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TTC_02_17_21_Vol.17-No.17

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Page 6 www.TheTownCommon.com

February 17, 2021

By J. Peter St. Clair, DMD

Last week I discussed the importance

of communication in

any relationship; specifically, the

healthcare provider/patient relationship.

Trust is mutually built

as this relationship develops over

time.

“There’s not enough time in the

day.” Have you ever used this excuse?

I said it yesterday to someone.

We all tend to waste a lot of

time, or at least don’t use the time

we have as effectively as we could.

You would think that in our technology-filled

world, time management

would be easier. I think that

Brighter smiles ...

some of this technology gets in the

way by adding even more of a time

commitment to things that reduce

interpersonal communication.

Here’s an example. It’s time to

buy a new car. There are many

different car brands, and within

those brands are many models. No

matter what dealership you go to,

they will gather a minute amount

of information about you, or maybe

none at all, but guaranteed,

they have a car on their showroom

floor that they tell you is the right

car for you. They will spend a

countless amount of time talking

about the many new features that

their brand has, and the options

between different models. If the

salesman worked for a different

car company, or if you went to a

different dealership, you would

hear the same reasons why that

brand is right for you. Their goal

is to sell you a car.

The Patient Perspective -Part 2

Dental offices can be like that

too. If the dentist spent all their

time talking about the array of

technological gadgets and how

they were right for you, how would

you feel? You would feel like you

were trying to be “sold” something.

Having said that, there are

many great technological gadgets

that improve the whole experience

of patient care out there. There are

also many ways to do most things,

but technology is not the solution;

it is simply a tool used in patient

care.

Branding draws us in. You may

have a preconceived notion that a

particular make of car is what you

“need”, or see a dental advertisement

that attracts your attention,

such as “invisible” braces. However,

there are many different brands

of cars and dental aligners that

would satisfy your needs.

Whether it is a car or teeth,

there are often gaps between the

“seller” and the “buyer”. There

is a gap between what we really

need and what we think we

need. There is another gap between

what the dentist or salesman

thinks we need, and what we

think we need. And, more specifically,

there is often a serious gap

between the value most dentists

have, and the value they feel they

can discuss with patients. Sometimes

we feel we don’t have the

time to discuss these things, and

other times we are afraid we will

scare you away.

Dental care is such an important

part of overall wellness. Remember,

just because it doesn’t

hurt does NOT necessarily mean

everything is okay. Collaboration

with a dental team who puts the

patient’s best interests first is key

to good dental care.

Dentists and dental team

members need to communicate

facts and truths. They need to

convey expertise and enthusiasm.

This goes back to the idea of

time I have mentioned so often

in the past. Dentists and dental

teams need to spend time with

patients, be involved with co-diagnosing

issues with patients,

not hard-selling with little information.

This creates a caring

environment where the patient

can be involved in the process of

choosing the level of care that is

right for them.

Dr. St. Clair maintains a private

dental practice in Rowley and Newburyport

dedicated to health-centered

family dentistry. If there are certain

topics you would like to see written

about or questions you have please

email them to him at jpstclair@

stclairdmd.com. You can view all

previously written columns at www.

jpeterstclairdentistry.com/blog.

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