Does your school have a patient shortage?

[studentalias]

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My class has just entered the clinic full-time and we don't have enough patients to fill our schedules. In fact, some of us don't have any patients to schedule at all. Is this unique to my school? The faculty here is saying it's an economy thing and all school's are having this issue. Is this true at your school?

 

[peg lateral]

My class has just entered the clinic full-time and we don't have enough patients to fill our schedules. In fact, some of us don't have any patients to schedule at all. Is this unique to my school? The faculty here is saying it's an economy thing and all school's are having this issue. Is this true at your school?

I just graduated, and I noticed it more during my fourth year than my third year. I think a lot of it is due to the economy, but it is also due to the fact that in a dental school setting you are dealing with a different patient demographic-- where many of these people don't understand the value or the importance of dental care. They might show up for the first few appointments, and then never come back. There are also patients who work the system and take advantage of the students, and they don't pay and they quit showing up to appointments until you, the student, are desperate to fulfill requirements and pay for the treatment yourself. And sometimes patients are not evenly distributed among students either. There are a lot of things that come into play. Unfortunately, it's just the way it is. I am even noticing the effects of the economy quite a bit in private practice. Some days you are slammed, and other days you are lucky to have patients in your chair.

 

[Doc Smile]

My class has just entered the clinic full-time and we don't have enough patients to fill our schedules. In fact, some of us don't have any patients to schedule at all. Is this unique to my school? The faculty here is saying it's an economy thing and all school's are having this issue. Is this true at your school?

No problemo at IUSD. Very rarely does a 4th year not graduate, and, if they dont, it isn't because lack of patients. Many times, 4th years have all their clinic requirements by the end of the first semester 4th year and pass along patients for more difficult requirements - crowns & bridges, endo canals, etc - to third years.

I'm sure that our patient population has dropped some due to the economy but not noticeably!

Best of luck to you!

 

[studentalias]

I was expecting to have some no-shows or some Pts not continue with all of their treatment. I wasn't expecting not to even have any patients to lose.

 

[iamjackbauer]

My class has just entered the clinic full-time and we don't have enough patients to fill our schedules. In fact, some of us don't have any patients to schedule at all. Is this unique to my school? The faculty here is saying it's an economy thing and all school's are having this issue. Is this true at your school?

where do you go to school?

 

[Daurang]

The economy is in freefall saved only by the government printing fiat money and manipulating the stock market. All the previous and proposed Medicaid cuts to fund Obamacare is going to further destroy your dental school patient pool. Welcome to hope and change.

 

[Bereno]

where do you go to school?

x2

 

[SeattleRDH]

What's to stop you from going out and getting your own patients? Be proactive. Start your search with restaurant workers (especially bartenders). They are almost all overdue for a dental visit, have cash, and don't work during the day.

 

[eventualOMFS]

What's to stop you from going out and getting your own patients? Be proactive. Start your search with restaurant workers (especially bartenders). They are almost all overdue for a dental visit, have cash, and don't work during the day.

While I appreciate and encourage your enthusiasm, it shouldn't be the students' responsibility to find patients.

I'm not knocking anybody who makes awkward conversation with a bartender and then invites them to a dental school. In fact, I know a person who tried it (and, incidentally, failed miserably).

But at the end of the day, it is the school's responsibility to provide patients. If the school is failing to do so, that is a problem.

 

[Timpson]

Shouldn't a bad economy lead to more patients @ d-schools? Most people don't want to get their dental work done at schools unless they are doing the student a favor as a friend or family member. They are compelled to by the low prices compared to private practices or because they require special treatment.

 

[dl9006]

What's to stop you from going out and getting your own patients? Be proactive. Start your search with restaurant workers (especially bartenders). They are almost all overdue for a dental visit, have cash, and don't work during the day.

wishful thinking.

 

[dentalWorks]

This would be a much more meaningful thread if people mentioned WHICH SCHOOL is having pt-shortage.

 

[HupHolland]

wishful thinking.

How so? My school provided plenty of patients, but my best patients weren't the ones that came through the typical screening process. My best patients were the ones that I met while ordering coffee at starbucks (baristas) or buying a pint at the bar (bartenders).

Hup

 

[Roto Picante]

Whats wrong with putting up a small advertisement with your phone number (google voice number if you prefer to hide your real number) at your local grocery store/laundromat/coffee shop? I know of at least 1 person who did this and is booked out until December (not exaggerating, he literally has no open clinic sessions for 2 months). I am starting to see the benefits as well. I am a lowly 3rd year with 3 months of clinic under my belt and am booked out 3 weeks with nearly half of my 3rd year clinic requirements fulfilled. Being proactive can go a long way. Placing all the responsibility on the school to find you patients may get you your graduation requirements or it may not. I am personally not going to wait around to find out.

 

[SeattleRDH]

If you go into private practice you will need to learn how to market yourself to your patients. Why not start in dental school? At least print out some business cards so when you meet someone and they say "You're in dental school? I haven't been to the dentist in forever. What do you think of this tooth?" you can hand them your card and invite them to come in for an exam.

 

[studentalias]

I may not have been clear enough about this. I am not opposed to getting Pts on my own. In fact, it appears that will be absolutely necessary if I want to fill my clinic chair. I’m talking to friends, family, and complete strangers about getting dental care from me. My question is if the rest of you are forced to resort to this for 80- 100% of your patient pool. My entire class has virtually no patients. I am interested in knowing if most schools out there are doing okay or if it is now the norm for students to be responsible to get all of their own patients. I would like to approach the administration about putting some effort into increasing the patient pool, but if this is how it’s going in all schools, maybe I shouldn’t be expecting them to do anything about it.

 

[rav4182]

If you go into private practice you will need to learn how to market yourself to your patients. Why not start in dental school? At least print out some business cards so when you meet someone and they say "You're in dental school? I haven't been to the dentist in forever. What do you think of this tooth?" you can hand them your card and invite them to come in for an exam.

because your too busy with dental school to go out and find patients randomly....

 

[Morsetlis]

Hmm... are you guys saying I could get free dental care if I go to a local dental school?...

🙂

 

[HupHolland]

I may not have been clear enough about this. I am not opposed to getting Pts on my own. In fact, it appears that will be absolutely necessary if I want to fill my clinic chair. I’m talking to friends, family, and complete strangers about getting dental care from me. My question is if the rest of you are forced to resort to this for 80- 100% of your patient pool. My entire class has virtually no patients. I am interested in knowing if most schools out there are doing okay or if it is now the norm for students to be responsible to get all of their own patients. I would like to approach the administration about putting some effort into increasing the patient pool, but if this is how it’s going in all schools, maybe I shouldn’t be expecting them to do anything about it.

No this is not how it is at all schools. My school had TONS of patients. If I needed fixed prosth I went to my patient care coordinator, told them I needed fixed prosth, then we would look at unassigned patients panorexes to find patients that appeared like they needed crown & bridge (single edentulous spaces, large carious lesions, recurrent caries on previous crowns, etc.)

Hup

 

[HupHolland]

If you go into private practice you will need to learn how to market yourself to your patients. Why not start in dental school? At least print out some business cards so when you meet someone and they say "You're in dental school? I haven't been to the dentist in forever. What do you think of this tooth?" you can hand them your card and invite them to come in for an exam.

👍

 

[btk2333]

I may not have been clear enough about this. I am not opposed to getting Pts on my own. In fact, it appears that will be absolutely necessary if I want to fill my clinic chair. I’m talking to friends, family, and complete strangers about getting dental care from me. My question is if the rest of you are forced to resort to this for 80- 100% of your patient pool. My entire class has virtually no patients. I am interested in knowing if most schools out there are doing okay or if it is now the norm for students to be responsible to get all of their own patients. I would like to approach the administration about putting some effort into increasing the patient pool, but if this is how it’s going in all schools, maybe I shouldn’t be expecting them to do anything about it.

This is not the case at our school- we're not booked 100% but we have no problem meeting our requirements in most cases

 

[Quattro DMD]

The problem that I am having with my patients is that they stop coming after I perform their simple restorative needs. They'll get a couple fillings, then stop scheduling appointments for their crowns, implants, etc. Or the patients just no show for their appointments and have to be dismissed.

I feel like the prices at our school are a little high for some procedures, and many patients get that sticker shock when I present the treatment plant to them.

But at the end of the day I feel like some patients just don't care enough about their dental health to invest the money, and I can't care about my patients more than they care about themselves.

 

[Fido00]

In San Antonio, we do not have a shortage of patients. We sometimes have a shortage of good patients, though. Sometimes, it is up to us to recruit patients, by seeking referrals from our established patients, much like a real practice. The school is opposed to us putting up fliers, or advertising for care. I am not sure how they define the difference, though.

I have had many patients who made it through the diagnostic appointments and failed to get complex care, or any care in the case of a few. It really comes down to being selective with your patients, and knowing who to take, and be upfront with scheduling, cost, etc.I am VERY upfront and abrupt with the cost and time commitment of the treatment, and how long things take in a dental school. I remind them multiple times that things will move much slower than a private practice, but that they are receiving care at approximately 1/2 to 1/4 the cost.

There is also a lot of luck, and I ended up getting much of my requirements from just a few patients. That luck just happened to occur after screening tons of patients.

 

[Bereno]

This would be a much more meaningful thread if people mentioned WHICH SCHOOL is having pt-shortage.

+1
hmph

 

[toothy019788]

I attend Oklahoma, and I would agree that there is a lack of patients at our school.

A lot of seniors in the '13 class had trouble fulfilling requirements in some departments, but it appears everyone made it through. Apparently this has been a problem for the past few years, with a number of students only getting enough clinical "points" within the last month of school to graduate. The students that had no difficulty in satisfying requirements did so by treating their family/friends as well as recruiting strangers. I find this interesting because the school is adamently against patient-recruitment conducted by students, but that's besides the point.

One-on-one, most of my professors say the reason for OU's patient shortage is due to the opposition of school-advertisements by local dentists, most of them OU alumni. When I asked why this is so, I was told that the patient demographics served by the school is actually quite similar to these local dentists, especially corporate dentistry. Essentially, the school doesn't want to "burn any bridges" by potentially taking a large share of their market, resulting in a loss of school-support by these dentists.

Between 1) a patient-pool that consists mainly of friends/family and 2) a school administration that doesn't fight to provide its students with an abundance of patients.... it appears that dental school isn't exactly fair. But then again, neither is the real world.

 

[txaggie03]

because your too busy with dental school to go out and find patients randomly....

not if you're schedule isnt full.



definitely not a lack of patients here in Dallas.