The Big Picture
• Introduction to the course, aims and objectives.
• The collection of comprehensive information from all new patients for optimal diagnosis, treatment planning and consent.
• Mastering the New Patient Consultation workflow from initial contact to the start of treatment.
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The Objectives – what you feel should be in an ideal New Patient Consultation?
• Establishing the role of team members in new patient management.
• Contact management and systematisation.
• Establishing a referral base and liaising with your referring colleagues.
• Gathering and communicating initial information with the patient and referring colleague.
• New patient form design, website integration, data collection and management.
• Practice welcome, service quality and rapport building.
• Clinical protocols for information collection at the new patient consultation.
• Modern clinical dental photography and image management.
• Clinical data management, presentation and archiving.
• Preparation for treatment planning, report writing, accurate estimation of costs and reputation building for consistency and thoroughness.
The Preparation – how do you go about achieving this New Patient Consultation workflow?
• Setting a very clear New Patient Consultation protocol and pathway and ensuring every team member is trained and understands their role in conveying the practice protocols and ethos consistently and effectively to prospective patients and referring colleagues.
• Deciding what information needs to be collected and ensuring everybody is on the same page.
• Preparing forms, documentation, website, practice software, email and correspondence templates to provide a clear and consistent pathway into the practice that patients find straightforward to navigate.
• Establishing a practice folder structure and file accessibility for storage of all data in a consistent and scalable way.
• Establishing pre-attendance information collection of the standard that allows the most effective face-to-face consultation when the patient attends the practice.
• Streamlining your New Patient Consultation so that the patient feels very well looked after and is impressed with the level of communication, professionalism, diligence and detail to put their mind at rest that they are in the right practice.
• Establishing a New Patient Consultation clinical protocol that the team follows for every single patient where each team member knows their role in detail and can carry it out to a high level every time.
• Establishing a way of recording notes and clinical data during your consultation that allows proper diagnosis, treatment planning and cost estimation following the consultation.
• Establishing a protocol for responding to referrers and organising onwards referrals for any additional information required such as CBCT or MRI scanning, medical or laboratory tests or referral to another medical or dental specialist colleague for certain items of treatment or opinions.
• Preparing an ironclad approach against missed information, miscommunication, missed diagnoses, inappropriate treatment and future medicolegal challenges by ensuring that no information is omitted and every base is consistently covered In a professional way that enhances the ongoing reputation of the practice and the clinicians.
The Method – practising the ideal steps to an ideal New Patient Consultation
• Training the team to understand the new patient consultation protocol and pathway so team members have the confidence to address every enquiry professionally and with the objective of attracting new patients and referrals to the practice.
• Protocols for communicating with the referring colleagues before, during and after patient treatment.
• Coordinating practice software and website and form design which can be changed dynamically by the user as required by future legislation or protocol changes without incurring substantial website designer costs.
• Front of house role-play and addressing common and awkward patient questions
• Practising the New Patient Consultation on each other until the whole process is streamlined and slick.
• Practising dental photography, image management and presentation skills until they became an indispensable communication and treatment planning tool rather than a chore.
Course structure, timetable and content detail
Day 1
08:30 Registration
9:00 Lecture 1: Dr Koray Feran: Introduction to course aims and objectives and scope of course.
10:15 Coffee break
10:45 Lecture 2: Dr Koray Feran: The New Patient Consultation I – why it is the most important appointment in the practice. Understanding the scope of required the information collection and training the team members.
12:30 Lunch
13:30 Lecture 3: Dr Koray Feran: The New Patient Consultation II – Form design and website integration. The basics of data collection, storage, filing and archiving.
14:45 Coffee break
15:15 Lecture 4: Dr Koray Feran: The New Patient Consultation III – New patient pre-consultation correspondence, information, welcome, and establishing a rapport. The importance of understanding what the patient wants and assessing their knowledge level. The starting point.
17:00: Questions
17:30 End
Day 2
08:30 Registration
9:00 Lecture 5: Dr Koray Feran: The New Patient Consultation IV – Clinical examination, radiography and photography
10:15 Coffee break
10:45 Lecture 5: The New Patient Consultation IV – Clinical examination, radiography and photography continued.
12:30 Lunch
13:30 Practical clinical dental photography and video. A picture speaks a thousand words.
17:30 End
Day 3
08:30 Registration
9:00 Lecture 6: Adobe Photoshop and Bridge. Optimising your clinical photography and learning to batch rename and tag photographs for organisation throughout your career.
10:15 Coffee break
10:45 Lecture 6: Adobe Photoshop and Bridge. Optimising your clinical photography and learning to batch rename and tag photographs for organisation throughout your career.
12:30 Lunch
13:30 Lecture 7: Preparation of all collected data and creation of annotated clinical presentations for patient, laboratory and referral communication
14:45 Coffee break
15:15 Lecture 7: Preparation of all collected data and creation of annotated clinical presentations for patient, laboratory and referral communication. Being prepared for patient or medicolegal request of notes.
17:00 Questions
17:30 End
