Dental Tribune U.S. Edition

Practice Matters DENTAL TRIBUNE | February 20116A through involving their patients in the treatment planning process. Patients are much less likely to sue a dentist whom they know and trust. It is also important for dentists to understand the needs of their patients. The patients’ best interests should be kept in mind at all times. Patients may have special health needs or may be concerned about financing. The dentist may suggest providing dental care in phases in order to best serve the patients’ needs or to make payments more affordable. This, in turn, will allow the dentist to gain the patients’ trust. It is important to market your services to patients; however, “puff- ery” should always be avoided. Puff- ery is a promotional statement that expresses subjective rather than planning process will have happier patients who will be less likely to instigate a malpractice action. By involving patients in the treat- ment planning process, dentists are informing their patients of the avail- able treatments and the benefits of each, and letting the patients choose the treatment that best suits their needs. It is often claimed that the most important factor in preventing a malpractice suit is trust in the practitioner. Trust is especially vital in the dentist-patient relationship. Patients should view their dentists as trustworthy, knowledgeable and skilled professionals. Dentists may gain this trust objective viewpoints. Typically, puffery is a statement that no rea- sonable person would take literally. When discussing the expected outcome of a dental procedure, statements such as, “this root canal will be easy,” “this treatment will be relatively pain free” or “your teeth will be beautiful after this proce- dure” should be avoided. This may cause the patient to build up high (maybe even unrea- sonable) expectations that may lead to disappointment and, potentially, to a lawsuit. In addition, after performing an invasive procedure on a patient, it is a good idea for a dentist to follow up with the patient through a phone call. This not only builds trust and improves the quality of care the dentist provides, but also alerts the dentist if the patient is experiencing unexpected problems that the den- tist may be able to remedy. If the problems are left unad- dressed, however, the potential for a lawsuit becomes much greater. With a more thorough under- standing of malpractice actions and by following these simple tips for handling patient relations in the dental office, dentists will be more likely to avoid costly malpractice actions. In addition, by involving patients in decisions regarding their dental care, the dentist will gain each patient’s trust. This, in turn, will also reduce the risk of malpractice actions — protecting both you and your practice. DT AD f DT page 5A About the author Stuart J. Oberman, Esq., has extensive experience in repre- senting dentists during dental partnership agreements, part- nership buy-ins, dental MSOs, commercial leasing, entity for- mation (professional corpora- tions, limited liability compa- nies), real estate transactions, employment law, dental board defense, estate planning, and other business transactions that a dentist will face during his or her career. For questions or comments regarding this article, visit www.gadentalattorney.com. Stuart J. Oberman, Esq., has been invited to lecture at Bos- ton University Henry M. Gold- man School of Dental Medi- cine. Oberman will be one of the featured speakers at a con- tinuing education course titled “How to Prevent Fraud in the Dental Office” on June 27. For more information on Stuart J. Oberman, please visit www.GaDentalAttorney.com, or go to the corporate website at www.ObermanLaw.com. Prevent fraud in the dental office