Making the Most of Slow Times

The economy is hurting and our practices are feeling the affects. Today, I had a great example of making the most of slower times. Other than “working on” the practice, I took the time to really spend additional time with a new patient examination today. The extra time was rewarded with case acceptance and an unbelievably happy patient.

This wonderful patient was referred to me as a traditional new patient. She had not been to the dentist for several years and was ready to get her health back in order. During our patient interview, we learned she has always been interested in closing this space between her front teeth. When asked what has prevented her, she mentioned that she wasn’t interested in a perfect result that could only be achieved through comprehensive orthodontics. She was looking for something that made her smile ‘better’ without having to commit to extensive treatment.

During a review of treatment options I advised her that orthodontics and implant treatment (congenitally missing lateral #7) was the best way to achieve the ideal smile. I also mentioned to her that a possible acceptable compromise was restorations on teeth #8 and #9 to close the space completely or almost completely. I mentioned that the only drawbacks were possible ‘black triangle’ near the gumline trying to close the space and the appearance of very wide front teeth.

Since most things are visual, she jokingly said she would love to preview what that would look like. I quickly responded that she was in luck. I had a very extra minutes (more like an hour) and i would be happy to work this with Photoshop while she was in the office. Without being exacting, I quickly did some cosmetic imaging and showed her the potential outcome (no promises).

She looked at the picture and said when can we start. We went over some basic ballpark figures and then decided to proceed with models and records to determine if the imaged result is even possible (which of course is possible). By giving my patient the extra 10 minutes and having the tool in my belt to quickly perform cosmetic imaging we are on the way to creating case acceptance.

The beauty of using cosmetic imaging is the multiple benefits. The patients gets the opportunity to see the possibility (seeing is believing), I get to enroll her further in choosing the work, and most importantly (in my opinion) is I get to go over with her the compromises (possible black triangle, non proportional teeth, etc) visually. The end result is a win-win.

So during your free time, take the opportunity to explore treatment a bit further with your patients. Learn to use cosmetic imaging in your arsenal. And remember, this imaging was literally done in less than 10 minutes using Adobe PHotoshop Elements (less than $100). You don’t need fancy dental software to do this.