‘My patients are choosing cheaper, inferior options’ – GF002

When you present your patients with the ideal options, but they end up choosing 'patch-up' Dentistry...this is a real world problem, and we will tackle it in a comprehensive way in this Group Function! Thank you Anonymous Dentist on Instagram for sending in this BRILLIANT question: Hey jaz! I've been listening to your podcast and I'm a huge fan!I especially enjoyed the Chris Orr one and the communication one.I just wondered if I could have some advice please..I'm working across two practices at the moment, 1 fully private and 1 mixed practice.At the mixed practice, often patients with broken teeth don't want to pay for crowns/onlays even though I spell out the benefits, often they will go for a replacement amalgam (which I hate doing) or a large private composite (again risk of debond due to the size)What would you recommend? If a patient doesn't want to pay for a crown /onlay but you've spelt it all out then I'm not sure what else I can do?Thanks in advance! XAnonymous Dentist in the UK, Instagram https://youtu.be/Y9xGee14LMg Real world problem in Dentistry...what is the solution? Full episode above You all know what happens when you get Zak Kara to give a quick answer....there is not such thing! Dr Zak Kara goes way beyond the call of duty and delivers us solutions in his signature comprehensive fashion! We tried to steer away from the NHS vs Private Dentistry debate too much - but definitely your environment and the values of your patients plays a huge role. Thank you so much for sending this question in - if anyone has a question they want to submit, do contact me via the website or send your question via DM on Protrusive Dental Instagram. If you found this valuable, share it with your associates and principals. If you liked this, you will also like Zak's gems on Communication in Episode 10! Need to Read it? Check out the Full Episode Transcript below! Here are some comprehensive notes/episode summary was written by fellow Protruserati, Taha Adamji - Thank you, Taha!: PDP GF002 - Communication with Zak Kara - patients always choosing the inferior option ROLE PLAY  Building rapport as you’re coming up/welcoming them in  E.g. How was your journey in today?/How’s your day going today? Feel free to put your things over there and take a seat - give them clear direction when they come in about what to do  What can I do for you? My molar broke - yes I heard, (Receptionist name) told me you’re having a bit of trouble with a tooth on the UL  I’ve had a look through your notes/X-rays/photos etc - from your previous visits - this shows you are well prepared to help them  Sorry to hear that/ that can happen sometimes (empathy) Is this the first time this has happened to you or has it happened before? (History)  Am I right that it doesn’t/does it hurt right now? Is it rough to your tongue/uncomfortable? Patient mentioned the clinic/gave praise Thank you/that’s kind of you to say, I’m reassured by that/what do you already know about us?/it’s your first time seeing me /you saw (x) dentist previously is that right? - all shows you have taken the time time to read their notes/are interested in them and their past experiences Patient apologised for not coming  That’s no problem/Don’t apologise/there’s no need to apologise. What we do here is always blame free/judgement free dentistry Let’s see how we can help you with this problem tooth today: Because this is a “get you of of trouble type of appointment”/urgent/emergency appt, the aim for today is to focus on that one tooth I’m not going to do a full health check/exam today if that’s okay, I’m going to focus on this main problem for you But let’s also check there’s nothing else urgent going on and then we’ll see if we can get this problem solved for you by the end of the visit  What did you hope or expect was going to happen today? (Check expectations)