Episode 706: How To Utilize EFDAs to Maximize Your Office

 Consultants Tiff and Dana are talking about EFDAs, or expanded functions dental assistants, in this episode. They break down where EFDAs can be utilized, how to best employ them, a look at practices who use EFDAs well, and a whole lot more.

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Reach out to Tiff and Dana: [email protected] 

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Transcript:

0:00:05.8 Kiera Dent: Hey everyone, welcome to the Dental A Team podcast. I'm your host, Kiera Dent. And I had this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective because let's face it, dentistry can be a challenging profession with those two perspectives. I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, filler, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants where we have traveled to over 165 different offices coaching teams. Yep. We don't just understand you, we are you. Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental. And I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams grow VIP experiences, reduce stress, and create A teams. Welcome to the Dental A team podcast. Hello, Dental A team listeners. This is Kiera and you guys, you are in for the best treat of your life, consultant takeover. That's right. Get ready. They're dropping some dynamite. Our consulting team is incredible guys and we are so blessed and so fortunate to have them sharing tips and tricks with you today. And as always thanks for listening. I'll catch you next time on the Dental A team podcast.

0:01:13.2 Tiff: Okay, Dana. This is one of my favorite ones, honestly. I think because I think it's really cool to be able to utilize our team members in the best ways possible. And you are a honest and honestly and truly you are a rockstar at utilizing team members and just busting out incredible team training. I will say it every single time. I'll say it every day because Dana, that is your jam and you really really do well at finding ways for each team member to feel significant and really see how they can add value to the end game, to whatever those goals are. And I thought it would be really cool to pick your brain today a little bit. I've got some ideas too, but I wanted to talk about EFDAs, and this is Expanded Functions Dental Assistance. So some of you may not know that because we don't have EFDAs in every state or the need or requirement for it.

0:02:01.1 Tiff: And many states you can be an EFDA, but it doesn't mean anything. Doesn't mean that they can do their EFDA things or that your pay is any different or anything like that. But I know for sure like states like Colorado, or Tennessee does it as well, those EFDAs are really really valuable. And I think California, like it's starting to, it's starting to pick up. Here in Arizona we like to lag when it comes to things like that so we're still a little bit behind the curve on it. We love our EFDAs, but it doesn't, it's not quite as exciting as some other states might be. We are getting there though, so hold on tight. But our Expanded Functions Dental Assistants, I think way back in the day, Dana an EFDA to me was like somebody who could polish, right?

0:02:39.4 Tiff: Like you could help hygiene. So you got, you were like, you know, my hygienist were busting their tails getting all the cavitron and the scaling done and then they'd leave and then my expanded functions could come in and like there she is. Could come in and like floss and polish but that was really it. And so I think it's really cool now because our EFDAs are able to literally place fillings, which I can say is, you know, fun. Like it's so much fun to be able to do something like that. So what did you see? Or what are you seeing? We work with a lot of practices. I have a handful of practices that fully utilize EFDAs and I've got some pedo practices that do really well that I consult with. And we work hands on in person and kind of manipulate that. I was just in Tennessee at a practice where we were really trying to figure out how to build out like columns for them and strategizing the schedules, but what are you seeing in your practices or what did you do when you managed and maybe had some EFDAs underneath you?

0:03:41.8 Dana: Yeah. And I think again it's gonna vary by the practice but I think as the doctor I always like to say I want you to do the things only you can do, right? So if you have EFDAs in your practice or now even some states have expanded function hygienists. So you would utilize them in the same way, right? If you have them utilize them to the maximum capacity. So one, know how you can utilize them in your state. Because I will have offices that have EFDAs and I'm like, okay, well do, you know, how do you utilize them? Well, the same as my other assistants.

0:04:11.6 Tiff: For sure.

0:04:13.3 Dana: Well they really really have the ability to do so much more in certain states. So making sure one, you know how you can utilize them and then coming up with how you can make them the most productive, right? So I see typical two ways of doing it. And if you have the space in your office having a column and an operatory that is for your EFDA, right? So they have their own schedule and they have their own column of patients. If you don't have that dedicated space, not a problem, you can still maximize your EFDA. Then basically the EFDA follows the doctor. So the doctor does all of the prep work, leaves, EFDA follows in. Now I had an office who recently transitioned into using their EFDAs more and where they found the breakdown, so I'll just share this as a tip, is communicating that with patients, right? Because patients didn't know, this EFDA came in, did the thing, and they were like, I came here to see the dentist. So dentists communicating that to your patients and really building up your EFDA and letting them know they're getting the same care as if you were in the chair, right? Really really edifying them before they come in will be super helpful, especially if you're using that where the EFDA follows you through your columns.

0:05:26.8 Tiff: Yeah. Yeah. That's a really good point. That's a really good point. So we'll break down the columns. I wrote down a ton of stuff so we don't forget. So there's the two different ways, right? So there's the columns where then the doctors will follow the assistant basically. And so the assistant is kind of the provider. The EFDA is the provider basically, and she has or he has their own column and then your blocks for your patients are in your doctor colors and your doctors are jumping room to room kind of all over the place finishing doing those fillings or treatment. So I think I do like that model, but areas that I see could be really confusing on the scheduling standpoint is overlapping doctor times. And so if I've got one, maybe I've got four EFDAs and I've got one over here with Dr. A. And then the other EFDAs have other doctors but then maybe over here we didn't notice doctor, you know, is over here in this first one.

0:06:25.7 Tiff: We've got Dr. A again over here with EFDA 4 And that I saw as a potential confusion, as I was working through it with a practice the other day. I do like the columns because I do like the stability and the EFDA being able to have their stuff and really be able to take care of it. But that was a concern that I had there. And then the other version that you mentioned was really the doctor following the, or the EFDA following the doctor, which makes more sense to me. Just because I think it reduces the possibility for confusion on the schedule. And so for that, our doctor would, you know, do the drilling, do all the pieces that only the doctor can do, get up, like you said, edify the assistant or even maybe even having that conversation prior to starting like, Hey, I'm gonna do this part, then I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna take a break.

0:07:13.7 Tiff: I'm gonna leave and she's gonna handle, or he's gonna handle the rest of it. And then we'll just make sure that everything's good to go at the end of your appointment. So making sure that that communication is there. But those are two really solid methods to use, the column method or the EFDA following the doctor, which is like what we do already, right? That's what dental assistants do already. So it doesn't really change anything up there. And all of the materials should be in the room. That's where that consistency piece comes in again, making sure that every every room is the same because now dental assistants, it's not just gonna drive doctor crazy that he or she doesn't have the stuff she's looking for now it's gonna drive you crazy that you didn't restock your room, and get all that stuff in there. So I think those were, I think those were fantastic. Did you have something you wanted to add to those, like, for the columns?

0:08:00.5 Dana: The only thing I wanted to add is I had an office that did the, when the EFDA have the column really well and what they did, and it's not, it's not feasible in every practice. So it's only just kind of a tip for those that it would work for is the EFDAs column on the schedule is actually in the middle, right? So that they could look very clearly to see as far as the double booking. Oftentimes in practices it's like we've got the doctor's columns and then the EFDA column is kind of to the side, so it's really hard to see. So that was just a tip that really worked for them was the EFDA column was right down the middle and they really had somebody directing the doctors at all times.

0:08:36.3 Tiff: That makes sense.

0:08:37.0 Dana: So letting them know, because then we've got these hygiene exams over here too. So when the doctors are the one kind of following the EFDAs column, really having that strong like air traffic controller assistant that is like, you need to go here, then you need to go to Stephanie's hygiene again, then you need to get back over here. So really having somebody direct that traffic helps a lot too.

0:08:58.9 Tiff: That makes sense. That was smart. Good job. Okay. Yeah, that makes, that makes total sense. And I think that, I love that air traffic controller. I think that's really smart in every practice and especially when we start adding things like this. So the utilization of EFDAs will drastically increase your production because you can double production because there's, you're saving so much provider time and my doctors have so much more time when their EFDAs are able to finish things out. So I think utilizing the EFDAs is huge. Figuring out what your state allows or doesn't allow because it is, it is kind of state by state. Like I said, you can come to Arizona with an EFDA license, but it doesn't necessarily mean a whole lot. I think it does mean more now than it did a few years ago, but just make sure.

0:09:43.3 Tiff: And make sure there are still states too that they're like, well, even with EFDA license you can't... Here with EFDA license you can, you can place fillings, but there are some places that they don't, they still don't allow it. And they don't allow any kind of drill in the hand of anyone but the doctor. So just double check on that. And then also Dana talked about working with the EFDAs and figuring out like what will they do and how will you guys do it. So how can your practice best utilize those EFDAs? Is it gonna be in hygiene, is it gonna be on the doctor's schedule? Is it every day? I know that there's a lot of practices that do just specific days where their EFDAs will come in. So those are kind of like heavy filling days. And the EFDAs come in and really just help them bust out a ton of fillings where the other days are like surgeries or bridge and crown preps, kind of those bigger longer appointments so that the EFDAs not utilized as much those days.

0:10:33.0 Tiff: Kind of figure out what's gonna work with your schedule the best in your practice. Our suggestions. I think the biggest things, my biggest suggestion is to figure out what your EFDA can do and put it into place right away. Like don't hold back. I have so many practices that are like, I have this EFDA and I just haven't done it yet. I'm like, why? Like you're begging me to help with production but you've got a provider basically sitting right here going completely unutilized. So just figure that out and I think make sure that you're ready to go in hygiene. Like that is probably the best hygiene assistant you could possibly ask for because you can really bust out a ton. But going back to what Dana said in the beginning there, communication is key because even a schedule, even a hygiene schedule that runs assisted hygiene and your hygienist is kind of jumping back and forth.

0:11:21.5 Tiff: She's not always there, he's not always there for the exam. Like that can get confusing to a patient as well. And sometimes they just might feel like they're not sure what's going on and so they're not necessarily getting what they wanted out of the appointment. So make sure that there's that communication and that you guys are edifying one another. We talk about that a lot. That's where good handoffs come in. That's where good patient relationships come in and just letting them know how trustworthy this next person is and why. It's not because they're really cool and like you guys hang out on the weekend and she has beautiful curls in her hair every time I see her. Like it's because she is really good at what she does and I trust her. I trust her to do this part for me. And she's actually better at it than I am at this point because she does more than I do.

0:12:10.3 Tiff: That's an edification because if you said that to me as a patient, I'd be like, great. Right? Like I don't want, yeah. I'm like, I don't want the doctor and my pediatrician to give vaccines because they never do what the nurses do, right? I want the nurses to be giving my vitamin B shot or whatever it is that I need because the doctors haven't poked anybody with a needle in years probably. So if he came in with me, I'd be like, wait a second, where's Olivia? Get me Olivia. So edify them and let patients understand and know. So Dana, do you feel like there's anything else in there that we missed? We talked about the scheduling, utilizing. Is there anything that, or anything that you've seen work really well as in utilizing the EFDAs? I know fillings seem to be like the biggest because doctors, you know, don't love fillings most of the time. I don't think I've really met a doctor that's like, give me more fillings. So I think that's the biggest use for them. But what are some other areas you've seen?

0:13:12.4 Dana: Just like you said, then utilizing them on the hygiene side, right? If they can get in there and they can coronal polish and they can be part of the exam and the hygienist can hop over and do, you know, the oral hygiene instruction and the actual scaling and things like that, that's usually the biggest two things that I see practices utilizing them for. And makes the most of their production and their time.

0:13:33.9 Tiff: Totally, totally agree. Yeah. Okay. So wrapping it up, our action items, I would say figure out what you would want an EFDA to do for you. Like what could an EFDA take off of your plate? And I think of this consideration of like delegating. So we tell you guys all the time, what are you doing? What's on your list that if someone else could do it to your 80% satisfactory, could you delegate off to them? I would look at the same thing, like what are you doing in the day-to-day dentistry that you don't have to do? And I swear if any dentists come at me and they're like, well, I could allow my assistant to make my temps. I'll pull my hair out. Drives me crazy. I have so many dentists that refuse to allow assistants to make temps. These are the kinds of things.

0:14:18.1 Tiff: So where can we get your butt out of the seat onto something new and allow your dental assistant or your EFDA to be doing something for you. Look up your state laws. What does an EFDA really look like in your state? What can, he or she do? How can you use them? And then have a meeting, maybe a team meeting or a back office meeting, however you feel works best for you, and really strategize how could we implement this into our practice? And you guys, we do this every day. Honestly and truly we work with practices every single day on all of these pieces. Onboarding new team members, calibrating team members, figuring out what different team members could do strategically, splitting up duties to make sure that it makes the most sense in the patient's experiences, the utmost verbiage. Like all of those pieces we legitimately Monday through Friday are working with practices all over the country every single day.

0:15:10.9 Tiff: And there's many consultants. I think we've got five right now. Like, there's so many of us, so many practices. I don't want you guys ever to shy away from asking us questions. So if this is something you're looking to implement in your practice or you just don't know the right direction to take or the next step, just reach out. This is what we do, this is why we're here. Reach out [email protected]. And you guys go figure it out. I think it'll be really fun. It's something, something new you can add to your practice if you're not doing it. If you are doing it, maybe there's some takeaways here that you can implement into your practice. And if you are doing it and you've got a rockstar freaking program for it, you know you've got the best system, share it.

0:15:49.5 Tiff: That's what we're here for too. If you've got tips and tricks and ideas, put it in there. You can email us, you can drop us a five star review, put some things in there. I love seeing the reviews that are like, this was great and we also do. Like their information was awesome and we also do. Like drop those in the reviews because people read the reviews and then they're getting our information plus yours. And it's just so cool to be able to share that stuff with everybody. So Dana, thank you for being here with me today. I always, I love and value and appreciate your input and I knew, I just knew you would know what to do with an EFDA. 'Cause you work with so many practices that utilize them and you've utilized them. So thank you for being here. I really appreciate your time today and your little pizzazz you just make me happy. So thank you.

0:16:32.2 Dana: Aw, thanks Tiff. I always enjoy spending time with you too. It's been great.

0:16:35.6 Tiff: Thank you. Thank you. All right guys, go do the things. Go implement something new, have fun. Let us know how it goes.

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0:16:43.3 KD: And that wraps it up for another episode of the Dental A Team podcast. Thank you so much for listening and we'll talk to you next time.

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