Surmounting the Scrawl

 Overview

One of the ongoing challenges for dental labs has been deciphering hand-written prescriptions.  Adding to this challenge have been incomplete instructions from the dental offices.  The result:  remakes, extra work, less revenue, dissatisfaction.

Along the way labs have introduced and encouraged a number of alternatives to the dental offices.    Here for your consideration are some of the possibilities for surmounting the scrawl.  

RX with  Checklists

Labs have developed formal checklists of their services and products along with specialized preferences such as margins, occlusion, pontic design to make it easy for the dentist to simply place a checkmark wherever appropriate for the work order.  In addition, these forms request entry of other critical information such as the patient name, tooth number(s), shade, requested date of return, special case instructions toward the goal of recording complete information.

Some labs create a separate checklist for each of their major departments such as crown and bridge, dentures, implants.   The forms are typically issued to the dental offices in print or as PDF (Adobe Portable Data Format) downloads from their website.

Labs have reported that these have been a help, but still many are incomplete, the hand-written portions still difficult to read and a significant number of the doctors choose not to use them.  

Online Prescription Entry

The leaders in this industry for online prescription entry have been Henry Schein’s DDX system and Mainstreet’s DentalRx.   Both provide secure entry and lookup of case information, but their approaches have been different.  

DDX is web-hosted by Henry Schein and requires use of its Dentrix practice management software by the dentist and use of Labnet or other authorized case management software by the lab.   The lab is charged a fee for each prescription processed through the system.   The advantages of this system are that the form is very similar to the traditional ones used for hand-written prescriptions and that dentists already using Dentrix have an easy way to submit their prescriptions.

DentalRx is also web-based and is tied to use of Mainstreet’s DentaLab for QuickBooks case management system that synchronizes with Intuit’s QuickBooks software for accounting and financial management.  Typically, the lab includes a link from its website for authorized dental offices to submit their prescriptions, electronic images or files, pickup requests, preferences and other communications and then to lookup the status of cases.   The lab also designates which of its standard procedures are available to DentalRx so that the dental office simply makes its selections for the case.  This system has the advantages that case entry into DentaLab for QuickBooks is primarily completed by the dental office and can be prebooked into the schedule, the website can include marketing and educational material and there are no per-case charges.      

Some of the newer internet-based dental lab systems now also offer portals for the dental offices to submit and/or lookup cases.  The fee structures and security levels for doing this vary by the vendor.

Labs have reported that when they gain acceptance by the dental office, these approaches result in more complete accurate prescriptions, but many of their dentists still prefer sending a hand-written prescription with the case.

Phone/Email Follow-up

Another approach has been to establish standards and then train lab staff members to recognize when prescriptions are incomplete or unclear and to follow-up with the dental office in an organized efficient way to achieve the clarity needed.  Some of the steps in this process might be:

Place the case in an On-Hold status noting the reason until confirmation is received.

Have staff add customer and/or case alerts to record what is needed, the steps taken, the results.

Determine when a phone call will suffice or when sending an email of the lab work ticket with details (on the patient, shade, teeth, preferences, items, special instructions) is needed so that the dental office can confirm or adjust. 

Monitor the customer’s activity log to determine if further measures are needed to encourage better submittals of work orders.   

Be Aware – Software Can Help

Be aware that while software can not completely surmount the issue of scrawled prescriptions or immediately change long-standing habits, good use of it can certainly help.  

If you have further questions…

You can contact the support team at Mainstreet Systems at:

Voice :            215-256-4535

Fax:                 215-256-1594

Email:             support@mainstreet-systems.com

Skype:            mainstreet-systems

Web:               http://www.mainstreet-systems.com or www.mainstreetsystems.net

Coordinating the Desktop and the Cloud

DQB: Coordinating the Desktop and the Cloud

 The term “cloud” has come to be synonymous with the internet.  Cloud services often mean having a server either at your own or a distant location that can serve as a host to provide software and data anywhere and anytime via mobile devices such as wireless notebooks, tablets and smartphones.

Some of the many benefits touted for this approach are these:

·         If using a company that specializes in providing web-hosting, you are sharing their resources with many others and therefore paying less in the near term than investing in your own servers and security systems.

·         Updates to your software can be provided automatically by the developers or publishers, rather than you having to be concerned with this task.

·         Backups of your data can be automatically performed on schedule.

·         With authorization, users can access information wherever internet services are available.

·         If you choose to have your own servers provide web-hosting, you are essentially creating a private cloud in which you retain control but still receive all the other benefits of this approach.

There are many organizations, however, that feel that security and privacy of information are still major concerns that need to be rectified before they will move wholeheartedly into the cloud.  Indeed, if you tune in to the press in computer-related journals, the majority of topics are concerned with security.  Major companies with tremendous resources such as Sony have had their cloud-based offerings hacked. One of the major providers of internet-based data backup has been found to be selling information on their customers.   Sometimes internet-based operations are out of service for days on end. 

A lot of the cloud services are applications that are not mission critical — if one piece goes down, it's not going to cause massive damage to your business.   The truly mission critical applications that are the core of your business need to be as secure and controlled as possible.

Nearly a quarter of businesses said they do not trust any of their data to the cloud, or an outsourced data center, and manage their own computing equipment, whether the center is within their own building or at a co-location center.

A greater percentage of businesses are maintaining their own control of their core business applications and information, but judiciously providing internet access where there will be benefit to their services.  Some examples are allowing customers to enter an order, then to track its fulfillment and shipping progress, providing schedules and rates for viewing and selection, links to partner programs, opportunity to give comments and feedback

Worthwhile Ways to Use the Internet

 Both QuickBooks and DentaLab for QuickBooks (DQB) offer a number of worthwhile ways to use the Internet:

·         QuickBooks invoices, statements and reports can be emailed to customers.

·         Credit/debit card and other payment solutions can post directly into your QuickBooks customer accounts.

·         DQB email notifications provide reports to the dental offices on cases received and shipped.

·         Through the DentalRx supplement, online prescriptions, preferences, pickup requests and other memos from the dental office communicate directly with your DQB database.  This can be linked directly from your website.

·         Graphics sent electronically by dental offices, scanned images or any other file such as digital impressions can become part of each case’s record for quick lookups, communications in DQB.

·         Remote access from an authorized computer can use your lab system for entry, viewing, analysis, and support of both QuickBooks and DQB.

·         Tablet apps for mobile devices such as Apple’s IPad, Google’s Android and Microsoft’s Windows 8  to track case assignments and progress, timings, workloads and schedules.

·         With QuickBooks Pro Plus, you can use a mobile device to view/update customer information, create/view/email invoices, estimates and sales receipts.

To those labs needing remote access on a regular basis, we highly recommend Remote Desktop Services (RDS), which is a technology offered by Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 and above.   Some of the benefits of RDS are:

1.       Multiple users can access applications, databases and virtual desktops tied to a central server.   The users can be local or at a remote location.

2.       Administration and security measures are simplified because software needs to be installed only on the server rather than on each client station.

3.       Application programs can be accessed remotely via a web page, an icon or an access point in the Start Menu of the remote station.

4.       This technology can provide significant long-range savings in time and money that easily recoup the licensing and installation cost.

The Continuing Role of the Desktop

Although there has been much focus on the increasing use of mobile devices such as the tablets and smartphones, the desktop computers continue to play a central role in maintaining the information base.   These continue to offer many advantages:

·         They are more secure.

·         They last a longer time.

·         You do not need to be concerned with battery life,

·         They are cheaper and more powerful.

·         You can plug-in a variety of peripherals.

·         They provide larger screens.

·         You can have multiple monitors to multi-task.

·         Fixing is easy, replacement parts are readily available and easily installed.

If you have further questions…

You can contact the support team at Mainstreet Systems at:

Voice :  215-256-4535

Fax:        215-256-1594

Email:   support@mainstreet-systems.com

Skype:  mainstreet-systems

Web:     http://www.mainstreet-systems.com or www.mainstreetsystems.net

An Overview of DentaLab for QuickBooks

 

Two companies, each the leader in their field, have combined forces to bring you top-notch software at very affordable rates.  Both have mastered how to make the complicated simple, easy to learn and use, yet very capable, comprehensive and reliable.

One is Intuit, developer of QuickBooks, the #1 selling software in the world for accounting and financial management.   This is a company with over 2 billion dollars in annual revenue and well over 26 million users.

The other is Mainstreet Systems & Software, developer of the top-selling DentaLab systems for dental laboratory case management, with extensive experience in industry-specific solutions, close coordination with its user group, and a history of excellent responsiveness and customer service.

Here is an overview of…..

Why Labs Love This Software

The Benefits of Synchronization

Ways Lab Case Management Stays on Track

Support for Business Development, Customer Service, Marketing

Query/Reporting Features to Access Information as You Please

Very Appropriate Mobile/Remote Access via the Internet

Easy to Learn, Easy to Use, with Excellent Training and Support

 Why Labs Love This Software

·         It can be used by both novices and experts…you can begin easily and let it gently guide you into more advanced features.

·         Its screens are intuitive and easy to navigate.

·         There is a wide array of features to cover all the fundamentals as well as the latest ways to operate a successful laboratory.

·         It has a history and excellent reputation for reliability, flexibility and responsiveness.

 

·         It is very forgiving should you enter information in error or forget to do a certain step.  You can easily track errors and fix them.

·         There is easy navigation and selection from one screen, known as the Home Page.

·         It has proven useful and applicable to all size labs, from the smallest one-person to the largest with multiple locations and thousands of customers.  If you grow, your software can grow with you.

·         Basic lists define your customers, items, standard procedures, work centers, schedules, quality control, case stages, shades, tooth numbers, lab notes, ship methods, price levels, sales categories, customer groups, product groups.

·         For customers, items and cases, you can add your own custom fields and definitions.

·         Lab-defined settings further individualize the choices for each lab, from colors on work tickets to remake percentages to automatic printing.

·         Choice of forms for work tickets, case labels, quality control feedback, invoices, statements, case materials disclosure with customization available.

 

·         Security of data access through user permissions, logins and passwords.

·         Selection of criteria and dates allows you to find and report specific information.

·         Whenever there are dates to be selected, there is a built-in perpetual calendar.

 Easy fast synchronization with QuickBooks assures accurate timely storage of information, eliminating the need for entering data more than once.

The Benefits of Synchronization

·         Synchronization means that separate systems now work hand-in-hand as though they were one. It is a step above integration via export/import steps.

·         The standards, methods and look and feel are coordinated so that once one learns one system, it is easy to continue on with the other.

 

·         Data is typically entered only once, eliminating the time and errors involved in multiple entries for the same data.

·         Updates are immediate, as there is no need for exporting from one and then importing into the other at specific intervals.

·         Data is not lost or mismatched due to forgetting to export and import or to enter at more than one point.

·         Synchronization brings together the benefits of mass-marketed software funded by millions of users with the benefits of expertise involved in a smaller but more specific industry.

·         Synchronized software results in a richer, more comprehensive, more complete set of features at an affordable cost.

      

Ways Lab Case Management Stays on Track

·         Case information for billable items is transferred to QuickBooks for invoices, purchase orders, may be edited and have discounts and taxation applied when appropriate.

·         Case fields can be transferred to QuickBooks for patient, pan, case number, tooth numbers, shade, date entered, date requested for use in QuickBooks invoice, statements, queries and reports.

·         Lab can choose to print invoices in DentaLab or in QuickBooks, by single case or by batches.

·         Availability of many note-taking areas for cases, case planning, pickup requests, case items, case communications.   Each lab can develop their own set of lab notes for easy insertion into note-taking fields and to assure correct spelling and technical terms.

·         It supports excellent ongoing communication with dental offices through a variety of features such as online prescriptions, pickup requests, case status reports, email notifications, reports and forms, doctor’s preferences by work center and item, case planning, scanning of prescriptions and other case documents including graphics sent by doctor, with easy retrieval of these and case histories.

·         Rapid case entry can be achieved through the use of standard procedures, selections from lists, lab-defined settings….even faster from online prescriptions stored with case.

·         Automatic scheduling based on work centers, master schedules, existing workloads, schedule factors, holidays, doctor requests, multiple stages.

·         Doctor preferences by work center and by item, standing instructions on screen and   printed on work tickets, for use in completing work and quality control.

·         Critical dates prominently displayed for entry, start, end, ship and doctor request.

·         Work can be assigned to individual technicians in advance, as work progresses, or credited upon completion.

·         Work tickets, shipping, invoicing can be generated by individual case or by batch.

·         Work ticket choices, such as full page, half-page, barcodes, colors, custom

·                   Case label variety of choices, full page or continuous forms on label printers.

·         Technician work lists can be generated daily to provide control and targets.

·         Cases can be located quickly and easily in the laboratory based on work center, date, completions and other search criteria.

 

·         Complete case histories are readily available for you, the dental office, to meet FDA requirements.

·         Standard procedures provide templates of standard cases, work centers, items, timing for management control and completeness as well as faster, more accurate case entry.  These can be modified at case entry by adding, editing or deleting items and multiple procedures can be used to build a case or to handle case stages.

·         Quality control issues, either internal or from doctors, can be recorded, analyzed and reported.

·         Materials disclosure, specifying manufacturer, part codes/descriptions, lots and batches, made easy for FDA/GMP/DAMAS compliance or for recalls.

·         Activity logs to track customer communications and service, quality control, marketing and other issues by topic, entry and alert dates.

Support for Business Development, Customer Service, Marketing

·         To provide excellent ongoing communication with dental offices, there is a variety of features such as online prescriptions, pickup requests, case status reports, email notifications, reports and forms, doctor’s preferences by work center and item, case planning, scanning of prescriptions and other case documents including graphics sent by the doctor with easy retrieval of these, and case histories.

·         Its Customer Center lets you focus on one customer at a time to review and maintain a complete look at each doctor’s activities, preferences, requests. 

·         The date feature of the Customer Center also provides a quick look by date or date range for customer activity logs, alerts, cases and case communications so that you can fulfill promises, perform follow-ups, and stay organized and thorough in your communications with your customers.

Queries and Reporting to Access Information as You Please

·         Excellent audit trails and easy-to-use search facilities for your information.

·         Standard reports are very flexible to select and report the information that is most useful to you.   Custom reports can easily be developed for your specific needs.

·         Find and filter opportunities for the user to quickly search for and/or limit information in screen grids or reports.

·         Grids of selected information provide for easy scrolling and selection of a specific record with ascending or descending sorts by clicking any column.

·         Queries and/or changes on case content or timing from doctors can be handled quickly and efficiently.

·         Due lists based on dates, work centers, case status (including in lab, past due, on hold, out for try-in) can be generated at any time to screen or print to control work and assure its timely completion.

·         Many reports provide a choice of highly detailed or summary formats that can be viewed, printed and/or saved to a variety of electronic formats.

·         Laboratory snapshot summary for overview of workload by work center, case statuses, counts

·         Cases to be shipped reports provide for sorting by ship method, case type, dates.

·         Product Group reporting for unlimited groupings of production items (products/services) to show work in progress, work completed, counts and values.

·         Customer Group reporting for unlimited groupings by customers and items (products/services) to show work invoiced, counts and values for standard cases, adjustments and remakes.

·         Sales Category reporting for unlimited groupings of  items (products/services) to show work invoiced, counts and values for standard cases, adjustments and remakes.

·         Combined with QuickBooks reports for accounting and financial management, you have a huge array of queries and reports from many different viewpoints….you are the one who selects the criteria.  You also can choose from a variety of formats such as Adobe Portable Data Format (PDF) for issuing to your customers, to your accountant, your bank, other software.

 

Mobile/Remote Access via the Internet

·    QuickBooks invoices, statements and reports can be emailed to customers.

·         Credit/debit card and other payment solutions can post directly into your QuickBooks customer accounts.

·         DentaLab for QuickBooks email notifications provide reports to the dental offices on cases received and shipped.  These notifications can include messages and marketing information.

·         DentaLab reports can be saved and emailed a variety of electronic formats.

·         Online prescriptions, preferences, pickup requests and other memos from the dental office communicate directly with your database.  This can be linked directly from your website.

·         Graphics sent electronically by dental offices can easily become part of each case’s record for quick lookups, communications.

·         Remote access from an authorized computer can use your lab system for entry, viewing, analysis, support.

Training and Support

·         There are a number of helps or guides, including tutorials, online help and written documents to guide you.

·         30-Day trials are available to try before you buy.

·         Help is readily available via the telephone, fax, email and remote connection.  Personal interactive sessions can be scheduled.  

·         Low cost group training is scheduled throughout the year at DentaLab support offices.

·         Onsite visits to your laboratory can be arranged.

·         Monthly newsletters and website add news, education, tips and techniques.

·       Outstanding support program encourages user suggestions and participation, provides ongoing education, consulting, guidance, trouble-shooting, compliance with new technology for computers and the lab.

 Visit our website for more details:  http://www.mainstreet-systems.com

 or our new website:    www.mainstreetsystems.net