Empowering Patient Choice? (Dental Confidence and Connection Course)

All right, welcome back. Thanks for continuing on this adventure of learning how to better and more clearly and more Connectedly communicate and collaborate with our patients so that we can empower patient choice Now, let me share with you one of the tools that we've discussed briefly already It's the PCS the problem consequence solution dialogue I find that for me one of the weaknesses that many of us have in our clinical roles Is a jumping from what we've identified as a concern Immediately to the solution now, don't get me wrong. It's important that we Recognize there's a problem and share with the solutions we could propose or present or offer What those solutions are to our patients, but we also need to talk about what the consequences of these issues are And for me, I think if we can focus first on identifying or diagnosing a problem Discussing clearly non-manipulatively Manipulatively and concisely What the consequences of those problems are? It allows us then to generate a deeper patient understanding of the problem Which then provides a more clear set of choices for them and empowers their choices moving forward So identifying the problem Discussing the consequences and the urgency and then moving forward with Presenting solutions whether there are one or many or whether you don't know what the solution is But the solution you're going to prescribe is for them to go to another provider Problem consequence and solution are really critical as we discuss with our patients what's going on So like I mentioned a moment ago so often we'll identify a concern with the tooth for instance tooth number three You've got a large fracture some recurrent distal occlusal decay on the tooth. So you need a crown Okay, that's a common conversation. I know I've probably said it a thousand times. However What I skipped over there is What the heck will happen if I leave that set of problems alone Crack across the tooth and the recurrent decay So if I was patient and I heard that and I was not in the dental experience level that I am now Okay, so I have a crack and the cavity so what You're recommending a five $1,500 procedure for a crack in a cavity. I'm not feeling any pain. Let's just leave it alone So in a situation like I just demonstrated if I don't as a clinician Help the patient understand what the consequences are Then it's very difficult for them to develop the motivation and understanding to want to move forward with treatment now. Let me be clear We're not going to create a manipulative or pressure Driven environment. I want to give the patient Data, I want them to understand what's going on so that they can then make the decision to move forward according to their understanding and knowledge and based on their perception of the concerns and consequences that are there So problem identify clearly what the problem is clearly and concisely. This is where Photographs or a 3d rendering of an image Become very very helpful show them identify them and then allow the patient time to process what you're showing them so that they can essentially Internalize what's happening some of us as dentists? other providers and you know all across the Spectrum of those of us that offer service to other people some of us internalize other Individuals problems way too much. We want to serve. We're compassionate. We want to help But it does me no good and it certainly does the patient feel good if I'm feeling bad About presenting them with a solution to their problem So giving some time after I've identified the problem and the consequences of that problem Giving some time in that space now for the patient to internalize and think about what's going on Then allows them to make a more informed decision So Mary tooth number three got a large fracture across the back of the tooth coupled with a big cavity Underneath the old filling that's been there for you know like you mentioned about 30 years My worry is here's what we're talking about the consequence If that tooth is left untreated with those particular findings Here's what may happen you may end up with a broken tooth or a toothache It's possible that tooth may break and might not be fixable now that's not super likely anytime in the next few weeks But that tooth may break open on you and may cause a lot of pain and overnight emergency and potentially the tooth may not be Fixable these are my concerns So I would recommend I would prescribe I would Tell you essentially that the treatment that I would recommend for you is a crowded a core build-up And you might even need a root canal if we wait too long So let's try to get the crown and the core build-up done as soon as we can so that this Crack and recurrent decaying that might end up with a broken tooth or a toothache. I'm so that that doesn't happen So you see in that scenario? I essentially identified the problem talked about the consequences and then offer a solution now at this point many patients might say well Can we just put a filling there? now in my experience in Most situations the answer is yes With an asterisk So sure Mary I could put a filling in that tooth, but my worry is the tooth is already substantially compromised now It's had a very large filling so far Once we take the decay out and deal with the fracture that the issue is going to be even Bigger and we're only weakening the tooth with a filling So in my experience this tooth is now going to become more brittle and more likely to break even though we've removed the decay So could we place the filling in the tooth rather than a crown right now? We could however if we did that I'd ask you never to chew on the tooth again Until we we got the right treatment the crown placed on that tooth so that it was supportive and stronger Mary how does that sound to you? And then give the individual time to process and think about these things again problem Consequence and solution in a non manipulative Environment we want to make sure we're giving patients data and then allowing them time to process So that they can make a decision that works best for them