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February is usually draped in red hearts and boxes of chocolates, but for a busy dental office, the reality can be less romantic. Between chasing down overdue payments, playing phone tag for appointment reminders, and wrestling with paperwork, it’s easy for your team to feel more "burnt out" than "smitten."
This month should be a time for love in your office. Real love isn't just a quick lunch break; it’s removing the tension that makes the workday feel like a marathon. By automating the repetitive "busy work," you free up your team to focus on what they actually love: caring for patients. But where should your practice start?
By integrating a patient engagement software like Flex Dental Solutions into your daily workflow, you can transform these five draining manual tasks into background processes that run themselves.
Here are five manual tasks you should automate this February to bring the passion back to your practice.
1. The "Reminder" Phone Tag
Nothing kills a morning groove like spending two hours leaving voicemails that no one returns. Manual reminders are time-consuming and prone to human error.
The Flex Fix: Automate your appointment reminders via text and email. Flex integrates directly with your Open Dental practice management software to send personalized nudges. Your schedule stays full, and your front office staff stays off the phone.
2. The Clipboard Shuffle
Handing a patient a germy clipboard with five pages of paper forms is a dated experience for them and a data-entry nightmare for you.
The Flex Fix: Transition to digital patient forms. Patients can fill them out on their own devices before they even step foot in the office. The data syncs directly back to their file, eliminating manual entry and those "I can't read this handwriting" moments.
3. Chasing Past-Due Payments
Sending paper statements and waiting for a check in the mail feels like a relic of the past for both staff and patients.
The Flex Fix: Use FlexPay to send electronic statements via text or email with a link for a patient to easily pay from. When a patient can settle their balance in a few taps on their smartphone, you get paid faster, and your team avoids those awkward "collection" phone calls.
4. Treatment Plan Follow-Ups
How many patients walk out the door "needing to think about it" and are never heard from again? Tracking this manually can be a monumental task.
The Flex Fix: Set up automated follow-ups for unscheduled treatment. Flex can keep your practice top-of-mind by gently reminding patients of the care they need, helping you grow your production without lifting a finger.
5. The Insurance Waiting Game
Few things drain a team’s energy faster than spending hours on hold with insurance companies or realizing a patient’s coverage has expired after they’re already in the chair. It’s a tedious, manual process that often leads to billing headaches and awkward conversations.
The Flex Fix: With Flex’s automated insurance verification, the heavy lifting is done for you. The system automatically verifies coverage before the patient arrives, marking any issues in real-time. This means your coordinators can stop playing "hold music" and start spending that time building relationships, knowing the financial side is already handled.
Give Your Team the Gift of Time
Automation isn't about replacing the human touch; it’s about protecting your time. When your team isn't bogged down by the constant work of manual data entry and repetitive calls, they have the bandwidth to connect with patients.
This February, fall in love with your practice all over again by letting Flex handle the tedious work.
Looking to love your practice again?
