The Power of the Morning Huddle Within Your Dental Office

A successful relationship of any kind must have one common denominator, Communication.

Communication opens any and all doorways to success. If fostered properly in your dental practice, it will be the key to a successful practice and happy team members. As we know, the clinical skills in the practice are only one factor in the overall equation. How you communicate with your staff ultimately has an effect on communication skills demonstrated to your patients.

A Morning Huddle is an efficient and very effective way to bridge great communication between doctor and staff.

Organizing the Morning Huddle:

1. Select someone to lead the huddle. Rotate leaders of the huddle (daily or weekly) to give everyone an opportunity to refine and enhance their skills.
2. As a team you should agree on topics to discuss prior to the Huddle to encourage efficiency and engage in conversation.
3. The huddle should be in the morning before patients are seen - 12 to 15 minutes long
4. All team members should participate. A Daily Schedule should be available to each staff member providing useful information about the patient.

Morning Huddle Topics:

• Emergency Patients
  • It is imperative that the Front Desk be made aware of the Emergencies and the desired scheduling times. By setting aside specific times in the schedule for "True Emergency" you are communicating before the start of your day. This allows Scheduling to be effective and efficient.
•  New Patients 
  • If the Patient is a "New Patient" write down the name of the referring patient or how they heard about your office. By having this information prior to their appointment demonstrates a well rounded practice. They will feel like a "Rock Star" you actually took the time and prepared for their appointment. You made the time to notice the little things that will make them feel important.
• Patient Charts
  •  X-rays, Pre-Meds, Large Cases, any Lab Deliveries.
• All existing Hygiene Patients should be discussed thoroughly.
  • Any outstanding treatment should be evaluated and communicated by Dr. and Hygienist. Possible Ortho, endo, and other pertinent procedures should be discussed. FoThere are often times when the Dr. and Hygienist might not be thinking exactly alike on this topic.
• Repeated No Shows and Late Patients
  • Offer a reminder call that morning to avoid scheduling disruptions.
• Review the Doctors Schedule to be certain that any time adjustments have been appropriately made.
• The Front office might want to review any collection balances or co-payments. Any Insurance adjustments. This will allow the day to run more efficiently with less interruptions in the front office.

Ending the meeting

An efficiently and effectively run Morning Huddle will set the tone for Growth. Allowing each day to be more productive, profitable, and add exceptional Value!!  A Positive way to end the meeting might be to offer an Inspirational Quote or tell a joke. Just be certain that the common denominator has remained consistent throughout the Morning Huddle. COMMUNICATION IS THE KEY!!!!!!! Now encourage it throughout the entire office and watch your doorways GROW SUCCESSFULLY!!!