When dental practices that operate as part of a DSO aren’t aligned with the right technology and communication tools, important objectives like increasing production and attracting new patients become less attainable.
Huge growth in the dental service organization (DSO) market is reshaping the business of dentistry, as well as expectations and experiences among dentists and their patients.
While figures vary, the American Dental Association (ADA) Health Policy Institute has noted that as recently as 2019, 10% of dentists were affiliated with a DSO, and one in five dentists under 35 were affiliated with a DSO. Growth is projected to continue as many dentists, especially those under 40, value financial security and a low-pressure, predictable operating environment.
However, rapid growth has led to unforeseen challenges — such as administrative responsibilities that don't scale, difficulty in acquiring and retaining patients, and collaborative care issues — all of which weaken an otherwise robust DSO model.
These challenges may weigh more heavily on DSO management for the remainder of 2022 and into 2023, given the current economic outlook.
Addressing Scalability with Improved Communication
Effective communications can resolve, or at least stabilize, many other issues. Whether cross-practice, within an individual clinic or between a practice and its patients: When everyone is on the same page, DSOs are better positioned to thrive and patient satisfaction is higher.
But that’s often easier said than done.
One reason DSOs struggle to align multiple locations can be traced to inconsistencies in technology. When practices within a DSO use their own proprietary technology systems, sharing patient information within a network becomes cumbersome. And while adoption of advanced, cloud-based practice management software by dental practices is picking up, many practices still use paper some or all of the time, so simple tasks such as billing, referring patients or obtaining patient history take much longer.
A lack of standardized technology can hinder a dentist’s ability to communicate with their physician partners, too, and obtain critical information such as a history of substance-use disorders, which would influence approaches to pain management.
Finally, poor communications can lead to poor patient experience, which, a 2021 survey noted, was the basis for switching dentists for 27.7% of all adults. For example, patients could perceive a practice negatively if patients aren’t reminded of their appointments or dentists don’t take the time to address concerns via messaging applications. And when patients have a negative experience, they are more likely to post negative reviews on Google and other sites — and then switch dental providers.
Standardizing communication across DSOs can alleviate these challenges. By leveraging communication best-practices and creating a uniform patient experience from location to location — and visit to visit — DSOs can understand and manage expectations upfront for better overall outcomes and satisfaction.
Boosting Patient Acquisition and Retention
DSOs that strategically utilize available applications gain additional efficiencies — including tools to schedule across multiple locations, improve imaging functions or communicate with patients via text or email.
All of these capabilities support practice growth and patient retention.
For example: Patient relationship management (PRM) applications include features such as multi-office scheduling, online patient registrations and multi-touchpoint campaigns, which can improve patient scheduling experience upfront — and even prompt patients to reschedule if they are ill and can’t make an appointment. Given that patient cancellations are a common financial drain on DSOs, the more advance notice a practice has that a patient won’t make their appointment, the more likely they are to be able to fill that vacancy.
As DSOs grow and competition for patients increases, improving communications is more important than ever. Cloud-based applications can significantly elevate operations and patient experience for DSOs for near-term wins — and long, scalable growth into the future.
Enhancing Technology to Improve Collaborative Care
Upgrading to a single cloud-based practice management solution is the easiest way for DSOs to ensure all care partners, including dentists, hygienists and others, can collaborate most effectively.
When all DSO locations are using the same cloud-based technology, dental professionals can easily pull up charts and see a patient’s history of in-person visits, X-rays, medication allergies and other pertinent information. Additionally, if a DSO manager in a central office needs to move staff between locations to fill vacancies, having a centralized practice management solution that includes workflow tools can help management load-balance staff as needed to avoid cancellations.
As many dental offices strive to make up for missed appointments due to Covid-19, every visit contributes toward a DSO’s bottom line. According to a February 2022 report by the ADA’s Health Policy Institute, 85% of dental practices report patient cancellations as the most common reason schedules were not full.
When cloud-based services are utilized to reduce cancelations, as well as improve the quality of care, DSOs can see immediate and long-term returns.
Eric Giesecke is the Chief Executive Officer of Planet DDS.