Over the years I’ve tried a lot of different ways of explaining treatment to patients. Among those ways have been drawing pictures, showing patients their x-rays, using flip charts, using models, and handing out brochures.
I even bought a $6,500 computer system at the Chicago Mid-Winter Convention. It let me play videos to patients showing them how treatments such as root fillings, crowns or implants were done.
Every one of the above methods was a failure. After only two months, I unplugged the computer system and never used it again because my case acceptance rate went down. The failure was because I thought patients want to know the technical details of their treatment. My thinking was that if they understood the details then they would proceed with treatment. As I discovered, that’s completely wrong.
The majority of patients don’t care about the technical details of treatment. The most important thing to them is what the end result will be.
Without doubt, the best tool for showing the end result to patients is an album of before and after cases. There’s nothing else that even comes close. To explain treatment you just show the pictures:
“Here’s a job I did a while ago. The person had teeth very similar to yours. Here they are before and here they are after.”
A couple of things to note.
First, it’s best if the photos are your own work. They shouldn’t be ones you got off the internet.
Second, I’ve compared using an iPad to a real physical photo album. The physical album wins hands down. Buy a quality album at an office supplies store and get large prints made. An entire album will cost you less than $100. Make a second album and leave it in the waiting room.
The effort it takes to create your album will repay you many times over in improved case acceptance.
