Maximize Your Veterinary Schedule: Eliminate No-Shows and Increase Profits
By: Megan Urban
No-shows and last-minute cancellations create more than just scheduling headaches: they damage team morale and practice productivity. When your staff prepares for appointments that never materialize, it affects their ability to provide excellent client and patient care and creates unnecessary stress throughout your practice.
The financial impact alone should motivate immediate action. Consider this: if just one routine wellness appointment per day results in a no-show, your practice could be losing significant revenue annually. For surgical procedures or extended appointments, the losses multiply dramatically.
Strengthen Your Confirmation Process
Implementing a robust appointment confirmation system forms the foundation of reducing no-shows. Modern automated systems allow you to reach clients through their preferred communication method, whether that’s text, email, or phone calls. These systems work around the clock, ensuring every client receives timely reminders without burdening your staff.
For extended appointments like surgeries or dental procedures, emphasize the reserved time during scheduling. Tell clients: “We have two hours reserved specifically for Bella, and we look forward to seeing you both soon.” This personal touch helps clients understand the commitment involved and reduces casual cancellations.
For routine wellness visits, consider confirming farther ahead since the appointment may have been made six months to a year prior during the last visit.
Create Positive Reinforcement
Rather than punishing poor behavior, reward good attendance. I have had great success with placing a large glass bowl near the front desk for appointment cards that are put in for a drawing when clients keep their appointment and return for their pet’s continuing care. This approach builds loyalty while encouraging consistent attendance.
Some practices agree upon a cancellation or no-show fee, but I haven’t found this to be worthwhile as clients feel threatened rather than valued. Focus instead on positive reinforcement that strengthens the client relationship.
Develop Effective Response Scripts
When clients do call with short-notice cancellations, having prepared responses can often salvage the situation. Try asking: “Is everything alright with you and Max?” This shows genuine concern and may reveal solvable problems.
Sometimes creative solutions work best. Think beyond standard responses and consider what might address the client’s specific concern while still preserving the appointment. Flexibility and understanding often lead to better outcomes than rigid policies.
Build Long-Term Success
Reducing no-shows requires consistent effort and creative thinking. When your team sees fewer empty appointment slots, their morale improves and they can focus on providing exceptional patient care. The financial benefits compound over time, making this investment in systems and training one of the most impactful improvements you can make.
Remember that every kept appointment represents more than just revenue: it’s an opportunity to strengthen client relationships and demonstrate your practice’s commitment to their pet’s health and well-being.
Read MoreHow to Reduce No-Shows and Short-Notice Cancellations in Your Practice
By: Megan Urban
No-shows and last-minute cancellations create more than just scheduling headaches: they damage team morale and practice productivity. When your staff prepares for appointments that never materialize, it affects their ability to provide excellent patient care and creates unnecessary stress throughout your practice.
The financial impact alone should motivate immediate action. Consider this: if just one hygiene appointment per day results in a no-show, your practice could be losing up to $90,000 annually. For larger appointments, the losses multiply dramatically.
Strengthen Your Confirmation Process
Implementing a robust appointment confirmation system forms the foundation of reducing no-shows. Modern automated systems allow you to reach patients through their preferred communication method, whether that’s text, email, or phone calls. These systems work around the clock, ensuring every patient receives timely reminders without burdening your staff.
For extended appointments, emphasize the reserved time during scheduling. Tell patients: “We have two hours reserved specifically for you, and we look forward to seeing you soon.” This personal touch helps patients understand the commitment involved and reduces casual cancellations.
For hygiene appointments, consider confirming farther ahead since the appointment may have been made six months prior.
Create Positive Reinforcement
Rather than punishing poor behavior, reward good attendance. I have had great success with placing a large glass bowl near the front desk for appointment cards that are put in for a drawing when patients keep their appointment and return for their recare. This approach builds loyalty while encouraging consistent attendance.
Some offices agree upon a cancellation or no-show fee, but I haven’t found this to be worthwhile as patients feel threatened rather than valued. Focus instead on positive reinforcement that strengthens the patient relationship.
Develop Effective Response Scripts
When patients do call with short-notice cancellations, having prepared responses can often salvage the situation. Try asking: “Is everything alright?” This shows genuine concern and may reveal solvable problems.
Sometimes creative solutions work best. One time I had a patient call one hour prior to her two-hour appointment saying she had family in town. I invited her to keep her appointment and we would have coffee and pastries available for her family and reminded her how close we are to great shopping. The patient kept her appointment and the family enjoyed their time.
Build Long-Term Success
Reducing no-shows requires consistent effort and creative thinking. When your team sees fewer empty appointment slots, their morale improves and they can focus on providing exceptional patient care. The financial benefits compound over time, making this investment in systems and training one of the most impactful improvements you can make.
Remember that every kept appointment represents more than just revenue: it’s an opportunity to strengthen patient relationships and demonstrate your practice’s commitment to their health and well-being.
Read MoreThe Most Important Factor in Practice Transitions: Effective Communication
By Rod Johnston, MBA, CMA
As practice transition consultants, we are often asked “What is the most important factor in facilitating a successful practice transition?” The simple answer is Communication. While it is imperative for the buying doctor to build a strong team of advisors, complete due diligence on the practice, secure financing, and navigate the closing process, all else could be lost if there is no effective communication between the buyer and seller during and following the transition of ownership.
As part of the due diligence process, the buying doctor should schedule a face-to-face meeting with the selling doctor well in advance of closing. We typically recommend this meeting be held at the seller’s office after operating hours, with the practice transition consulting attending if possible. The initial meeting is designed to allow both parties to get to know one another, ask any questions they may have regarding the practice or each other, discuss practice philosophies, etc. During this meeting, the parties may also exchange contact information so they can reach out to each other directly to discuss any remaining questions or concerns leading up to closing (while also keeping the practice broker in the loop).
The buyer typically learns a great deal about the seller and practice during this interaction and leaves the meeting knowing if the opportunity is the right fit for them. Once the buyer and seller have met and established a personal connection, we also find that negotiations are more amicable and the closing process goes much smoother.
With a fee-for-service and/or personality-driven practice (where most of the patients or clients are coming to the practice specifically because of the seller’s personality), we have found that a second meeting between the buyer and seller in a more casual setting such as lunch, dinner, or happy hour can allow the parties to loosen up and gain additional insight into each other’s personalities, interests, practice philosophies, etc. It is important to mention that we suggest the parties steer clear of discussing pricing, allocations, or any other negotiable items during any of these meetings.
Throughout the closing process, the buyer should clearly communicate his or her expectations of the seller leading up to and following the sale and the seller should notify the buyer if he or she is unwilling or unable to fulfill these obligations. Regardless of the seller’s post-closing plans or obligations, the selling doctor should plan to serve as a resource to the buyer following the sale and be available for a phone consultation to answer questions and offer advice.
By effectively communicating throughout the transition process, the buyer and seller will have established a solid foundation for a smooth and successful healthcare practice transition.
Read MorePitfalls to Avoid in Buying a Building
By Steve Kikikis, Vice President, Commercial Real Estate Broker
Money Pit or Cash Cow?
On occasion when a doctor purchases a practice there is also an option to purchase the real estate. Historically, real estate has been a good investment over time, but owning a commercial building has its own nuances.
There are a lot of similarities between owning a commercial building and a residential house. As the building owner or homeowner, you are responsible for paying the insurance, maintenance, and property taxes. Be sure to understand what your out-of-pocket costs are before you take on the responsibility of purchasing a property. Investing in a building or home inspection conducted by a reputable building inspector is always worth it.
Before you purchase a commercial building, know your demographics, and do your research. If a building is a steal, make sure you do some research to find out why. A commercial real estate broker that specializes in your industry can assist you in looking at the demographic information to fully understand the value of the real estate.
After you’ve purchased the practice, you are now the king of your castle and if you are business savvy, you can make a profit from owning your building. Having some knowledge of what to expect and what the pitfalls are of owning a building can save a lot of headaches down the road. For this article, we will consider that you are the owner and sole tenant of your building.
Maintenance
You’re now responsible for everything from the leaky roof, sweeping the parking lot, HVAC systems, lighting, ADA compliance, security systems, plumbing, and possibly the water and sewer mains underneath the property. The best advice is to adhere to a schedule with regular and preventive maintenance. Don’t skimp on issues that may seem small but that can turn into a bigger safety issue (both expensive and potential lawsuit if hazardous) in the long run.
A lot of potential challenges are dependent on the age of the building and how the previous owner took care of the property. You can hire a property manager to be the point of contact so you’re not distracted and can concentrate on your work. Some owners like to be involved in every decision, while others don’t want the hassle of being contacted for leaky pipes, clogged toilets, etc.
Insurance
A commercial building policy will differ from a residential homeowner’s policy on your home. A commercial policy will also have coverage for the business operations, its products, and operations liability. Much like homeowner’s insurance, the age and construction type of the commercial property will determine the premiums. Commercial insurance is also based on the neighborhood where the building is located.
Although chances are slim, some policies cover loss of income in the event of a fire or other loss of the building. These are usually additional policies that can provide peace of mind.
City Ordinances
Although you may own the building, ownership doesn’t necessarily mean you can do anything you want. An example is a new building owner who wanted to utilize a specific size of a sign for his business, but the city ordinances stated a sign can be no bigger than 30 square feet. Be sure to reach out to the city before you decide to change or update the signage on your building and also verify if there are any restrictions for the exterior of your building such as signage, color, material, etc.
Taxes
There are two points on the taxes. First, for the building taxes, make sure your ownership is properly transferred to you during the purchase, and make sure that you keep up-to-date on your taxes. Set up an account directly within the municipality you are located or make sure your loan program is paying it directly. For your business taxes, owning your own commercial real estate has many tax advantages. Connect with your CPA, make sure you’re paying your real estate entity as a business expense, and more.
Money Pit or Cash Cow?
There will be costs to owning your own commercial real estate, but taking the proper steps and working with an experienced commercial real estate broker that specializes in medical/dental purchases will save you time and a lot of money. Just think, if you are leasing a space, after 10 years you will be signing up for paying the landlord another 5 years of income. If you own, after 10 years, you will be working towards paying that building off and have the equity in the building.
Read MorePractice Ownership: A Path to Financial Freedom for Dental Graduates
By: Max Truesdel
Dental students often graduate with substantial debt, which can feel overwhelming at first. However, practice ownership presents a viable strategy to overcome this financial burden. By owning a dental practice, dentists can significantly increase their income potential and build equity, offering a clear path to financial freedom.
The dental industry has experienced remarkable growth over the past decade, with increased awareness of oral health and spending on dental care. This expansion presents a lucrative opportunity for dentists to capitalize on a thriving market. Owning a practice allows dentists to directly benefit from this growth, as opposed to working as associates where income potential is often capped.
One critical step in this process is finding the right practice to purchase. This is where a dental practice broker becomes invaluable. Dental practice brokers specialize in connecting buyers with suitable practices, ensuring that the location and operational aspects align with the buyer’s goals. They provide insights into market trends, financial evaluations, and facilitate negotiations, making the complex process of purchasing a practice more manageable and less risky.
Using a dental practice broker also helps to identify practices in high-growth areas, ensuring better patient flow and higher revenue potential. They can access a wide range of listings that may not be publicly available, providing more opportunities to find the perfect match.
Additionally, brokers can assist with due diligence, ensuring that the financial health of the practice is sound and that there are no hidden liabilities. This thorough vetting process is crucial for new owners to start on solid ground and focus on growing their patient base.
In conclusion, practice ownership is a powerful way for dentists to overcome student debt and achieve financial stability. The dental industry’s continued growth enhances this opportunity, and using a dental practice broker can significantly ease the transition into ownership. By leveraging the expertise of brokers, new dentists can find the right practice, set the stage for success, and turn their student debt into a stepping stone towards a prosperous career.
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