Healthcare Consumerism

As successful clinicians for many years, our leadership team had the opportunity to experience and observe many advantages and disadvantages of the traditional private practice model. We began to ask ourselves the following questions: could a more ideal dental health care delivery system be created, who would be the beneficiaries and what changes would be considered? If we were to start all over again, with an understanding that the “world is changing”, how could we take better care of our patients and how would this “prototype practice look?”

Of course, this “vision” would impact several stakeholders, but the main emphasis would be the patient (with the goal of achieving excellent care/ predictable treatment outcomes with an ideal patient experience) and the clinician (with the opportunity to experience less stress and improved overall professional satisfaction). 

Among the most basic elements of this vision was to incorporate the concept of healthcare consumerism. We have been major proponents of this concept for some time and it represents one of the cornerstones of Premier Care Dental Management’s success.

What is healthcare consumerism and how does it affect healthcare? In short, healthcare consumerism is a movement that views patients more as consumers. Most of us have the ability to choose where we shop for food, buy our clothes and receive our health care. We must give our patients a compelling reason to choose us.

From a consumer point of view, there are basic requirements that need to be met. Today’s healthcare consumer is much more sophisticated than in the past. Patients are expecting to be informed and involved in their healthcare decisions. Therefore, it is imperative that we create value for our services each and every day. Consumers expect their healthcare providers to be available (convenient hours). Patients expect to be cared for in a clean, safe modern office, and to be seen on time. Healthcare consumers are hyper focused on being provided with fee transparency. Surprise billing is the fastest way to lose a patient’s loyalty and trust.

Creating Value: There is no substitute for creating value for your services. When a patient (healthcare consumer) values the care they receive, you are creating loyal, trusting patients who now have a compelling reason to choose you to be their dental care provider. Most people find it much easier to assign value to a service when they can visualize what is being accomplished. Therefore, intraoral photography, before and after images, even for a simple restoration, validates the time and money the consumer has spent with you. Creating value for services as common as a prophy visit (utilizing before and after images) are an important component of retaining the trust and loyalty of your patient.

Exceptional patient experiences and outstanding clinical outcomes. Everyone on the Premier Care Dental Management team is dedicated to helping all of us provide exceptional patient experiences and outstanding clinical outcomes. Our intent is to provide you with the knowledge, skills and resources so we can all achieve this goal. Understanding that patients are healthcare consumers and have choices as to where they receive their dental care is paramount to your success. The PCDM website contains many educational resources including clinical and patient management materials as well as providing the mechanism for second opinions, treatment plan guidance, and access to specialist’s knowledge and expertise.

Our hope is that you embrace these concepts which will significantly enhance your ability to “connect with patients” and deliver high quality care that meets or exceeds expectations. 

Sincerely,

Scott Asnis DDS CEO and Clinical Director

Joseph Carpentieri DDS Director of Education