The recent webinar Business Forward Strategies for Dental Practices presented by SVA covered several important dental-specific topics. One pertinent topic to what’s happening currently in practices is how busy is your practice right now.
Most dental offices were severely disrupted this spring due to COVID-19. Many practices were forced to close for at least part of March, all of April, and much of May, only seeing emergency cases. Fortunately, practices were able to reopen and have been very busy this summer. Programs such as the PPP, EIDL, and the CARES Provider Relief Fund helped practices bridge the gap this spring. But there is potentially another looming setback for dental practices.
When practices were closed in March, April, and May, not only did dentists not see patients for regular cleanings and exams but practices also didn’t have the chance to schedule six-month recall appointments with those patients.
Many practices are now looking at schedules for September, October, and November that are full of holes and have many open appointment slots. With all these open appointments, practices may be so slow this fall that it feels like being unofficially closed. With no hygiene appointments and exams, dentists also won’t be providing diagnosis, proposing treatment, and performing restorative and cosmetic treatment.
Now is the time to act! SVA’s webinar discussed some action that you can take now to minimize the impact of this potential second shutdown.
The webinar also covered a number of other topics related to dental practices and COVID-19 including the impact of COVID-19 on hiring and staffing in dental practices, PPP loan forgiveness, other sources of funding for dental practices during the pandemic, and the impact of COVID-19 on practice valuations. Listen to the webinar for an update on all these timely topics.
