Patient Referrals

This is the most important method of getting referrals. Everything you do in your office, from creating a good image to having impeccable systems in place is designed to impress your patients. Not only will these satisfied patients come back to you, but they will refer others to your practice.

In my office, over 50% of new patients come to me through my existing patients. It is free, easy, and patients who come to us already know us and have a positive attitude toward. This makes them even better potential referral sources!

Of course if you are a new practice, it may take some time for you to build such a referral network. However, if you are successful in turning your patients into referral sources, you will see a flow of new patients from word of mouth very quickly.

A common mistake we often make is to categorize patients as "good ones" and "bad ones." We also tend to divide them into "HMO patients" and "cash patients", thus grouping them into different classes and treating them as such. We have become somewhat accustomed to this sort of categorizing.

The point is, even if you consider a patient not an ideal one, he/she can be a referral source for you. As I have explained in other sections, you need to train yourself and your staff to treat every patient alike. You must act as if all your patients are millionaires who are in your office, ready to do whatever is necessary to take care of their teeth.

Yes, there are times when our patients are not as nice to us as we would like them to be, but treating them differently is only going to hurt us in the long run, not to mention the possible legal implications.

I cannot tell you how many times patients who we consider difficult, patients with "bad insurance" and patients who do not show up on time have turned out to be excellent referral sources for us.

As a matter of fact, these so called "problem patients" are much easier to impress! They are the ones who have been treated poorly by many offices. They are the ones with bad experiences. So although they are not very cooperative in the beginning, in actuality they have low expectations and therefore are easier to impress. When we hastily judge patients solely based on their attitudes, we lose the chance of treating them in a way that would leave a lasting impression. We may also lose the chance of getting any referrals from them!

These patients are frustrated because they don't understand why we treat them with hesitation, and reluctance. Now, if we learn to deal with them with care and understanding, they won't stop talking about us, which translates into referrals. Everybody knows how to please a 'nice patient’; the challenge is to turn a 'problem patient' into a nice one by your conduct!

Let me give you a few examples to show you why so called "headache patients" can be very good referral sources.

1- I have an "HMO patient" who was frustrated by her last dentist because when she went to him for her regular check up, he told her: "This cleaning I am doing for you is a courtesy cleaning and I don't have to do it!"

Mistake: Although the HMO does not pat the doctor for the cleaning, the fact that he accepts HMO plans is not his patient's fault. The doctor's alternative is to not accept the HMO he does not like. If you choose to accept certain HMO's, you need to follow their regulations. Insurance company policies are absolutely not your patients' fault or decision.

This patient ended up spending over $1,500 on her treatment plan with us and has referred two other patients so far.

2- My patient was upset because she was told by her former dentist that they could not do her cleaning before she completed all her other treatments! Apparently she needed a bridge and some fillings, so that office had figured, there was no reason to do a "free" cleaning before the patient committed herself to a production treatment!

Mistake: They did not give the patient a chance to develop trust with them. Again, it is not her fault if you don't like her insurance policy! We are the ones who sign the contracts with insurance companies, then start complaining about their rules. If we hadn't signed these contracts in the first place, we wouldn't have been in this mess now!

So, take the issue to yourself and your fellow dentists. (We are probably in one of the worst organized industries in the world!)

The fact of the matter is this - even if you are 100% right and your frustration is justified, taking it out on your patient has no financial benefit to you.

This patient has spent over $3,000 in our office to complete her treatments. She has brought her family to us for their treatments, and in case you are wondering, yes, I did the Prophy for her at no charge according to her insurance policy, before her other treatments!

3- One of my patients was upset because the office he went to wanted to charge him $300 for a "cleaning". I think what they wanted to do was probably "soft tissue management."

Mistake: They had not gained the patient's trust yet. They acted salesman-like (see Case Presentation Rules).

He and his family have been our patients for a while now and we have just completed his anterior veneers!

In conclusion, you should consider each person who enters your office your messenger. Regardless if that person himself is a good patient, or would spend a lot on his treatment, that person can talk about your practice and he won't charge you for it!