Treatment Acceptance: How Can You Improve Yours?

Improved treatment acceptance is something every dentist strives for, especially

because maintaining the oral health of your patients will be a priority. One would like

to think that patients would accept the recommendation of a professional, but this is

not the reality. In fact, there are various factors that influence a patient’s decision-

making process. Education, communication, the dental team, and more can

influence whether your patients choose the treatment you’ve recommended them.

A Team Approach

When a patient walks into your practice they immediately start to evaluate their

experience. A team that works together to foster an environment that is friendly,

welcoming, and informative is more likely to have a positive impact on patient

perception of the practice. However, a friendly and supportive team isn’t the only

goal to work towards. It’s important to create the right environment all-round and you

can do this by appealing to patients’ senses. 1 Try to imagine yourself as a patient

walking into your practice and consider the experience you’ll have: what’s the first

thing you see? Is there a pleasant smell? Does the place feel warm and welcoming

or cold and clinical? What is the condition of the waiting room and the toilet? Each of

these things, and more, will be questions your patients will answer to themselves

throughout their visit. Outside of their appointment, the waiting room and toilet are

likely to be the areas your patients spend most of their time in – ensuring that they

are clean, well-lit, and well stocked will work towards your patients having an

elevated experience which can increase the chance of them accepting the treatment

you offer.

Patient Expectations

There was a time when patients had no idea what to expect from a dentist – the

Victorian era saw a lot of advancements in dentistry but many mistakes were made

too. The 21 st Century dental patient, however, is well-versed in what they should

receive. Today, 39% of patients expect higher quality care from their dentist because

they pay for the service directly and 59% are more likely to complain if they’re not

happy with a dental treatment they’ve paid a lot of money for. ii The study also

revealed that people expect the quality of care they receive to increase as they pay

more for their treatment. Overall, it’s clear that patients expect high standards from

their dentists and meeting these expectations is likely to make them more willing to

accept the treatment you’ve proposed.

Communication is Key

It’s important for patients to understand the treatment options available to them,

including the benefits, longevity of treatment, cost, risks and anything else you

consider important for your patient to know. A survey found that 84% of participants

agreed that they care about being involved in conversations regarding their

treatment options. 2 81% also said that they trust their dentist to recommend what’s

best for them. This indicated that dentists who take the time to talk about treatment

options are likely to see patients accepting their recommendations more readily.

Patients will also benefit from understanding the what, how, when, where, and why

behind the solution you’re suggesting, especially as without that understanding they

could be put off by the cost, for instance, of an implant procedure.

Technology Can Pay-off

Sometimes the length of treatment can impact the decision a patient makes. Dentists

are becoming increasingly busy but technology could be a huge benefit as using the

latest innovations can streamline a dentist’s workflow and improve patient

satisfaction. However, technology can also increase patient acceptance as it aids

communication. Dentists are able to share digital images and data with their patients

in this day and age and this can help patients become more educated, increase their

understanding, and it could motivate them to take their oral health more seriously. As

well as this, using technology in the dental practice can allow you to be more flexible

for patients – those who lead incredibly busy lives could benefit from a dentist who is

able to see them remotely and send them any treatment plans when appropriate.

As a member of the BACD you can take advantage of introducing technology into

your workflow with 20% off Chairsyde. This interactive consulting platform will help

your patients visualise their treatment, whether you are seeing them virtually or face-

to-face. Patients are so impressed by what they’ve seen that those already using the

technology in their practice have seen a 32% increase in treatment acceptance. You

will also benefit from an optimised workflow as you can save up to 28% of surgery

time.

In summary, treatment acceptance is impacted by various aspects of a dental

practice. However, when you put the effort into the areas that impact patients the

most you will see the results. What’s more, technology can aid you even further and

altogether you can provide an exceptional experience for your patients as they start

to accept the treatments they need to optimise their oral health.

For further enquiries about the British Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, visit

www.bacd.com

1 Engelhardt-Nash, D. (n.d.). Increasing Treatment Acceptance - Communicating the Value of

Your Care Co-Founder of the Nash Institute for Dental Learning and Practice Management

Expert. [online] Available at: https://www.agd.org/docs/default-source/exclusive-benefits-

/debra-englehardt-nash-article.pdf?sfvrsn=2 [Accessed 4 Feb. 2022].

2 Quigley, A., Worsley, R., Irvin, E. and Gower, L. (2019). | Version 1 | Internal Use Only

GDC Patients and Public Research.