506: How to Help Your Patients Take Treatment Seriously - Christina Byrne, Angela Heathman,&Heather Crockett - a podcast by ACT Dental

How to Help Your Patients Take Treatment Seriously

Episode #506 with Christina Byrne, Angela Heathman, & Heather Crockett

Do you ever tell your patients it’s “just a little cavity” or “only a quick screening”? If you want them to take treatment more seriously, you need to change your language! And to help you shift your thinking, Kirk Behrendt brings back three of his amazing ACT coaches to explain what minimizing language is, how it’s affecting your treatment planning, and ways to eliminate them from your practice. Minimize your minimizing language! To learn how, listen to Episode 506 of The Best Practices Show!

Episode Resources:

• Christina’s email: christina@actdental.com 
• Christina’s social media: @actdental
• Angela’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angeheathman
• Angela’s social media: @angeheathman
• Heather’s email: heather@actdental.com 
• Heather’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heather.r.crockett
• Heather’s social media: @actdental
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Links Mentioned in This Episode:

ACT Dental’s Say This, Not That document: https://form.jotform.com/221665137804153

Main Takeaways:

Your language matters!

Stop devaluing your work with your words.

Don't downplay patients’ diseases with what you say.

Roleplay with your team and practice saying the right phrases.

Your entire team needs to be aligned and calibrated on language.

Quotes:

“The problem that we’re talking about is using minimizing words when we’re explaining treatment to our patients. Why is this so big? Because if you're going to the doctor’s office and they tell you that you have cancer, they're going to tell you what stage of cancer it is. And then, you understand at what level, what degree that cancer is at. We need to use the same outline in dentistry in order for our patients to understand the diagnosis that we’re recommending.” (4:45—5:14) -Heather

“[Minimizing language] is any phrase or word that you use that makes . . . what you're doing, what you're seeing, what they're experiencing less than what it actually is. So, an example of that might be using, ‘You have a little bleeding. You have a little cavity.’” (5:30—5:53) -Angela

“I hated when the doctor would say we were going to “watch” something. Because from [the hygienists’ perspective], we got to see the patient when they sat down in the chair from what they have done or not done in the last six months. And so, I know that this patient doesn't live in the same household with his toothbrush. The doctor doesn't know that when...

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