How to Deal with Negative Google Reviews for a Dental Office
In today’s world, we all know that the earth literally turns by all of the social media options that each of us enjoy generally on a daily basis. While modern technology is moving at a faster speed than any human can keep up with, we must do what we can to monitor and appreciate how our dental practices are presented online.
Whether the practice is owned by a younger dentist or group of dentists that are pretty up to speed on the capabilities of today’s social media outreach or a seasoned dentist that really doesn’t understand its role in today’s society, steps should be implemented to keep track of when our practices are mentioned online, whether positive or negative.
What Should We Do if a Negative Review is Posted Online?
The first and most important thing to do is not to overreact or respond online before taking adequate time to evaluate the situation. While this can be frustrating when this occurs, understand that eventually it happens to all businesses regardless of type. Even when a dental practice renders quality treatment, a patient can, at any time, become dissatisfied with an office.
So many factors can cause this to occur. For example, a patient can lash out online as a result of a bill owed to your office that they weren’t expecting by posting a review of how dissatisfied they were with how they were treated overall. The real issue could be small and singular, but often a person that will go to the lengths to tear down an office online will embellish on multiple categories, true or untrue, to hopefully result in that office adjusting the correct amount owed to the practice to zero.
Decipher whether the review is directed at a specific employee or if it’s a dental service that was rendered that the patient was unhappy with. Sometimes a negative review or a review that is less than 5 stars but not written in a disrespectful way can be used for a point of practice growth and development.
Responding Promptly but Professionally Without Fail
A timely response shows that the office cares about issues that arise when a patient is unhappy or feels possibly mistreated. Every successful dental practice sees worth in each patient’s overall experience, whether it has to do with the up-to-date furniture in the lobby, the feeling that a patient experiences by a caring staff group, and certainly the rendering of quality dental treatment at each visit.
Your public response should be courteous, neutral, and free from any specific patient detail that could be considered a privacy violation.
Regardless if the patient lists specifics such as names, dates, or even specific procedures that they had rendered at your office, you must never respond with any specific details whatsoever. While it would be easier to respond or counter by defending a specific employee by name and even defending the specific dentist that was unfortunately called out online by the reviewer, your office must never list specifics in your response.
Protecting Patient Privacy
HIPAA compliance is mandatory in every medical office, whether dental-specific or not. This compliance should be observed in all online responses or postings.
It is a HIPAA violation to even validate that a person is a patient or was a patient in your office.
So it goes without saying that mentioning specific treatment details in your response or the handling of a specific account issue would absolutely violate a slew of HIPAA rules. Remember to focus on general positive customer care and the principles of your office that state how you value each and every patient that you treat.
Respond with Thanks and Your Concern with Their Dissatisfaction
Explain that you are sorry to hear about their less-than-positive experience and how it is important to you to resolve the issue listed. Include in your response a request to please contact our office so that we may speak with you personally in order to address their concerns. This response acknowledges true concern but doesn’t disclose any personal information that may result in a privacy violation.
Also, by suggesting that the unhappy patient contact your office by phone to discuss the matter further, you may allow the opportunity to resolve the issue professionally and hopefully result in that patient updating that negative review to a more positive one. Everyone wins in this instance.
Monitor Reviews and Respond Professionally
Remember that all dental practices will likely experience the frustration of a negative review being posted about them or an employee. Make sure to either have a specific team member that monitors your Google Business page or a third-party company that facilitates the constant monitoring of your Google and social media activity.
And lastly, it’s not the end of the world if this occurs. Respond neutrally and professionally every single time.
About the Author
Laura Tucker, DAADOM
Laura is an accomplished dental industry professional with over 33 years of experience in practice management and leadership. As a Diplomate of the American Association of Dental Office Management, she is dedicated to advancing excellence in dental administration and team development.
Laura’s expertise spans operational efficiency, patient experience, and professional mentorship, making her a trusted resource and passionate advocate for growth within the dental community.
