The Daily Huddle is a short, 10-minute meeting held at the beginning of the day between the dentist, the office manager, and all of the team members. It is an excellent opportunity to make sure everyone is on the same page prior to seeing the first patient of the day. It is the easiest and most cost-effective thing that you can do for your practice to increase proficiency and profitability while reducing stress in the office. The Daily Huddle can set the attitude and tempo of the day while providing information that can uncover potential scheduling disruptions, as well as help identify opportunities for unscheduled treatment and collection. This will allow your office to make the necessary adjustments and get the most out of the day.
I recommend you use the Daily Huddle Report found in Dentrix to guide your meeting. It provides much of the information that should be covered during your meeting—production and collection information, patient balances, continuing care needs, treatment plan information—and it’s easy to access every morning.
Eight, easy to follow, tips for a successful Daily Huddle
- If you are not currently having a daily huddle, begin with having one every day for a month. This will help you and your team to adjust to the routine and see the benefits.
- Doctor participation is essential. It will reinforce the office’s mission statement and goals for the practice.
- Schedule your daily huddle at the most convenient time for your practice: in the morning, at lunch, or even at the end of the day.
- Keep the daily huddle time to less than 15 minutes. Use a timer if necessary.
- Table any complaints, policy, or procedure discussions unless they can’t wait until your regularly scheduled staff meeting. Daily huddles do not replace team meetings and should stay on track as much as possible.
- Focus on the patients scheduled that day, the current schedule itself, treatment opportunities, collections, and goals. Review the records of the scheduled patients that day to ensure all is ready for their visit.
- Begin the Daily Huddle with a motivational thought, video, or idea. It could be an expression of appreciation, a positive statement regarding staff/office performance, or a positive thought for the day.
- Make sure everyone knows their role:
- Team leaders/members provide the pertinent information for that huddle.
- You can alternate the staff responsible for the information brought to the huddle, if you have a large team.
- The hygiene coordinator or hygienists should review exams, x-rays, medical history, and unscheduled treatment for their patients.
- Assistants should review the same information for the Doctors’ patients, including lab case statuses.
- Determine if there are family members overdue for recall appointments or that have unscheduled, uncompleted treatment.
- The financial coordinator should note any financial concerns.
- The scheduling administrator should report any changes in the schedule. Note where to schedule emergencies, what reports or lists can be used to assist filling open time, and how patients can be routed between doctor and hygiene. With that in mind, unforeseen scheduling difficulties can be solved.
- For team involvement and accountability, take turns on who leads the meeting.
So, if you are looking to improve your office communications and efficiencies, start holding a Daily Huddle meeting every morning. It will quickly become the best, and most important, 10 minutes of your day!
Learn More
If you found these ideas helpful, you may be interested in learning more about the Dentrix Profitability Coaching Program, where these, and many other great concepts, strategies and ideas are taught to you and your team by one of our highly skilled and experienced profitability coaches. To find out more about Dentrix Profitability Coaching, CLICK HERE.