Unfilled appointments caused by last-minute cancellations can be costly. Do you have a plan in place for handling these situations?

In her Dentrix Magazine article titled, Four Tips to Help Reduce Cancellations and No Shows, office manager Charlotte Skaggs shares the following insights for how she uses Dentrix to deal with this problem:

1. Put policies in place – Having a written cancellation policy that patients read and sign can help to lessen the chance of a last-minute cancellation.
2. Break appointments in Dentrix correctly – Keep your records accurate by making sure broken appointments are tracked within Dentrix so you’re able to reschedule them easily.
3. Use Dentrix Appointment Lists – See custom lists of patients who meet the criteria you are looking for to reschedule, including those on the Unscheduled, ASAP, Wait/Will Call and Broken appointment lists.
4. Evaluate your unfilled hours – Use the Practice Advisor Report to see how unfilled appointments are affecting your bottom line.

For additional information on these four areas, read the article mentioned above, or see these previous blog posts:

• Using the Wait/Will Call Button
• Broken Appointments—Dentrix Tracks Them!
• Using the Unscheduled List
• Using the ASAP List