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Biomedical subjects

Roger Levin

Publications and source records attributed to Roger Levin.

35 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2004

The correlation between dental practice management and clinical excellence.

Efficient practice management is about much more than prof itability. It is about educating and motivating patients to achieve optimum oral health by incorporating the best business methodologies and systems into the management of all practice operations. Effective practice management cannot be accomplished without gaining the over-whelming satisfaction and trust of every patient. This can be achieved only through excellence of care and by achieving the high professional standards that dentistry currently demands.

Dental Care↗
PubMed2004

Managing time.

As you can see from these examples, there are many factors that must be considered in the relationship between time management and practice production. However, it is important to understand that there is a direct correlation among various factors--including how time is used, which services are provided, the volume of services provided and other factors--in establishing a practice with excellent financial results. As always, dentistry is about excellent patient care, but it still is important for the dentist and team to examine the day-to-day use of time and its effect on the business side of the practice.

Appointments and Schedules↗
PubMed2004

Employee incentive programs.

One great benefit of employee incentive programs is that they connect team compensation with practice performance. Options are always available to keep the incentive programs exciting and motivating. The key is to understand the goal and to put in place the employee incentive program that works for your practice.

Employee Incentive Plans↗
PubMed2004

Inventory management.

As dentistry continues to evolve, the best management systems of the business world need to be incorporated into each practice. As always, my goal in these columns is to bring and modify the best business principles available to readers of The Journal of the American Dental Association. Just in Time ordering and inventory control is one of the best, as evidenced by the fact that top-performing companies worldwide have adopted it.

Cost Control↗
PubMed2004

Collections and financial controls.

There is a reason why most businesses manage fees and money very closely with specific guidelines. It is not to be inflexible, but rather to establish excellent financial controls to ensure that the financial health of the business (or practice) remains strong while achieving outstanding customer (or patient) satisfaction.

Humans↗
PubMed2004

Get the right people 'on the bus'.

Core teams should be created deliberately and systematically by the practice, rather than left to chance. The ultimate benefit of a core team is that it allows a practice to reach the highest percentiles of production at a low level of stress, without having to maintain all team members indefinitely. The core team acts as the training organization in all aspects of a new team member's experience in the practice, giving that person the best opportunity to become part of the core team.

Humans↗
PubMed2004

Inventory control.

By establishing clear inventory ordering targets and following the guidelines outlined in this column, the staff member handling the process will understand the high and low levels of inventory control and be able to maintain an accurate system. Inventory control represents approximately 6 to 8 percent of practice purchasing. The main goal of the advice in this column is not to reduce the cost, unless there is waste involved, but rather to establish a process that allows the practice to purchase supplies on a regular basis, avoid mistakes and maintain a steady expense level.

Dental Equipment↗
PubMed2004

How home care is essential to ensuring successful orthodontic treatment outcomes.

Patients can significantly affect the outcome of their orthodontic treatment. A practice committed to developing the right systems, scripts, and educational materials will experience a more satisfied patient, increased efficiencies, and higher profits. Educating and motivating patients to maintain their oral health and providing recommendations or dispensing of home care tools such as a power toothbrush increases patient compliance, positively impacts treatment outcomes, enhances customer service, and generates a new revenue stream for the practice. In a tight economy and a highly competitive orthodontic market, a power toothbrush can positively impact your marketing and case close rate. Treatment and fees being relatively equal, patients will tend to accept treatment from a practice that can demonstrate concern for the patients' overall oral health and greater value-added components to the orthodontic case. Power toothbrushes as part of a comprehensive orthodontic treatment provide a great differentiating marketing strategy.

Child↗
PubMed2003

The dentist as a leader.

Leadership is one of the more difficult business skills to develop. Any dentist can be a better leader and should view this as an essential aspect of his or her own personal business development. Dental practices today are more dependent on staff than ever before, and it is well-known that the number of well-trained staff looking for positions has diminished. To overcome this challenge, we have to increase the skill set, knowledge and commitment of our teams. To do this, dentists will need to be better leaders and continually work to improve these same skills in themselves.

Humans↗
PubMed2003

Creating a viable practice vision.

Vision guides the long-term development and growth of a dental practice. It provides focus and purpose to the dentist and team and creates clear goals for achieving practice growth and moving toward realizing the vision.

Humans↗
PubMed2003

Dental business management.

Business models and systems do not exist for their own sake. Rather, they are designed to help your practice achieve its goals. Before you adopt any new system for any aspect of your practice, define the goals and write down the specific objectives you expect the system to achieve. Bear in mind that systems need to be easily understood by team members and by those who join the practice later on. It is important to understand that economic changes, governmental mandates and other factors beyond your control may make it necessary to reassess the way each system operates on a regular basis.

Humans↗
PubMed2003

Applying statistics to the dental practice.

There are numerous variables in the specific mix of procedures a practice performs. Other practice production variables include the number of patients a practice serves and the number of team members available to accomplish the practice objectives. The majority of practices would benefit by following a model similar to the one above. To return to the McDonald's example, success is measured according to whether each McDonald's sells the optimal product mix for its customers. It doesn't matter what components make up that mix. The same thing is generally true for dental practices. Conducting a "percentage production analysis" to determine how closely a practice follows the above model can be beneficial. It can help in making decisions regarding what changes need to be made to achieve optimal production levels and greater practice success.

Dental Hygienists↗
PubMed2003

The business of dentistry.

Dentistry is a rapidly evolving health care occupation that can offer an outstanding quality of life, allowing each doctor to define how he or she would like to practice. Dentistry has a high-income potential compared with many other occupations, and this also contributes to the quality of life of dental professionals. But the profession can be overwhelming due to the variety of procedures performed, the large number of systems in place and the multiple management issues to deal with. While there is no one-size-fits-all system that will work for all practices, KPIs can help each professional evaluate how he or she would like the practice to operate and grow. Using KPIs to help identify the strengths and weaknesses of your practice, you can set and establish the systems that will assure achievement of those goals.

Benchmarking↗
PubMed2003

Three basic principles of success.

Basic business principles all but ensure success when they are followed consistently. Putting strategies, objectives and tactics in place is the first step toward being able to document systems, initiate scripting and improve staff training. Without the basic steps, systems, scripting and training the practice for performance would be hit or miss, at best. More importantly, applying business principles ensures that limited practice resources are dedicated to the achievement of the strategy. By following this simple, three-step process, a dental practice can significantly enhance both financial success and dentist and staff satisfaction.

Decision Making↗
PubMed2003

The value of new patients.

Make no mistake: dental practices are businesses. Dentists as CEOs need to focus on key performance indicators and statistical tracking in order to understand what is happening in the practice over its life span. Average production per new patient is a key factor to be tracked because it is an essential driver of the financial performance of any dental practice. The health of this factor will have a dramatic effect on the financial well-being of the dentist, and on the timing and character of his or her retirement. At the same time, it is essential to balance financial factors with exceptional quality of care for every patient. Without both, neither will be successful in the long-term.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed2003

Setting your practice goals.

Goal setting is a powerful business technique. Far more than just a motivational concept, it is an outcome of strategic planning. Doctors who set goals are usually more clearly focused on where they want the practice to go and when they want to get there.

Humans↗