Coronavirus is making its presence felt in dental practices all over the country.
Some offices are choosing to suspend seeing non-emergency patients at the guidance of state dental societies. Others, in areas less affected by COVID-19, are taking a more measured approach and are staying open with bolstered sterilization and patient safety procedures.
Regardless of how you approach the situation, transparency and consistent patient communication is key to minimizing the impact of the virus on your practice and your patients.
Below are some recommendations for RevenueWell users as we all manage the pandemic. Thank you to all customers and members of the RevenueWell Rockstars Facebook group who shared their ideas with us.
1. Communicate early and often!
Whether you’re staying open or closing the office, proactive communication is key! Here are some message templates to use in either case: please copy-paste them into RevenueWell and modify as you see fit before sending.
Office Closing – Email Template
Email Subject: Office closed for COVID-19 precaution
Dear {PatientFirstName},
At {PracticeName}, our main goal has always been to protect the health of our patients, our team, and our community. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re closing the office for all elective dental treatment until [INSERT DATE]. We will contact you as soon as the office reopens or if this date changes. Here are some more details you should know:
- If you have a dental emergency, please contact us and we’ll take care of you. If you’re in pain, have a broken tooth or an abscess, please respond to this email or text [insert your text number – see instructions below]
- If you have essential ongoing treatment with us, we will keep you on the schedule or re-appoint your treatment as needed. We will be reaching out to each of you individually
- Our online practice portal is always open. You can log in at www.patientconnect365.com to look up past appointments, pay your bill, and access our office forms and documents
We wish you all good health. Please know that we will get through this together!
Be safe,
The team at {PracticeName}
Office Closing – Short Text Message Template
Due to COVID-19 we are closed until [INSERT DATE] & will rebook appts as needed. A Dr is on call for emergencies
Office Closing – Long Text Message Template
Hello. Please be advised that our office will be closed for elective dental treatment through [INSERT DATE]. If you have a dental emergency, please call or text us back. If you have essential dental treatment scheduled, we’ll keep you on the schedule or will contact you to re-appoint your treatment as needed. Be safe out there, and please text if there’s anything we can do to help.
Office Open – Email Template
Subject: We’re here for you
Dear {PatientFirstName},
COVID-19 is in the news everywhere, and we are closely monitoring the situation. We’re reaching out to assure you that you are safe at {PracticeName}.
We already, as a daily practice, assure universal precautions as outlined by CDC and OSHA standards of infection control. Safety is always our number one focus. Our high standard of care ensures that your trust and safety are never compromised.
We are taking extended measures to further protect all our patients and team with the following additional protocols:
- In compliance with the recommendations for public health, anyone with a cough or fever will not be allowed in the building and should stay home. We will be happy to reschedule your appointment for a later date
- Before your appointment, you have the option to stay in your car instead of the waiting room until we’re ready to seat you in your personal operatory. Simply call us when you arrive, and we will let you know when we’re ready for you.
- Upon entering {PracticeName}, you will be asked to sanitize your hands
At the beginning of every appointment, you will be asked to pre-rinse with OraCare. OraCare Mouth Rinse has anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties - Additionally, we are requesting you sanitize your hands before re-entering the business areas
You can be assured safety measures at {PracticeName} will continue to evolve as more information develops.
Stay well, hydrate, eat nutritiously, and get plenty of sleep.
We look forward to serving you,
The team at {PracticeName}
Office Open – Short Text Message Template
Our office is still open as we monitor the COVID-19 situation. Please call or text questions about your apt
Office Open – Long Text Message Template
Hello. As we continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation, our practice currently remains open. To ensure your safety, we have implemented universal precautions as outlined by CDC and OSHA standards of infection control. Should the status of our office change, we will let you know. We look forward to seeing you for your scheduled appointment on [INSERT DATE].
2. Remind patients about your patient portal
A HIPAA-compliant patient portal is a part of every RevenueWell subscription.
All patients who have an email address on file can access to Patient Connect 365 to look up past appointments, pay their bills, access practice documents and share files with your office. During these busy times, it’s a good idea to let this tool do the heavy lifting for your front desk.
Patients can log in at PatientConnect365.com or through your personalized practice page that you can find here. We suggest getting a Campaign out to your patients about this tool by using a template under Miscellaneous category.
3. Make good use of RevenueWell Messenger
Most of you know RevenueWell Messenger as a desktop texting tool that allows you to have multiple conversations at once with your patients.
If your practice is open over the next few weeks, consider using RevenueWell Messenger to reconfirm each day’s appointments — even if your patients already confirmed through RevenueWell.
There is a lot happening in your patients’ lives right now, and some will forget about their appointments, or even assume you’re closed when you’re not.
If you are closed, Messenger is a great tool for ensuring each patient is communicated with so they can stay home safely.
4. Ensure patients have your practice’s text number
You can find this number under Phone & SMS settings.
If you haven’t yet text-enabled your office number, this will be a different 10-digit number that’s been assigned to you.
Please make sure your patients know to text it if you have any questions or need help. This way, you’ll be able to check new messages and respond whether you’re at the office or working remotely.
5. Adjust your automatic communications
If you are closing the office completely, turn off your automatic appointment confirmations.
Alternatively, if you’re keeping some patients on the schedule, please mark all non-essential appointments as CANCELLED so RevenueWell doesn’t try to confirm them for you.
6. Keep your Recall, Patient Reactivation, and automatic campaigns active
Here is why: even if you’re stepping back from non-essential procedures, you will need a full schedule when you get back.
Keeping these campaigns going will prevent you from going “dark” with your patients — it will also make rebuilding the schedule that much easier if the pandemic takes longer than 2-3 weeks to subside.
We’ll be updating this post as we have more information or get more great ideas from our customers.
Be safe out there!
– – –
This post originally appeared on the RevenueWell blog. View the original post.
You must be logged in to post a comment.