In a sea of dentists, every effort to differentiate your practice counts. When we remodeled our North Carolina office, we determined that the way we managed our practice and the way we communicated with our patients and one another were not as state-of-the-art as our equipment and expertise. Our dental techniques and facility are quite modern, and we sought a patient communication and intraoffice management tool to match.
Yapi offers a streamlined experience for patients that begins before they visit our office. The engineers at Yapi took our paperwork and made it accessible and fillable online (figure 1). This accomplishes two purposes: it saves time by giving us an easy and convenient portal for completing necessary documents, and it shows patients that we are a modern practice that values their time and the environment with a paperless intake system.
Prior to the scheduled appointment, Yapi implements a best-practice method of email and text reminders. The system interfaces with our dental software, Dentrix, and automated appointment reminders allow patients to confirm appointments and communicate with our office by text or email. This adds another layer of convenience for both patients and the team by allowing us to connect about pertinent information, as it is not always possible to speak by phone.
When a patient arrives in the office, our front desk has additional documents that need to be completed (figure 2). The front desk simply presents the patient with an iPad to finish the check-in process. When the patient is ready to move to the next phase of the appointment, Yapi’s intraoffice communication tools inform clinicians, and we are able to move the patient from the lobby to an operatory (figure 3).
Before Yapi, we were using a wall-light system. We decided that seeing lights flashing on the wall lessened the patient experience. Yapi provides an unobtrusive, professional way of managing patient flow. Although we have a large practice and see dozens of patients everyday, we want each patient to know that he or she is our priority while in our office for an appointment. The Yapi system tracks patient flow through the office, so we were able to remove the wall-light system from our operatories and provide a more polished, efficient experience for our patients.
The software has been instrumental in improving workflow and efficiency. Since it tracks check-in, time of seating, and time seen by the clinician, we know exactly how long patients are being asked to wait at various stages of the appointment. Consistent analysis ensures that patients are treated promptly, and if they aren't, I can provide effective leadership to my team.
There are additional features that keep us engaged with our patients, such as birthday greetings and requests for online reviews. However, the best part of the Yapi experience is the responsiveness of the support team. The company was a start-up and they have maintained the “small company” experience even as they have grown much larger—they are always happy and available to troubleshoot any curveball we throw them.
Editor's note: This article first appeared in The Product Navigator.Click here to subscribe. Click here to learn how to submit an article.
