There is no question that the mandatory shutdown resulting from COVID-19 has had a profound impact on the dental industry. Practices have done everything they can to remain whole until they are allowed to re-open. Many Curve customers have been able to use Curve Hero practice management software to perform tasks from home that server-based practices have struggled to address due to their inability to access their software.
For example, they’ve been able to reschedule patients and handle billing. Also, when dentists have received an emergency call, they’ve been able to look up patient records and properly triage—all from their home office. Their teams have been able to access the system remotely and safely for training purposes or to catch up on some work. All of this is accomplished seamlessly as if they were still working from the office because the user experience is the same. In fact Curve customers have seen that this “new normal,” can be a “better normal.”
Discovering the Power of Business Intelligence
A significant discovery for Curve dentists were the insights available through the Business Intelligence feature. During the early stages of the shutdown, we created a COVID-19 Resource Center on our website including specific coaching areas to help dentists improve their practice operationally so they would be stronger than ever when things returned to a sense of normalcy. For example, the Resource Center highlighted four of the many reporting dashboards that are designed to highlight the health of the dentist’s practice.
- KPI Dashboard Treatment Plan Overview Dashboard
This dashboard enables practices to understand the value of the open treatment plans in their patient base. Using this tool, practices can be more effective in following up with patients to schedule treatment and to follow best practices of closing out non-accepted treatment plans. This allows a practice always to have an accurate view of future revenue available inside their current patient base.
- Collection Summary Dashboard
Collections data reviews longer-term trends, with factors such as insurance receivables and other payment cycles commonly taking more extended periods to resolve. The Collection Summary Playbook dashboard helps identify which payment sources to focus your efforts on to maximize collections against outstanding A/R.
- Recare Dashboards
Recare is another area of their business that many Curve customers examined during the downtime. Steps included shoring up their foundation with a comprehensive recare set-up to understand their recare opportunity and how to capture it by reviewing the Recare Overview Dashboard. With new processes in place, these practices are confident that all patients coming in for treatment will be properly set up in the automated recare process to ensure their care is consistent and their recare revenue base continues to grow. There is also a view for patients without recare that will guide a practice to patients who are not set up on the recare program. It also helps them understand the missed and potential revenue opportunity for scheduling active patients for recare treatment allowing the practice manager to quantify the financial value of this effort and tie it to practice goals.
The New Normal
We all know that even when the pandemic ends, the practice of dentistry will change. Practices will need new technology and processes to adapt to patient and staff experiences for safety. Patients will come to expect easy online scheduling and billing, contactless paperwork, and online payments from the comfort of their homes. Already gaining in popularity, Teledentistry will enable practices to address patient emergencies and complete follow-up evaluations that don’t require an office visit.
Dentists who choose cloud-based practice management software will be far better equipped to meet patient needs while managing more of their practice remotely. The result—more productivity and less time in the office.
Curve’s Vision for the Future
With over 15 years of experience providing cloud-based practice management software to practices, Curve has focused on tools, and a platform that will not only help dentists deliver excellent patient care, but also grow their business and become both more efficient and profitable. Looking forward, Curve’s vision is to provide dentists with a single platform that allows them to run their entire business versus having to bolt on different solutions that require them to be IT experts or hire a consultant to help them obtain the most production from their software. Curve seamlessly integrates with third-party software and doesn’t interrupt the practice due to software updates, something that other providers can’t ensure.
If the software has the right combination of features, security, and support, it becomes a business asset rather than a cost on a Profit and Loss sheet. As more customers join the Curve Community, the software will continue to evolve and benefit from the $40 million committed to the Curve Hero platform over the next five years so that they’ll be better equipped to thrive in the new normal.
