After you have gone through and taken accurate records during the complete examination it is time to present the treatment plan. When it comes to presenting the treatment plan to a patient, there are two things you need to have with you.
In order to properly describe an occlusion, we must not look at teeth in a vacuum, but as if we're starting at plaster models sitting on a table. We have to understand that teeth are one part of a larger system. Now, if one or both condyles have to displace in order for our teeth to come together in maximum intercuspation, or what we call MI.
So recently, there's been a lot of debate as to whether we should be using screw-retained restorations on our implants or cement-retained restorations. I think the trend lately toward screw-retained restorations has been driven by research that shows retained cement in that delicate sulcus around the implant is the leading cause of peri-implantitis.
Not only are you going to get all the information you need to properly treatment plan, but you're going to distinguish yourself from other dentists, and you're going to build trust with your patients.
In his book, The Personal MBA, Josh Kaufman talks about five components that make up every business. And one of those components is sales.
I think as professionals, dentists are sometimes uncomfortable with the idea of selling treatment. But what we have to understand is that it is our responsibility to get our patients to invest in their health.
Transcript Continued Below...
Masters of complete dentistry are not born. For many the journey begins when we first are exposed to the principles of Dr. Pete Dawson. However, the path is not always straight. There are different phases we go through along the way… awakening, excitement, trial, frustration, denial, acceptance, enlightenment, implementation, competency, and maybe even mastery.
If your road has been anything like mine, the most challenging stretch is the implementation phase. The Dawson Academy had given me the knowledge, but applying it to the realities of my practice proved difficult. As it was once said, “The loneliest time in the office is a Monday after a Dawson seminar.”
Despite my best intentions, the daily grind would distract me from my goals. Staff, patients, insurance companies, and other pressures encourage us to work in the moment and to take shortcuts. The easy thing usually isn’t the right thing when it comes to comprehensive dental care. I eventually was able to stop working in the moment, but I didn’t do it alone. I broke through when I joined a study club.
