HCD Headlines 6-25-2025

Rachael
Jun 25
4 min read

I didn't realize how long it's been since we've done headlines. We have quite a bit to go through. Please review carefully and let me know if you have any questions.

July Schedule

Here is our official schedule for July. We are going to need help covering for Debbie and Edmel being out at the same time in July. I will be looking for fill-in help and/or a new assistant. Your assistance is greatly appreciated!

Reminder: When your doctor is out, you are still on the schedule to come to the office for your regular time. If you don't want to come in or have other plans, you must submit a request through QB Time or Workforce. I don't want to cut your time if you need it. By submitting a request, this is telling me you don't need the hours, and we shouldn't expect you on those days.

Thank you all for staying on top of your time-off requests through Time. Please let me know if you have any questions about the schedule this month.

Large Appointment Protocol

To reduce cancelations, we are implementing a new protocol for large appointments. Appointments that are 4+ hours will need to have a deposit of 1/2 the patient's portion. This must be paid at time of scheduling.

Random issues that will most likely come up:

Pay-in-full discount is available if the patient pays 100% of the cost by the day of service. Meaning, they can do a payment plan with us and receive the discount SO LONG as the balance is paid in full on the date of service.
Payment plans can be put in place as needed for the deposit, but the deposit must be paid at least one week before the appointment date.
If they do cancel this large appointment even after paying 1/2 their portion, it will be decided by the provider if they want to reschedule the full appointment for 1X ONLY.

Broken Appointment (BA) Policy

We have implemented a BA Policy which limits the patient to 3x BA in a 12 month period. This is very generous - we know - but we also understand life happens, and this offer of 3x shows compassion to the patient and gives them a chance to improve.

After 2 BA's, the patient cannot have the full appointment time regardless of any pre-payment made. They can have 90 minutes saved for them and their treatment will be adjusted accordingly to fit that time period.

After 3 BA's, the patient goes to same-day only scheduling. Forgiveness can be given once the patient has proved they can keep their appointments and the provider gives the OK or the 12-month period has lapsed since their last visit with us.

Random issues that will most likely come up:

The 3BA patient has an emergency and needs to be seen. However, they can't come in same-day. In this scenario, we can schedule a time for them, but they must pay for their appointment in full.

CPR Classes

Our in-person CPR class has been scheduled for Tuesday, July 1st at 9 AM in the HCD Conference Room. This class is for Lauren, Doua, Ikaika, Edmel, and Angelika to attend. For those team members, you must complete the online CPR course which was emailed to your personal emails yesterday. You can work on this course while at the office.

On Tuesday, you will meet with Damon from AK Safety Squad. He will take about 10-15 minutes with you to prove you have learned the life saving skills necessary to receive your BLS certification. This time is not covered under regular work hours as we are covering the cost of your certification.

Please let me know if you have any questions about requirements or time concerns.

Hygiene Home-Care Tips

Guadalupe recently attended a CE course and shared this information with us. This is great information for our team and our patients regarding:

Patient home care for implants and implant-retained protheses
Periodontal disease treatment
Prophy pastes & varnishes
Lasers and Photobiomodulation

Thank you for sharing this great information, Guadalupe!

Distilled Water in the Operatories

From a previous discussion at a team meeting, we followed up with Burkhart to find out where distilled water is recommended in the operatory. Here's what they said:

Thank you for your question. I’ve attached documentation from both A-dec and Dentsply for your review. Additionally, Arne received a text from our Dentsply representative confirming that distilled water is not required for your Cavitron unit.

TEXT: They do not need to use distilled water. They need to use a daily water treatment system a.k.a. like a tablet

I hope this information is helpful—please let me know if you have any further questions!

Best regards,

Angela L. Hansen

Regional Sales Manager

Insightful Words

LionSpeak is one of my favorite dental consulting groups. If you're interested in learning more about team dynamics, handling patient concerns, and communication in general, I highly recommend signing up for their e-newsletter or following them on social media.

The title is Crisis Point. Although we might not be in a "crisis point," there is a great lesson to learn in having a scarcity or pessimistic mindset versus a growth or optimistic mindset in times of adversity. Adversity isn't always a HUGE event, but sometimes it's the day to day tasks that can become overwhelming, boring, or redundant. This is where our agreement "CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE" comes into play.

We can either face the moment with all the baggage that comes with a typical, "natural" negative perspective, or we can make a conscious effort to stop the natural response and retrain our brain to move into a positive perspective. It truly is a conscious effort and takes practice, but I promise you that you'll feel happier in mind and body when you choose to have a growth mindset when faced with conflict or adversity. Let me know your thoughts!

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.”
~ Ambrose Redmoon

Send your team an emoji, gif, or meme showing how you choose to choose your attitude every day.