Dental hygiene: adding value to your practice
Article Abstract:
The availability, cost and value of dental hygienists is important to dentists. While the salaries of dental hygienists are escalating, their availability is declining in parts of the U.S. Today, the demand for hygiene services in dentistry is increasing. The percent of general dentists employing at least one hygienist is on the increase as is the average number of hours per month worked by hygienists. Inadequate salary, boredom, worry about infectious disease, lack of benefits, lack of decision-making opportunities and no recognition or appreciation can cause them to leave permanently. Patients should be told why they are to return, what will be done then and when they will be seen. When trained to reinforce patients to follow through with treatment, hygienists can demonstrate their worth.
Publication Name: Journal of the American Dental Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0002-8177
Year: 1993
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
Controlling the numbers that control your life: how monitoring costs can improve your personal, professional life
Article Abstract:
Dentists should decide together with their spouse what kind of lifestyle they want and then decide how much income their practice should generate to support that lifestyle. Once a budget has been established, certain numbers can be used to monitor its effectiveness. The production per hour can be determined by dividing the annual projected income by the number of work days and again by the number of hours worked per day. The collection ratio should not drop below 98% and overhead should never amount to more than 60%.
Publication Name: Journal of the American Dental Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0002-8177
Year: 1996
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
How much overhead is too much?
Article Abstract:
The amount of overhead expenses generated by a dental office should range between 50% to 65% of total charges. The best way to control overhead expenses is to analyze the percentage contributed by each part of the practice. This includes rent, salaries, laboratory expenses, and dental supplies. Reasonable percentages for each contribution are discussed.
Publication Name: Journal of the American Dental Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0002-8177
Year: 2000
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
- Abstracts: Getting the right employee is half the battle. Parents spell out most wanted qualities of professionals. Make an initial investment in hiring - or pay later
- Abstracts: Lifestyle and aging: your choices play a role. Nutrition as you age: your needs change. Alcohol and older people: a hidden epidemic
- Abstracts: Weak association between subjective symptoms of and objective testing for dry eyes and dry mouth: results from a population based study
- Abstracts: Translating medical science into medical practice: do we need a National Medical Standards Board? A Controlled Trial of a Critical Pathway for Treatment of Community-Acquired Pneumonia
- Abstracts: The influence of consuming fatty fish instead of red meat on plasma levels of vitamins A, C and E. Daily consumption of (red) meat or meat products in Switzerland: Results of the 1992/93 Swiss Health Survey