Study clubs for the front office team: how it can impact YOUR office

By Michelle Feierabend-Parish

Study clubs are a great way for dentists to network, increase their referral base, and keep up with the latest trends and technology. After being involved in management for nearly 20 years, I thought it would be beneficial for members of the dental administrative team to also participate in study clubs. What better way to keep up on insurance trends and market your practice?

Starting a study club could be as simple as calling or emailing dental offices in your area that you already have an existing relationship with to see if there is any interest. Start small; you can always grow in numbers as you establish the study club. It is best not to limit the club to just managers. Many offices may not have managers, so it’s a good idea to include front office team members. Some offices may want to even include dental assistants who share in the administrative duties. Here are some ways that a study club can benefit you and your office.

Increase your referral base

Orthodontists, endodontists, oral surgeons, and periodontists rely heavily on referrals from other dentists. A study club can provide the opportunity for team members from different specialties to meet face to face and increase referrals. Many times, you may be reluctant to refer to a specialist because you know little about the office. Study clubs will enable you to ask questions about an office and get to know the team better. Most likely, a patient will ask the front office staff more about a specialist than they do the dentist. They may ask what type of insurance the office takes, payment policies, and what to expect from the appointment. These questions can be answered more efficiently if you have a professional relationship established with the front office.

Meetings at different offices

Most study clubs are held in the dental office. Ask your dentist if he or she would allow you to host a meeting in your office after hours. This will allow other offices to see your office. Offer to give everyone a tour and point out some things that make your office special. It is always a good idea to see how other offices are set up and what the different types of technology are available that you may not have in your office.

Hot topics

Whoever is hosting the meeting should decide on a main topic to be discussed at the meeting, and the host should lead the discussion. You can also have a guest speaker — a dentist, hygienist, vendor, insurance representative, or someone in the information technology field. Make sure that if you are hosting a meeting, let your members know who the speaker is and what the topic is going to be. They may want to bring other team members to the meeting if the subject matter is relevant to them.

Insurance and ADA/CDT coding

As you are well aware, there are many different types of insurance. Some insurance companies — especially state funded and capitation — make changes to their policies quite often. This would be a perfect opportunity to discuss these changes and how they affect an office. In turn, you will also get to know the insurance policies other offices honor. And you will be able to provide this information to your patients. You can also discuss changes in ADA/CDT coding and/or how to code to get the most out of insurance reimbursement.

Costs of a study club

There a few ways you can set up your study club. Some groups ask for an annual membership fee that can assist with refreshments, cost of printed materials, and speakers. If you choose to charge a membership fee, make sure you create professional materials that state exactly what is included in the membership. If you choose not to charge a fee, you can rotate the offices where you meet and share the responsibility of providing refreshments. Ask your dentist if it would be alright for you to use office equipment to make copies or print materials from the computer. Many times a dentist will see the benefits of the study club for his or her practice and help with the cost. If you choose not to have a membership fee, make sure you inform speakers that it is a nonspeaking engagement.

Now that you know a few ways a study club could impact your office, start 2012 by branching out and getting involved with your peers. In the process, you will learn new things, meet new people, and increase referrals. Good luck! Make it a great year!

Author bio
Michelle Feierabend-Parish has been in the dental field for more than 20 years. She started out as an orthodontic assistant, then worked in management at a corporate dental company overseeing multiple offices. Over the past five years, she has been employed at Cuyahoga Community Corporate College in Cleveland, Ohio, as an instructor for their dental management program, a program which she helped develop. In December 2011, Michelle accepted a position as an instructor with the Warschaw Learning Institute. She has also taught and developed courses in diversity and customer service. Michelle has worked as an independent consultant for private dental offices assisting dentists with accounts receivable and administrative training. Michelle majored in cultural anthropology at the University of Akron and values the importance of diversity and customer service training, enabling her to combine her education and work experience to educate others. She can be contacted by email by clicking here.