Improve your waiting times to streamline customer service | Zesty.co.uk

The issue of waiting times is a common problem for dental practices. Although we may not be able to be give all of our patients what they want, all of the time, we can strive to ensure that waiting times are not at an unacceptable level.

Having to wait for an appointment is often the reason behind a patient choosing to go private, rather than have treatment through the NHS. A recent report in The Telegraph looked at claims that NHS doctors may be driving up waiting times in order to attract more private patients.[1] Controversial and unethical, definitely, and – just like in dentistry – paying to jump the queue does not guarantee a better standard of care.

However, the fact remains that when a dental patient is choosing where to have their treatment, waiting time could be a big part of that decision. Patients not only have high expectations, but they are savvy and organised. They may call you directly, or use online forums to find out the information they need. Loyalty to one’s dentist is an alien concept to many, particularly with a more itinerant population, and convenience is often King.

Being in control of your waiting times is the key to providing consistently excellent customer service. To be a successful, thriving practice in this competitive environment, customer service needs to be impeccable from the minute a patient makes contact. If a patient does not feel valued, they may not return even if the treatment was successful:  if you go to a restaurant and are served fantastic food by a bad waiter, the poor service is what will stay with you. Also, people have busy lives. If you schedule a follow-up months into the future, something more urgent may come up at a later date. Many are reluctant to book an appointment too far in advance, because they are unsure about their upcoming commitments and do not want the hassle of having to change it.

Having ‘acceptable’ or ‘reasonable’ waiting times means treatment plans have more chance of being completed. It also gives you the chance to develop a dialogue with patients and build on positive communication. You can give people oral healthcare tips and discuss how they have been working at home when you see them often enough; this also encourages trust, particularly if they want to discuss an issue that has been troubling them. If you are able to give an accurate timescale for their treatment, this is great for compliance.

A streamlined approach to waiting times will reduce stress for everyone who works at your practice; there will be less unhappy patients to deal with for one! To set reasonable waiting times as standard, you have to be ruthlessly efficient about how you organise appointments. Online booking platforms are fantastic tools for achieving this: for example, Zesty lets you upload only the appointments you want to fill, for your patients to browse and book. This allows you to keep your daily and weekly workload at manageable levels and gives you space for emergencies and routine follow-ups. Online booking will take some pressure off your reception staff too, so they can deal with people who come into the practice to arrange their care. Your elderly patients may prefer to discuss their needs in person, for example. As part of your ongoing commitment to excellent customer service and treating every patient with respect, you should give them this option. Online booking is a not quite a virtual reception area, more it is a conduit that will enhance what you already offer.

So many people still approach a visit to the dentist with negativity; they are worried about painful and/or lengthy treatment, are unsure about what they are entitled to on the NHS or how to get a good deal from a private practitioner. On top of all this, there is frustration about having to wait for an appointment and then being offered one that is inconvenient. Reducing wait times will help you work towards a more streamlined approach to your customer service. When this is improved, this will certainly go part of the way towards allaying your patients’ common fears and strengthening the relationship that you have with them. Look for tools that can help you set reasonable waiting times: they allow people to get actively involved in making decisions about their care and get the most out of their dentist, which, ultimately is what we should all be aiming for.

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