No-shows in dental practices cause under-utilization of resources and increase waiting times for other patients.
In this episode, Gary talks about a model that reduces the impact of no-shows in dental practices. The objective is to maximize the practice’s expected revenue by using show-up probabilities estimated for each combination of patient and appointment slot.
This episode also features a clinical tip from Eric M. Block, DMD, CAGS, FICOI on Dental Implants.
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Timestamps
Today’s Clinical Tip
- 00:03:03 – Eric M. Block, DMD, CAGS, FICOI on Dental Implants
Coaching In Action
- 00:09:12 – What is the difference between busy and productive?
- 00:10:08 – 6 tips for creating a productive scheduling model.
- 00:11:09 – Tip Number 1.
- 00:11:49 – Tip Number 2.
- 00:19:55 – Tip Number 3.
- 00:22:02 – Tip Number 4.
- 00:22:38 – Tip Number 5.
- 00:22:44 – Tip Number 6.
Q&A Segment
- 00:27:23 – Question Number 1 – I am a solo Dentist working four clinical days per week, and I currently have two hygienists also, each working 4 days per week. I believe I have the demand to add another hygienist for two additional days per week, but I’m concerned about managing the hygiene exams. Any suggestions?
- 00:31:52 – Question Number 2 – I really enjoy doing cosmetic dentistry, and I believe I have more demand in my practice for doing more smile design cases. Can you suggest a scheduling template that might allow me to do more cosmetic cases?
- 00:35:54 – Question Number 3 – I have an opportunity to hire an additional dental assistant. While I don’t necessarily need another assistant, I could see how having an additional assistant could provide many benefits to my practice. Your thoughts?
- 00:35:53 – Question Number 4 – There was a time in my practice when we used the ‘Block Scheduling’ system, and it worked very well. However, we drifted away from it and developed some bad scheduling habits. How can I get back to using the Block Scheduling System?”
Resources

Gary Takacs

As a dental practice coach, Gary provides guidance for dental professionals on how to create a healthier practice style that lets them deliver excellent patient care while reducing depending on insurance.
More importantly, Gary’s insights are not just based on theory – as a co-owner of a dental practice, he has first-hand experience in making this transformation from a high-volume and low-fee insurance model to a fee-for-service approach that is more sustainable and promotes a patient-centric and financially healthy dental practice, and he is dedicated to sharing this knowledge with other dental practitioners via the popular Thriving Dentist Show!