

You just cleaned their teeth and you didn't present it even though they asked for it because you didn't think they could afford it.

And then all of a sudden a patient passes them as you're calling them back, and they're like, oh my gosh, do you remember or do you know who that is?

I can't believe he's a patient of yours.

And you're looking going, what?

It's just, you know, it's just Phil.

Like, what's the big deal?

No, that's Duck Dynasty.

That's Phil from Duck Dynasty.

That guy's worth millions.

How would you feel?

So, so once again, all I'm saying is, is, is one, do not fall under the trap of I don't think that they can afford it.

Next, let's look at, you know, how to present the treatment the right way.

You know, let's, let's walk through how to present a case just generally in a way that builds value instead of just, you know, listing a bunch of costs like, this is going to cost this, this is going to cost this.

And I've watched case except presentations like that.

So you're going to need a crown.

It's going to cost you this.

We're also going to need to do, you know, a build up and it's going to cost this, blah, blah.

And it's like you've lost them.

So first of all, let's, let's ask questions.

Let's just not throw up on them.

So start by asking, can I walk you through what I see and explain why this matters?

This starts to immediately make them feel like they're part of the conversation, that they now are involved and that they're just not this person that's getting preached to, you know.

And then second of all, like we mentioned in the first time is don't get so clinical.

Avoid all that clinical jargon because most people aren't going to know it.

So instead, be simple.

Use simple language.

Say things like, you know, this tooth has a crack in it, the infection can spread if we don't treat this soon, or this is what we'd recommend to save the tooth and avoid future problems down the road.

And then you got to make it personal.

Use the patient's own goals to, to frame the care.

So an example of that gentleman that we talked about wanted a new smile.

Maybe the patient says, you know, the patient said that they just, I want to do everything I can to avoid dentures.

So you could say, you mentioned that you want to avoid dentures down the road, and I'm assuring you that this treatment will help protect you from that.

Then the next thing is, is pause.

Let them ask that, you know, Once again, sales 101.

When all the sales that you always say, the person that wins the sale is the person that sits or loses the sale is the person that talks first.

So pause and let them ask, give them space, let them process it.

Everybody processes in a different way.

Once again, why I say it's important for you to have your team understand personality profiles so that when they're.

Especially a treatment coordinator, because when you're doing this, they can understand who they're talking to.

So in the disc world, I'm a D. So I am not going to need.

You're not going to need to give me much space.

You're just going to have to show me that it's worth it.

And you could go back to where it's, you know, make it personal to me, make me see that it's valuable and I'm jumping on it.

But other people, you're going to need to give them space.

They're going to have to process it, they're going to have to think about it.

And so when you're just talking and talking and talking, you're not giving them an option to process.

They're just hearing a bunch of stuff.

And it's one of those things where you Just need to say, what questions do you have for me?

And zip it.

Be quiet and let them think, let them process, let them ask you what other things they might have questions on.

And then last but not least, have the right person present the cost.

Train your treatment coordinator or your office manager to explain fees, financing and scheduling so it doesn't all fall on the doctor all the time to do that.

The next is train your team to boost the acceptance.

Great.

Case acceptance isn't just about the dentist.

Case acceptance has to be.

It has to be a team effort.

Everyone plays a role.

So hygiene.

They plant the seed.

They plant the seed by saying, you know, this tooth looks like it may need attention soon.

The doctor, of course, comes in and shows the professor the diagnosis and he builds the trust or she builds the trust.

And that's where they say, you know, here's what I recommend, and this is why I recommend it.

And then it's the front office then that is going to take that immediate, that, that planting of the seed and that trust, and take that trust and go even farther with it by reinforcing the confidence and help remove the barriers.

So let's walk through the payment plan options for you.

Do you have, once again, like we said, do you have any questions and so forth.

So here's another real practice example.

One office we coach role played case presentation at every monthly team meeting.

And once they started doing that, within six months, their average acceptance treatment per patient went from 347 to 618.

So here's just a tip from what I say is hold treatment presentation Tuesdays or in your morning huddles.

If you know that you have a patient that has a big case coming up that you know that you got to get ready for, then there's no better place than to have the person present that case that you're most likely going to present to that person later on when they sit down and test it out.

How did it work?

Did you give the people that you're presenting to the ability to think about it?

Did you give them a chance to process or did you just spit up on them?

You know, those are the things that really work and allow yourself to do it.

And the more you do it, the more comfortable you get and everything has to play out as if, you know, you understand the patient.

So.

And then next, you know, you got to learn to handle the common objectives.

Objections.

I'm sorry.

So here's just a few common ones.

These are probably going to be like, you're going to say, all these are basic Ones, but it's still something to think about and then how to respond without giving them or putting the pressure on them.

But you know, when you say I need, when they say, well, I need to think about it, right?

Well, of course, this is a big decision.

Can I answer any questions now to help you feel more confident as you think about it?

So now you're giving them the opportunity to sit there and say, oh, well, I was waiting for them to say, well, what do you need to think about?

You need to get it or, you know, whatever other pressure tactics you could get.

Now they're like, oh, wait a minute, I do have maybe one more question or the comment of is, yeah, I understand what you presented to me, but it's too expensive.

Well, the response, let's break it down and let's help, let us help you explore payment options.

Our goal here at so and so Dentistry is to make it a, make it doable without making you feel like you have added stress, you know, Another comment.

Can I just wait?

You know, or can it just wait?

You know, respond by, you can, but waiting can lead to more pain.

It's going to lead to more damage.

And the more damage that you have, I can guarantee you, the higher the cost.

So if we do it now, what we're doing is offering an opportunity to protect your smile long term.

You're not selling something, they already own the problem.

You're just helping them solve it.

So let's just recap the big points.

One case acceptance is built on trust, not pressure.

Get them.

When an office is successful, those patients, I hear doctors all the time.

I don't need, you know, interoral cameras and stuff.

My patients trust me, that's fine.

But I also would sit there and say, one of the big ways to build trust is use interoral cameras so that you know, as they always say, a picture speaks a thousand words, so why not use it?

And why not use all the other technologies that are out there to once again help them remember, not just to build a trust, but also help them understand visually.

They can understand maybe then through words.

To some people, I know I'm that way.

Use simple language, personalize the plan and let patients ask questions.

Don't just preach to them.

Train your whole team to support the process, role play, objections.

And I know, I tell you, every time we do training and stuff like that for my team, people kind of just roll their eyes.

I used to do it when I was, when I got started into sales in my early career, and it would roll your eyes But I will tell you, as you get older and you start to see it, role playing has never gone away.

Because role playing, it builds confidence for your treatment coordinator.

It builds the ability for you to learn and have a good shmae or and I think that's important, shmae is basically a term that is basically I'm giving them my script and you get that script down to the point where you can say it in your sleep and that makes you feel comfortable so that when they ask you questions now, you aren't nervous and you're not the one that's that's getting nervous and wondering what to respond or respond foolishly.

Instead, you have it down so well that you're able to confidently give them a response to any question that they may have.

And then, last but not least, remember, create a calm, caring space where patients can say yes without any fear.

So here's some action items for the week.

Pick one case this week and practice walking through it with a team member before you present it to the patient.

Get their feedback and get comfortable.

I will tell you, I will push the envelope a little bit more even and say don't pick just one person.

Or if you pick a team member this week or you can since depending on when the the your what your week is next week, then do it in front of the whole team in your team huddle.

Get comfortable, put yourself out there and let me tell you what will happen is is you are going to finally get to the point where you're so comfortable nothing bothers you and you look forward to every single one of those case acceptance.

And if you want help training your team on communication, treatment presentation or building confidence, Class Solutions offers virtual and in office coaching that focuses on exactly what we're talking about today.

Head to ClassSolutions.com, learn more.

Grab you know our free treatment acceptance worksheet while you're there.

Thanks again for listening to Class Solutions Dental Education Podcast.

If you enjoy our show, please rate review us on Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

But until then, keep listening, keep leading and keep making it easy for patients to say yes to the care they deserve.