Summer School: Recalls Frequently Asked Questions and their answers

In the first blog in our summer series we answer the two most frequently asked questions about recalls, to help ensure you are making the best use of recalls in Dentally.  

At Dentally we understand how important recalls are to your patients and your business.  We make your recalls simple to use and as powerful as possible.  Running them regularly means that you keep in contact with your patients ensuring that they do not drift away and that your appointment book stays full. 

First of all, let’s remind ourselves of the basics of recalls.

Recall Basics

Recalls are triggered by specific appointment reasons and these are:

* Exam

* Scale and Polish

* Exam, scale and polish

Any appointment reason can be set to update the patient’s recall due date in this way by applying the ‘Exam’ or ‘Hygiene’ option in the appointment reason’s setup option.

At the end of these appointments, the patient’s recall due date is set depending on the patient’s interval settings. Also, upon completing a treatment plan, the practitioner is also asked if the recall due dates need to be moved on by the patient’s interval.

Top Two Recalls FAQs

Question

Why has patient [Mrs Jones]  received a recall if we saw them for a [denture fitting] yesterday?

Answer

While your patient may have been in surgery check their last Exam / Scale and polish appointment. This is what drives the next due date.

If the last time you saw the patient for a recall type appointment was some time ago and the next due date was not updated when the denture fitting plan was closed, Dentally will still be expecting you to recall the patient for that recall appointment they are due.

Fix it

Go into the patient’s details and alter the Dentist or Hygienist recall date in the Details screen to one that better suits the patient. If a recall has already been produced, check the Recalls tab in the patient’s record - the recall here can be deleted if you do not wish to recall the patient again until their due date. 

Remember though that the exam is still due, so, in order to maintain the best possible oral health of your patient, perform an exam/scale and polish before you complete the course of treatment.  

Question

Patient [Mr Chan]  is miles out of date and has never had a recall - why is that?

Answer 

There could be a number of reasons here, so here’s a list of things to check

There are 2 things to check on the Patient Details tab

1 - Are both the recall interval and due date set?

2 - Does the patient have all the correct contact methods complete? For example, if their preferred method of contact is email, is there a valid email address?

In the Appointments tab check

3 - When was the last exam/scale and polish appointment? Dentally will not produce recalls for patients you have not seen in 2 years.

In the Recalls tab check

4 - Have they had a recall sent to them but they’ve simply not booked a recall appointment?

Fix it

There are 3 ways we can fix this problem.

1 - Complete the Patient Recall Interval data

The simplest fix is to ensure that at the end of each treatment, practitioners always complete the appropriate recall information. That way the recall reports and workflows will pick up the patient when they are due. If the patient is missing recall details in their record, update them with relevant information.

2 - Use the Recalls Report

Use the Recalls Report to identify patients who have not been contacted and have not visited for a recall for a specified length of time. Then contact them and get them booked in to continue their oral health care.

3 - In the Recalls tab

You can manually create a recall. This will add a recall marker which will then be picked up by your recalls report or automation. This will set the patient as due right now and get them onto the recalls process.

We have a support document that looks at other FAQs for Recalls here.

Save more time with Automated Recalls

Automating any process saves time, and this is also true of Dentally’s automated recalls. Set up the workflow, and, as long as you have the prerequisites set (correct appointment reason, correct contact information, correct recall interval set) Dentally will automatically take care of the rest. All you need to do is make sure that your Reception Team are ready to book them in. It’s the perfect way to keep your appointment books filled.

If you need a little support setting up and running automated recalls, take a look at our support document here or contact our Support team at hello@dentally.co