Keeping patients happy is a constant challenge.

Your dental practice may see patients from the age range of children to seniors. How do you possibly keep each type of patient happy?

When your patients feel in the loop with your dental practice, they'll be happier when they come in for an appointment. We share five tips to help you communicate better with your patients. In the end, you'll learn how to make a more positive experience at your dental practice. 

5 Ways towards Better Dental Patient Communication 

1. Be relatable to your patients

Think about how you would want to be treated as a dental patient. Would you want a bunch of technical terms thrown out at you or a straightforward explanation of the procedures? Make sure your staff increases communication by explaining your patient's appointment in simple terms. Be concise and use common language to explain any procedures that'll be performed. Use clear examples to illustrate your points.

2. Pay attention to your patient's verbal and nonverbal cues

Your patient's words and body language may not match up. They might feel uncomfortable speaking up about their true feelings. Take the time to analyze your patient's body language and help them relax. Ask your patients about any concerns that they may have and answer their questions in a reassuring tone. Also, demonstrate strong body language to help your patients be confident in you and your knowledge.

3. Use education to keep your patients informed

Communicate with your patients faster with what to expect in their appointment. You can inform each patient of the need for their procedure or routine dental checkup. Explain why the treatment suggested for your patient makes sense and what it entails. Finally, keep your patients aware of the benefits of their appointment to their health. The more that your patients know, the more relaxed they will become.

4. Close out each appointment on a positive note

The worse thing you can do is ignore your patient after their appointment is finished. Finish your patient's visit on a positive note. If possible, have someone on your staff hand-off the patient to the front desk. Have your front desk staff briefly review the patient's appointment and its success. Schedule a follow-up appointment and tell your patient that you're looking forward to seeing them at their next appointment.

5. Use technology for automatic communication

We already know that you're pressed for time in your dental practice. For more help, check out these tips on overcoming the daily struggles of a dental practice. Use technology to communicate automatically with your patients outside of the office. Dental practice management software such as appointment reminders and online patient registration forms help you go paperless and save you time and money. 

Better communication with your dental patients makes for a better patient experience. Let's quickly review five methods that you can use to communicate better with your patients.

What We Learned

Treating your patients with respect is the real way toward better communication. Use simple language and pay attention to their body cues. Keep the experience positive and end the appointment on a positive note. Technology can help you automatically stay in contact with your patients outside of the office.

Take the time to train your dental practice staff with these tips to better communicate with your patients. Find out more about 4 common issues that practices face to onboard new patients.

How else do you think that patient communication can be improved? Share your insights in the comment section below.