It’s More Than a Cleaning: Helping Patients Achieve Their Best Selves
Patients come in for their routine visits, and we provide them with their services and send them on their way with their reappointment follow-up, but are we listening to what they say or how they act when they are in our offices?
We’ve heard it before, but having a patient in front of us is more than a cleaning!
Are we hearing what they want or need, even without them asking us? Are they unhappy with their smiles and want a change? Are they having a medical health concern they need to have checked out? Are they unhappy with their facial looks and want to change their appearance? Snoring or lack of sleep causing them issues?
Our patients lead on to and share many issues and concerns with us, but are we hearing them? And if we are, are we doing anything about it?
Improving Their Overall Health
It is well known by now that dental offices are more than just a cleaning and a quick check by the doctor. It is our chance to have a one-on-one with our patient and check in with them on their oral health and other concerns they may be having or something they want to change but didn’t know we could assist with.
Our office offers more services than most may, so when our patients mention something, we follow their lead and ask questions to see how we can help or give ideas on how to improve their overall health or look. Maybe your office doesn’t offer services outside the standard oral health needs, but even if you don’t, you can help point your patients to other offices that can ask them about their concerns.
Do Patients Know About the Services Your Practice Offers?
Even though we are a general dental office, we offer additional services such as orthodontics, implants, sleep apnea, and facial esthetic services. Patients may not know we offer all those services, but if they mention changing their smile or straightening their teeth, we respond, “Hey, did you know we offer those services here? We’d be happy to schedule a free consultation with the doctor to get their thoughts on that and show you how it can positively affect your smile and bite!”
Or how about the patients who complain about snoring and not getting enough sleep or wearing the dreaded C-PAP machines, which cause dry mouth? Have you ever thought about trying an alternative solution other than your C-PAP, such as a mouth guard to wear at night to keep your jaw positioned to open your airway or even seeing the Dr for a Nightlase treatment to help with the snoring?
Old age affects us all, and just like straightening or whitening, our smiles can boost our self-esteem, suggesting all-natural PRF facial esthetic and micro-needling treatment can change their overall appearance and give them that natural younger look they want, too!
These are easy options to work into conversations with our patients if we hear what they discuss and bring up while in our chairs.
Showing Them We Care
We also can make sure they take their overall medical health seriously.
Do we see a concerning spot that needs a biopsy or notice deeper pocketing they haven’t had before? Are we letting them know we see changes in their oral health and are concerned there’s been a change and helping find the cause?
Sometimes, patients need us to open the door a bit so they can share their concerns.
Life is busy, and we tend to put ourselves last, or we focus on helping our kids have the best, so we put our needs and desires on the back burner. Yes, we are here to provide our patients with the best dental services we can provide, but we can also help them become their best selves simply by listening to their needs and introducing them to services they may not even know are available.
About the Author
Heather McCann, DAADOM
Heather was on the mission field during college when she became interested in the dental field. After she finished her internship in Haiti, she returned home to complete a dental assisting course and began my dental career in 2005 as an assistant.
In 2007, Heather returned and earned her expanded functions dental assistant certificate. Over the next few years, she cross-trained herself to learn insurance, billing, and all the front office ins and outs.
Heather is a lifetime member of AADOM and received her FAADOM in 2021 and MAADOM in 2023. She earned her DAADOM in 2024.
She is passionate about helping people in all aspects of life and giving back to the community.
