Mistakes dentists make (part 3)

In my seminar "Master the Art of Case Acceptance" I warn against the 23 case acceptance mistakes that dentists commonly make. Over the past two weeks and this week I will give you three of the major ones. These mistakes waste time and often result in patients deferring or rejecting needed treatment.

Mistake #3 — Making assumptions

So often dentists under-diagnose what the patient needs. Typically a patient may come in needing 9 crowns and the dentist diagnoses two and seven fillings. When challenged about why they only told the patient about two of the crowns a dentist will often say: "I didn't think the patient could afford it so I only told them about two."Us dentists are not financial advisors. We are experts in fixing teeth. If we don't tell patients about everything that's going on in their mouths then we betray the trust patients place in us. It's our job to fully, openly and honestly inform patients about what we see in their mouths and the treatment options. It's the patient's job (not ours!) to decide what they can afford.In my seminar I teach dentists to "Diagnose the patient's teeth not their wallet."