Treatment Coordinator
Implementation Manual and Resources
Consultations
This is the first series in the Treatment Coordinator course and it serves as an introduction to the importance of consultations, your role as the Treatment Coordinator and what doctors look for in a Treatment Coordinator.
The role of Treatment Coordinator is patient facing and is tasked with the responsibility of attending patient consults and subsequently scheduling the patient’s prescribed treatment.
This video series takes a closer look at what happens during a consultation, where they should be held and how to handle patient questions to provide the best care possible for each of your patients.
Front Office Rocks recommends that you complete Purpose of a Treatment Coordinator and What Doctors Look for in a Treatment Coordinator first to become better acquainted with your role and responsibilities. Then, follow with The Importance of Consultations, How to do Consultations Chairside, Handling Patient Questions in Consultations and Can’t it Wait? to become accustomed with what happens during a consultation, what questions you can expect from patients and how to answer the question: Can’t it wait?
Treatment Planning
This is the second series in the Treatment Coordinator course and here you will take a closer look at the many facets of treatment planning.
As the Treatment Coordinator, you are present during treatment consultations and may face a variety of issues and questions regarding the patient’s treatment plan.
This video series will walk you through multiple consultation scenarios from simple questions clarifying dental terms to dealing with patients who only want to do a portion of their treatment. You will also learn how you can prepare for consultations and treatment plan presentations.
Front Office Rocks recommends that you complete Preparing for a Consultation/Treatment Plan Presentation first to become more familiar with the steps you should take each time to prepare for a consultation. Then, follow with Treatment Coordinator: Helping with Questions in Consults, Helping Patients from First Call to Treatment Presentations and Dealing with a Patient Who Wants to Do “Partial Treatment” to better understand what questions you can expect from patients, how to answer them and how to manage a patient who only wants to do partial treatment.
Discussing Money
This is the third series in the Treatment Coordinator course and it looks at the specifics of money and patients.
As the Treatment Coordinator, you will be responsible for discussing how a patient will pay for their prescribed treatment. This task can be uncomfortable or overwhelming, if you are unprepared.
This video series demonstrates how you can handle discussing money with confidence and ease. We will walk you through multiple payment scenarios and provide you will the guidance you need to successfully navigate asking for payment, patient balances and payment for emergency services.
Front Office Rocks recommends that you complete Asking the Patient to Pay and Being Prepared to Collect a Patient Balance first. Then, follow with Emergency Appointments – Discussing Money Prior to Treatment and Getting Patients Closed for Treatment and Finances to complete the foundation of how to handle most money discussions with the patient.
Patient Acceptance
This series looks at the needs of your patients and how to ascertain their acceptance of the prescribed treatment plan. Before a patient accepts treatment, they must first understand the treatment plan and how that treatment impacts their overall health.
This video series takes a closer look at how you can help patients understand their planned treatment; ensure they accept treatment and how to provide follow up care through post op phone calls.
Front Office Rocks recommends that you complete Patients Need to Understand Their Treatment Plan and Why Front Desk Consults Don’t Work first. Then, finish the series with Case Acceptance Interview with Doctors and Post Op Calls to build on your understanding of the importance of patient acceptance of treatment, case acceptance from the doctor’s perspective and how to make post op calls after treatment is complete.
Insurance Discussion
This series delves into the insurance questions you face on a day to day basis. Before a patient accepts treatment, they will typically defer to “only what insurance covers” and this becomes a barrier to scheduling treatment.
The videos in this series work through insurance issues and questions one by one, including calculating benefits, handling “insurance focused” patients, and looking ahead to prepare for insurance questions and issues.
Front Office Rocks recommends that you complete Calculating Dental Insurance Benefits, I am Only Doing What the Insurance Covers and How to Handle the “Insurance Focused” Patient first to learn how to handle the most frequent insurance/patient topics in the office. Then, complete the series with Looking Ahead to Avoid Insurance Issues and Communicating with Patients about Insurance and Financial Obligations to gain insight into proper insurance preparation and communication about insurance with patients.
Unscheduled Treatment
This is the final series in the Treatment Coordinator Course and it focuses on managing unscheduled treatment in the office. Oftentimes and for various reasons, patients do not schedule their prescribed treatment the day of the consultation. However, with a policy in place, a plan to follow and persistence, you can successfully follow up with patients who have outstanding treatment plans to ensure they schedule.
The videos in this series teach you how to prepare for an outstanding treatment meeting and what steps to take to follow up with unscheduled patients.
Front Office Rocks recommends that you complete Outstanding Treatment Plan Meeting and Follow Up Treatment Calls first, followed by Following Up on Unscheduled Treatment to complete the series.
Available Treatment Coordinator Policies
Cross-Training Video Suggestions for the Treatment Coordinator
Receptionist
- Phone Training
- Excellent Telephone Skills
- Lunches and Phone Coverage
- Getting New Patients Scheduled in 48 Hours
- How to Hand Off Clients
- Asking for Referrals
Scheduling
- What is Block Scheduling
- Knowing Your Scheduling Policy
- Cancellation Phone Calls
- Confirmation Calls
- Next Day Reviewer
- How to Offer an Appointment
- Confirming Suggestions and Resources