American Academy of Dental Group Practices....FloridaJill Nesbitt, Healthpark’s office manager and I recently returned from the American Academy of Dental Group Practices annual meeting held in Orlando. We didn’t get much of a tan since the meetings started at 7:30 a.m. included a working lunch and finished at 7:00 p.m., but we learned enough to not feel bad about missing the sun.
One day of the meeting was presented by the Disney Institute, (which gives 2 degrees – a “duck torette” and a “mouseters”). Listening to the “Disney Way” of service applied to dentistry was worth the whole trip. Here are some of the Disney “secrets”:
1. Keep a small town atmosphere of warmth and friendliness. From answering the phone with a smile to explaining your treatment clearly – including any treatment choices.
2. Clearly understand what people value that we provide. People don’t want fillings or crowns, they want the benefits our services provide (improved smile, no pain, improved chewing).
3. Our major task is to make our patients feel good while they receive our services. Laughing gas, caring/competent staff, movies, on time appointments, etc.
4. “Brand” Healthpark and then deliver this level of quality every time. We are known for our comprehensive range of treatments, flexible schedules (including evenings and weekends), the best technology and the finest/best trained staff.
5. We must provide exceptional services, not usually available. For us, that’s pretty easy. Our orthodontist (4 in the area), periodontist (only 2 of them), and children’s dentist (the only 1 in our 3 county area) certainly set us apart but then I.V. implants sedation, TMJ treatments and help with snoring are only a few of the extra services available.
6. It’s not what we can do for our patients; it’s what our patients believe we do for them. It’s our responsibility to get the message out to the communities we serve – and then we’ve to live up to that service reputation. Please check out our web site (
http://www.healthparkdentistry.com/), our yellow page ad, and our other blogs.
7. We must help our patients understand the value of the services we provide. It’s not enough for our patients to know we have these services; they also need to know how valuable they are. For example, emergencies are seen within 2 hours of calling us during office hours and one of us dentists accept calls 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Also, our evening and weekend hours help our patients to come in without missing work.
8. Patients determine our value by the size and variety of problems we solve for them. We can take the fear out of dentistry. No one gets decay if the follow our recommendations.
Disney uses these approaches to reach 3 goals:
Set an example for others to follow.
Create relationships for life.
Spark excitement and enthusiasm in others.
Dr. C. Smith
