Redacted client audit
Shared with client permission. Identifying details have been removed. Reclaimable hours are estimates from the audit, not measured results or a guarantee.

Dental Practice

Team13 people
Work mixGeneral dentistry, hygiene & restorative care
30reclaimable hours / month
Executive summary

What we found and what to do about it.

30 hrsestimated reclaimable capacity each month
45hours of recurring friction identified each month
7specific workflow problems identified
3quick wins that can start this week
Main finding
The practice’s largest administrative losses occur before and after the appointment: eligibility checks, unconfirmed visits, treatment-plan follow-up and recall outreach.
Largest issue
Insurance eligibility verification consumes the largest predictable block of staff time because the same information is checked repeatedly before appointments.
Operational risk
Administrative workload is competing with patient-facing front-desk work, making schedule gaps and delayed follow-up more likely when call volume rises.
Recommended decisionBatch eligibility preparation, strengthen confirmations and create consistent treatment-plan follow-up before changing practice-management software.
This week

Quick wins that can be done in 5 working days.

These are intentionally small. The goal is to produce visible improvement now, not begin a six-month project.

1

Change confirmation messaging

Cut repeated confirmation calls this week.

OwnerFront desk
Setup1–2 hours
2

Launch treatment-plan follow-up

Ensure every unscheduled plan receives a second touch.

OwnerTreatment coordinator
Setup2 hours
3

Show form completion on next-day schedule

Prevent avoidable check-in delays.

OwnerFront desk lead
Setup60–90 minutes
By the end of the week: these changes should be live, tested on real work, and producing baseline data we can compare against next month.
The Friction List

All seven findings, ranked.

The list separates the amount of friction happening today from the portion we believe can realistically be removed.

#FrictionCurrentReclaimable
01Insurance eligibility is checked manually12 hrs/mo8 hrs
02Unconfirmed appointments require repeated calls9 hrs/mo6.5 hrs
03Treatment plans lack consistent follow-up7 hrs/mo5 hrs
04Recall outreach is list-driven6 hrs/mo4 hrs
05Referral status is tracked by phone/email4 hrs/mo2.5 hrs
06Supply ordering depends on visual checks4 hrs/mo2 hrs
07Patient forms are sometimes incomplete at arrival3 hrs/mo2 hrs
Total45 hrs/mo30 hrs/mo

Priority matrix

Higher is more operational impact. Further right means more implementation effort.

Impact ↑
Do first
Plan carefully
Easy, lower return
Defer
1Eligibility
2Confirmations
3Treatment follow-up
4Recall outreach is list-driven
5Referral status is tracked by phone/email
6Supply ordering depends on visual checks
7Patient forms are sometimes incomplete at arrival
Implementation effort →
Findings + fixes

What is happening, how to fix it, and how to know it worked.

01

Insurance eligibility is checked manually

Do first
Evidence: Front-desk staff repeatedly log into payer portals and re-key eligibility details before visits.
Current 12 hrs/mo Reclaimable 8 hrs/mo Effort Medium Owner Front desk lead
Recommended fix

Batch eligibility and surface only exceptions.

Front-desk staff repeatedly log into payer portals and re-key eligibility details before visits.

How to fix it

  1. Run eligibility checks 2–3 business days before the appointment block.
  2. Store standard results in the patient record automatically or via a consistent template.
  3. Give staff an exception list for missing/unclear coverage.
Success measure: Manual eligibility checks performed one patient at a time → reduce by 50%.
Today
Upcoming patient → portal login → manual check → note entered
→
After
Upcoming schedule → eligibility batch → exceptions flagged → staff reviews
02

Unconfirmed appointments require repeated calls

High priority
Evidence: Staff manually call and text patients who have not confirmed, often over several attempts.
Current 9 hrs/mo Reclaimable 6.5 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Front desk
Recommended fix

Use a staged confirmation sequence with a clear action.

Staff manually call and text patients who have not confirmed, often over several attempts.

How to fix it

  1. Send reminders at 5 days and 2 days with confirm/reschedule buttons.
  2. Call only the unresolved list.
  3. Release or escalate unconfirmed high-risk slots according to practice policy.
Success measure: Manual confirmation calls per week → reduce by at least 50%.
Today
Appointment approaches → call/text → wait → retry → update status
→
After
Reminder sequence → patient confirms/reschedules → unresolved list only
03

Treatment plans lack consistent follow-up

High priority
Evidence: Patients who leave without scheduling are followed up inconsistently depending on front-desk workload.
Current 7 hrs/mo Reclaimable 5 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Treatment coordinator
Recommended fix

Create a treatment-plan follow-up cadence.

Patients who leave without scheduling are followed up inconsistently depending on front-desk workload.

How to fix it

  1. Segment plans by urgency/value.
  2. Trigger 2-day and 7-day outreach for unscheduled plans.
  3. Give the coordinator a short list of engaged/high-value patients for personal follow-up.
Success measure: Unscheduled treatment plans with no follow-up after 7 days → target zero.
Today
Plan presented → patient leaves → follow-up depends on memory
→
After
Plan presented → cadence starts → responses update status
04

Recall outreach is list-driven

Medium impact
Evidence: Staff periodically work through overdue hygiene lists manually.
Current 6 hrs/mo Reclaimable 4 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Hygiene coordinator
Recommended fix

Automate recall reminders and work only non-responders.

Staff periodically work through overdue hygiene lists manually.

How to fix it

  1. Trigger recall sequence from due date.
  2. Let patients request/schedule from the message.
  3. Call only non-responders after the sequence.
Success measure: Manual recall calls per scheduled hygiene patient → reduce by 40%.
Today
Staff opens overdue list → calls patient by patient
→
After
Due date triggers reminders → staff works exceptions
05

Referral status is tracked by phone/email

Medium impact
Evidence: Outside referral appointments and reports require manual follow-up.
Current 4 hrs/mo Reclaimable 2.5 hrs/mo Effort Medium Owner Clinical admin
Recommended fix

Use a referral tracker with clear status.

Outside referral appointments and reports require manual follow-up.

How to fix it

  1. Track sent, scheduled, completed and report received.
  2. Add expected due date for the report.
  3. Review only overdue referrals weekly.
Success measure: Referrals with unknown status → target under 10%.
Today
Referral sent → staff emails/calls later → status reconstructed
→
After
Referral tracker → status + due date visible
06

Supply ordering depends on visual checks

Low impact
Evidence: Common consumables are reordered after staff notice low stock.
Current 4 hrs/mo Reclaimable 2 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Clinical lead
Recommended fix

Set par levels and one weekly exception check.

Common consumables are reordered after staff notice low stock.

How to fix it

  1. Set minimum and target levels for high-volume consumables.
  2. Assign one weekly check by operatory/storage area.
  3. Order from an exception list instead of memory.
Success measure: Emergency supply orders → reduce to near zero.
Today
Someone notices low stock → urgent order
→
After
Weekly par check → planned reorder
07

Patient forms are sometimes incomplete at arrival

Low impact
Evidence: Missing forms create front-desk work immediately before appointments.
Current 3 hrs/mo Reclaimable 2 hrs/mo Effort Low Owner Front desk
Recommended fix

Send form reminders based on completion status.

Missing forms create front-desk work immediately before appointments.

How to fix it

  1. Send forms at booking and one reminder if incomplete.
  2. Show form status on the next-day schedule.
  3. Call only patients with genuinely required missing forms.
Success measure: Patients arriving with required forms incomplete → reduce by 50%.
Today
Patient arrives → missing form → front desk waits/assists
→
After
Form status visible before visit → reminder sent in advance
30-day plan

What to do after the quick wins.

Use the first month to implement, measure and decide what deserves deeper work.

Week 1

Front-desk relief

Launch confirmations, treatment-plan follow-up and form-status review.

Week 2

Eligibility batch

Pilot eligibility batching for one provider schedule.

Week 3

Recall + referrals

Automate recall and create referral status tracking.

Week 4

Measure

Compare manual calls, incomplete forms and unscheduled-plan follow-up.

Estimated monthly recovery30 hours

Start with the one-week quick wins, measure the result, then work down the Friction List in priority order.