Many Dental Practices have a “Cancellation Policy” and sadly they seem to apply it to every patient even before they have ever cancelled.
This makes no sense.
A Cancellation Policy is put into place to deter people from cancelling their appointments.
Most practices that set up a Cancellation Policy do this because they cannot work out any other way to stop the cancellations in their Appointment Book.
But there is another way to prevent cancellations and it is a much better way.
Let’s have a close look at the cancellation policy set up by Dental Practices.
First it usually includes a threat of a cancellation fee if an appointment is not kept, and not enough notice is given before cancelling.
So basically, the patient can cancel the appointment as long as they give 48-hours notice.
Let’s look more closely at the Cancellation Policy.
This information legally must be provided to the patient at the time of scheduling the appointment, so the patient is fully informed of the penalty when cancelling and not giving enough notice.
So, you start a relationship with a new Patient letting them know that they will be punished if they cancel their appointment but then told it’s ok to cancel their appointment as long as you are given 48-hours notice.
Isn’t this planting the idea in the heads of your patients, that it’s ok to cancel as long as it’s within 48 hours of the appointment. So, really it’s still a cancellation.
You must take into consideration that many patients keep their appointments. What if going over the Cancellation Policy is making patients who were never going to cancel their appointment, cancel because they now know it’s ok to cancel as long as they give 48-hours notice.
Your cancellation Policy may be driving more patients to cancel with 48-hours notice rather than last minute.
Some of your patients will also be offended because they never cancel their appointments.
So why not put into place a more positive approach to preventing cancellations. Why not have guidelines for the team to follow to prevent cancellations and remove a cancellation policy that tries to deter and punish patients.
Have you ever asked yourself these questions when your patients are cancelling appointments?
Was the patient ready and committed to come in for their appointment?
Did the patient have enough urgency and concern?
Was the patient clear about their next step in treatment and care?
Did I remove any objections the patient may have had so they were ready to start and come in for their appointment?
An appointment cancellation may not only be about the patient, but it may come back to us at the dental practice and how everything was set up for the appointment.
If your team know how to correctly set up and make appointments so that patients are fully committed and ready, you will start to see a reduction in the number of cancellations.
If your team know how to handle cancellation calls correctly if and when they do happen, then again, the cancellations will reduce.
Doesn’t this make more sense than presenting the awful threat of the Cancellation Policy?
Also keep in mind that most practices present a Cancellation Policy to their patients and many do not even enforce it and collect the Cancellation fee.
Teams find it very awkward to ask for the cancellation fee so they waive the fee over and over again and the patients continue cancelling their appointments.
I rarely see Cancellation Policies with a fee attached, work well.
Scheduling an appointment for your patient should be positive. You should be helping your patient be more committed to keeping their appointment and confident that they will attend their appointment.
Stop being unsure and nervous your patients will cancel their appointments and stop using a cancellation fee to make your patients keep their appointments.
There are many Dental Practices that do not have a Cancellation Fee Policy and they do not have a high rate of cancellations in their Appointment Book.
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