Clear Aligner Training
Clear Aligner Therapy
Implementation and Training
General practitioners often encounter hurdles when it comes to incorporating clear aligner therapy into their dental practices, especially regarding team training and treatment planning.
Support from industry reps sometimes doesn't meet the needs or expectations of many practitioners. Many reps just do not have the time or the hands-on clinical experience that can truly make a difference in elevating clear aligners within a dental practice.
But don’t worry—by teaming up with a knowledgeable ortho coach at Next Level Consultants, you will find that all those challenges can easily be addressed and overcome. Our experienced orthodontic consultants offer a friendly, hands-on approach to help you take clear aligner therapy to new heights increasing revenue in your practice while also taking the very best care of your patients!
Clear Aligner Training in Your Practice
This six-month intensive program ensures your team isn't just dabbling. It's creating a consistent and profitable Orthodontic program within your practice. Your team will be excited and well versed in offering a state-of-the-art clear aligner system that's backed by specialized clear aligner treatment planning and software. As consultants, we help you simplify case management and make your ortho program significantly more successful while also making it easier to manage and more profitable.
By working with Next Level Consultants, you not only gain the confidence of treating your patients with clear aligner therapy, but you also get proven tools and technology that make orthodontics much more profitable. Your patients will love it and your team will thank you!
Our 6-Month Clear Aligner Therapy Integration Program
Bridging the Gap for General Practitioners
We bridge this gap with our intensive and effective orthodontic and clear aligner program. This in-office hands-on program is a six-month clear aligner consulting program that equips you and your team with the skills and confidence it needs to build a successful, profitable orthodontic program.
By partnering with us, you will gain more than just clinical confidence with clear aligners—you’ll acquire the tools, strategies, and expertise to make clear aligner therapy a profitable cornerstone of your practice.
Month 1: Assessment & Goal Setting
- Initial Review: We start with a detailed analysis of your practice's current orthodontic capabilities, patient base, and market potential
- Define Objectives: Set specific, measurable goals for patient treatment numbers, staff competency, and practice growth related to clear aligner therapy.
- Patient Data Review:Examine your current patient database to identify potential candidates for clear aligner therapy. This can help in planning targeted marketing or re-engagement campaigns.
- Team Readiness Assessment: Evaluate the current skill levels and willingness of your team to learn and adapt to new procedures. This can inform your training strategy and identify any need for extra support or team recruitment.
- Vendor and Supplier Relationships: Begin establishing or strengthening relationships with suppliers of aligner materials or potential partners in clear aligner systems. This might include negotiating terms for bulk purchases or getting educational materials.
Month 2: Clinical Team Skill Enhancement
- Skill Development: Engage in intensive clear aligner training focusing on practical skills, case selection, and treatment execution.
- Certification and Workshops: Opportunities for your team to gain certifications through our Clear Aligner Academy, enhancing their expertise in clear aligner techniques.
- Orthodontic Basics: Review of dental anatomy, occlusion, and orthodontic principles relevant to clear aligners.
- Clear Aligner Therapy Fundamentals: Deep dive into how aligners work, their advantages over traditional braces, and the science behind tooth movement.
- Impression or Scanning Techniques: Comprehensive training on taking accurate impressions or using intraoral scanners for digital impressions crucial for aligner fabrication.
- Aligner Fitting and Adjustment: Practice sessions where staff learn to fit aligners, make adjustments, and handle common issues like aligner tightness or fit problems.
Month 3: Practice Management Optimization
- Operational Integration: Learn how to incorporate clear aligner services into your daily practice schedule efficiently.
- Technology Utilization: Introduction to clear aligner treatment planning software for better case management and patient outcomes.
- Scheduling: Develop a new or adapted scheduling system that accommodates orthodontic consultations, fitting sessions, and follow-ups without disrupting existing workflows. Consider dedicated days or time slots for aligner patients.
- Role Clarity & Cross-Training: Clearly define who does what in the context of clear aligner treatments, from initial consultation to final follow-up, ensuring all team members understand their responsibilities. Encourage staff to understand each other's roles to cover for absences or peak times, enhancing team versatility.
- Digital Records: Transition or update patient records to include orthodontic data, ensuring all aligner-related information is accessible and organized.
- Pricing Strategy & Payment Plans: Finalize pricing for clear aligner treatments, considering costs, market rates, and potential insurance coverage. Develop flexible payment plans or partnerships with financing companies to make treatments more accessible to patients.
- Handling Issues: Develop protocols for dealing with aligner emergencies like breakage or discomfort, ensuring staff know how to respond appropriately.
Month 4: Patient Care & Communication
- Language: Use language that is accessible, avoid jargon unless explaining technical aspects, and always ensure clarity.
- Patient Education: Pre-Treatment Information: Provide detailed information sessions or handouts about clear aligners, including how they work, maintenance, what to expect, and the importance of compliance. Utilize visual aids, for example, before-and-after photos, 3D models, or animations, to visually explain the treatment process and outcomes.
- Communication Skills: Workshops on improving patient consultations, follow-ups, and retention strategies to ensure successful treatment journeys. Train staff on conducting consultations that not only cover the clinical aspects but also address patient concerns, lifestyle impacts, and treatment expectations.
- Active Listening: Emphasize the importance of listening to patient concerns or goals, ensuring each treatment plan is tailored to the individual.
- Wear Schedules: Clearly communicate the importance of wearing aligners as prescribed, using tools like wear trackers or apps to help patients stay on schedule.
- Reinforce Patient Support: Ensuring patients' success with confidence. Letting patients know that if problems arise we are able to handle it quickly and effectively.
Month 5: Practice Integration & Support
- Full Implementation: Achieve a smooth integration of clear aligner therapy into your practice, becoming a core service offering.
- Regular Check-Ins: Schedule and stick to regular follow-up appointments to monitor progress, adjust treatment, and reinforce patient education.
- Remote Monitoring: If available, integrate remote monitoring solutions where patients can submit photos or updates, reducing the need for frequent office visits but maintaining treatment oversight.
- Troubleshooting Common Issues: Educate patients on handling common problems like discomfort, aligner stains, or loss of aligners, ensuring they know who to contact for support.
- Cleaning Instructions: Provide thorough guidance on cleaning aligners and maintaining oral hygiene during treatment, possibly offering aligner-friendly products.
- Dental Hygiene Visits: Coordinate with dental hygienists for specialized care during aligner treatment, ensuring patients understand the balance between aligner wear and oral health.
- Materials: Develop or update patient brochures, consent forms, and aftercare guides to reflect the new service.
- Personalized Communication: Use personalized emails, texts, or calls to remind patients of appointments, aligner changes, or to check in on their treatment progress.
Month 6: Review & Next Steps
- Performance Review: Evaluate the program's impact on your practice through metrics like patient satisfaction, treatment success rates.
- Appointment Adherence: Measure how well patients stick to their scheduled visits.
- Feedback Loop: Gather insights from your team and patients to identify areas for further improvement or expansion.
- Treatment Time Efficiency: Analyze how actual treatment times compare to initial estimates.
- Revenue Tracking: Implement or adapt financial tracking to monitor the profitability of aligner services, including costs like training, materials, and equipment. Calculate a Break-Even Analysis, when the service started to become profitable considering all initial or ongoing costs once implemented.
- Internal Marketing: Use your current patient base to promote the new service, possibly offering special promotions for early adopters or existing patients as well as a referral system. Host free educational seminars or low-cost seminars for current and potential patients to educate them about clear aligner therapy, fostering interest and trust.
- Success Stories: Share success stories or testimonials (with patient consent) through your practice's marketing channels to build trust and demonstrate outcomes.
- Identify Training Gaps: Determine if there are areas where staff need further education or if new training methods should be introduced.
- Team Morale: Assess team satisfaction with the new service integration, which can affect service quality.
Consider These Dental Front Office Services from Next Level Consultants
We have a variety of dental consulting services available beyond clear aligner therapy. You will find that we excel in many other dental practice management services including – Front Office Training, and a specific Hygiene Growth Program.
Beyond our extensive dental practice management consulting we have also developed our own 3rd Party Billing Service. Our billing experts have been trained and certified by us to provide the best reimbursements for dental practices. We wouldn’t put our name on it if it wasn’t true.
Lastly, you might be interested in developing yourself more as a business leader in your practice or just taking charge of your life personally – but perhaps you don’t know where to start! Start with our Peer Groups! This is a dental-specific community of dentists and practice owners who are also struggling with the same common challenges. Together in this program you discover and unlock those roadblocks or blindspots that are holding you back. Our Peer to Peer Groups, called The Next Level Advantage were developed with this in mind. Check them out!