Dental Sleep Medicine Insider January 2015 | Page 14
BY DS3 SUPPORT SPECIALIST CINDY HERBERT
DS3 Members ask and want to
know: “How can we get more sleep
patients?” It’s a common question
we hear at Dental Sleep Solutions,
and we spend a fair bit of our time
brainstorming ideas to help you get
more patients.
The lowest hanging fruit is your
existing patient base who walk
through your doors every day. You
are screening your patients with the
DS3 screener, right? Beyond that,
we recommend that you cultivate relationships withFrom OSA, LSAT, & AHI to RDI,
local physicians. Office visits from a staff has an
RERA, & OAT, DSM member who delivers business Two that dentistry
acronym for it. cards,
practice brochures, and even referral
has become increasingly conforms are a great start. Even better if
cerned with are HIPAA (Health
the Doctor will follow up with a & AccountaInsurance Portability visit
himself. I recommend and HITECHvisit
bility Act) that you (Health
two offices every single Technology for EcoInformation week. A year
later, 100 local nomic and Clinical Health Act)
physicians will at least
know who you are. govern how patients’
which Quite often, after
doing this, I would get a call from the
health records are protected,
office manager maintained,had transmitted. Are
whom I and handed
my brochures to. “Do you every HIPAA
you aware that think you
could help my husband punishable by so of
violation is not snore fines
much?” Absolutely! $250k?!?! humbleDen$50k - From A recent
beginnings I have seen doctors “These
talTown article states, create significant and consistent very real conlaws translate to a referral
sources. It is not rocket science but is
cern because the simple fact
you have to putthat the Gmail account isn’t
in your work and rest
assured, it will pay handsomely. a joke.
secure and Dropbox is
Many physician offices are open to
5
DENTALSLEEPSOLUTIONS.COM
1
www.DentalSleepSolutions.com
lunch and learns. Dr. Drake recently did one in San Antonio for a
rather large ENT group. Their
practice has seven physicians and
a staff of 32. We brought box
lunches from a local deli and presented a 30 minute power point
about how we could work together
while they ate their sandwiches. Two docs showed up and 29
staff members. Cost me less than
$500 and a couple hours’ of
time.
Every timeHow long did itand to start
we use these free take
getting referrals? Less than 24
easy services to innocently comhours! with each other about
municate
anything having to do with a patient
or aDental Sleep Solutions has precase, we’re in violation. Every
pared power points for our Memsingle time we send or receive
bers to utilize. potential need to cusinformation is a new You’ll fine
tomizeof how the informationpersonal
because them with your is
information, of course, as well as
transmitted.” Fortunately, for DS3
to the specific audience, but these
Members, this is not a concern.
power points can & HITECH
DS3 is indeed a HIPAA be a powerful
tool to help youthe only dedi- pacompliant EMR. It is get more
tients. Start the conversation with
cated dental sleep medicine softhowthat meets these criteria. Stay can
ware that particular specialist
help you. curve, avoid hefty
ahead of the ENT’s, for example, we
implore to helptoday to ensure
fines, & contact me our patients
breathe better through their
that your DSM patient data is senose. Once they know that you
cure with DS3.
to you. Customize each one to the
type of physician you are visiting.
PCP: Treating OSA will make
patient’s healthier. Period. Across
the board.
ENT: I need someone I can refer to who can increase nasal patency, treat GERD, allergies
Cardiologist: We can help control hypertension, A fib, V fib, coronary artery disease
Gastro / Endocrine / Nutritionists: We can help patients lose
weight, better control GERD, better
control glucose and insulin levels
Rheumatology: Patients who
sleep better feel better and complain
less
Sleep docs / pulmonologists: Just
throw me a bone, a crumb, a patient
who refuses to wear PAP after a
dozen different masks!
Screen your patient base
Office visits to physicians (two
per week, 100 per year)
Lunch & Learns (one per quarter,
increase to one per month)
Contact:
Brandie Havell
Cindy Herbert
877.95.SNORE
understand the referral process is
Contact me for a sample PowerPoint
a two way street, they are much
that you can use when giving
[email protected]
more receptive to your [email protected]
Lunch & Learns
and more willing to refer patients