Success has a unique relationship with the “truth.” The truth about your dental organization’s financial health can hinge on how you use your available data for measurement and improvement.
Like your business decisions, you can rely on gut-instinct for financial perspective. But what if you’re wrong?
One thing you’ve perhaps discovered about data: it tells the truth!
What’s the truth about your dental organization’s financial health?
How you answer that question is likely to determine your relationship with your data. It’s really more of a question about your willingness to monitor how your organization is performing.
Opportunity flows towards how well you embrace the factual data in front of you. Explore these, for example:
- What’s the ratio of diagnosed treatment to accepted treatment?
- How does overall production compare with individual providers or departments (e.g. hygiene) production?
Your data – like a story – follows key “plotlines.” Chapter by chapter your data builds annually to a profitable (or otherwise) conclusion.
Basic data-based, financial “truths” help you diagnose the health of your dental organization as a whole or that of an individual practice. And the good news…it doesn’t have to be difficult to decipher.
Data analysis for improving dental practice or dental organization financial health
Remember a portion of “finance-101”
It’s often surprising to be reminded that what you bring in or make can radically differ from what’s ultimately earned. This bit of truth follows the standard “trilogy” of business financial analysis:
- 1-Gross vs. net
- 2-Margin
- 3-Taxes
Relative to your dental practice or dental organization:
- Gross v. net applies to your production and collections
- Margin is impacted by overhead and operational costs
- Taxes are assessed based on income
These basics help frame your current (and future) realities. Keep them on your radar and you’ll avoid surprises.
You’ll also be able to determine how you can apply legitimate financial strategies to manage them towards a positive outcome – thanks to data analysis!
Review your data in the context of industry benchmarks
Contextual perspective might be more effective than making comparisons. It’s common to place your organization’s metric alongside the broader industry.
But as with many endeavors, comparison can be defeating instead of empowering.
It’s useful to explore benchmarks in their context. Certain assumptions might lead you to believe a strategy will work for you. Though in reality, seeing it in its context could save you from an unprofitable investment.
- Set contextual benchmarks within your organization.
- Avoid comparison benchmarks that fail to include demographics, doctor personality and experience, team strength, available technology/resources, etc.
- Adapt and/or innovate when a benchmark has exceeded its “shelf-life” or becomes irrelevant due to upgrades, innovation, etc.
Benchmark data can be useful to your financial health as long as it’s viewed in context.
Rely on report data to affirm benchmarks and produce informed recommendations
It helps to know your options. A single option could lead to a solution that produces positive financial health results.
The more informed you are regarding those options the better. Report data that’s routinely reviewed will enable you to make “intelligent” financial decisions for your organization.
- Rely on report data with a strong bias towards taking action based on your discoveries
- Rely on report data to trigger innovation that has the potential to produce revenue
- Rely on report data that challenges gaps in daily workflows leading to improvement across your team(s)
Remain aware of your data’s finance related notifications
An engine warning light or a blood pressure reading – each have relevance to either the health of your vehicle’s engine or your physical body.
Data is like that. It notifies you about your organization’s performance and if its financial health is compromised.
Notifications get your attention. They help you face the issues, make necessary adjustments, and seek solutions to avoid related problems in the future.
- Set up reporting systems that routinely notify you about valuable metrics (e.g. active vs. new patient numbers, scheduling, A/R, collections, etc).
- Have an action-bias about any concerning notifications.
- Create an actionable timeline towards achieving improvement in areas where notifications are triggered.
Data tells the truth. It also compels action based on the truth revealed about your dental organization’s financial health.
Trust your data. But even more – seek solutions so that your bottom-line stays healthy.
Check out the following resources that contribute to strong financial health in your dental organization:
Why measuring the right benchmarks is important to the performance of your dental organization
The Basics of a Healthy RCM (Revenue Cycle Management) System for Your Dental Practice or DSO
Useful data is discovered through effective monitoring
The Jarvis Analytics platform helps assure that you’re monitoring and tracking the important data – including what keeps you financially healthy.
Jarvis…
- Integrates seamlessly with your chosen practice management software/platform
- Presents the metrics you want and need in an easy-to-view dental dashboard that reduces data complexity for growing dental practices, dental groups, and DSOs
Experience Jarvis in action. Request a demo today!
Or…
Contact us for more information about data tracking that leads to profitability.
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