Better Efficiency for 11,000+ Practices Nationwide

Inefficient Approach

Kelly Cates, office manager at Austin-based Pecan Park Family Dentistry was frustrated with the amount of time she spent leaving voicemails for patients who didn’t call her back to confirm appointments. As a result, Kelly and her staff found it challenging to keep on top of their other responsibilities around the office. Kelly knew that Pecan Park needed a better way to manage appointment reminders and recognized that “patients prefer modern technology, electronic communication like texts and emails. No one wants to talk on the phone anymore.”

The Lighthouse Approach

Kelly was hesitant about Lighthouse at first simply because she wasn’t sure if it would be worth the monthly investment. Kelly had worked at another dental office that used a different patient communication system and hadn’t been impressed, but Lighthouse offered more.

Pecan Park couldn’t be more pleased with their Lighthouse experience. The last minute text message reminders have been particularly helpful: “Show rate is higher and some patients have told me they would have missed their appointments if they hadn’t seen the text,” Kelly explained.

Enjoying the Benefits

Kelly also loves how user-friendly the system is and has noticed improved efficiency in the office. “Throughout the day we can just click through the schedule and see confirmed appointments. It’s very beneficial that none of us have to do last minute things for appointment reminders anymore.”

Another beneficial feature is the patient review requests that Lighthouse sends out on Pecan Park’s behalf. “I like that it’s set up automatically and it’s good to get the feedback from patients so we know what to improve or continue doing,” Kelly shared.

It’s safe to say that Kelly and the staff at Pecan Park definitely see the value in Lighthouse. Kelly spreads the word whenever she can: “I tell other practices to consider using Lighthouse. It’s amazing. I wouldn’t recommend any other option.”

Searching for Efficiency

Dr. Pete Windham, a Florida-based dentist in practice for over 30 years, knew he needed a stronger patient communication system after realizing how many hours were going into confirming every patient’s appointment. “Before Lighthouse, we did everything manually. It was very labor intensive for staff and very costly,” Dr. Windham says. He needed a more efficient way to reduce broken appointments and a support team that was able to show him how to better manage his entire communication system.

Improving the Practice

Dr. Windham ultimately determined that Lighthouse was the best solution for his practice. “I had used other software before Lighthouse but it’s like comparing a bicycle to a Lamborghini.” Dr. Windham specifically says Lighthouse’s email and text message confirmations have drastically improved his show rate. “Lighthouse makes me money by keeping my chair full.”

In addition to cost efficiency, Lighthouse has also helped to improve customer service. Instead of working extra hours to make phone calls and confirm appointments, the staff is now instead able to focus on patients while they’re in the office. Dr. Windham feels the amount of stress off the front desk has changed their practice tremendously. “We don’t have to worry about tomorrow anymore because we know Lighthouse is going to tell us what we have to do by the afternoon before.”

The Ultimate Support System

Since using Lighthouse, Dr. Windham has seen other positive changes as well. “Our practice has greatly benefited from the patient reviews feature that is part of the Lighthouse offerings. Online reviews help us rank higher with search engines and also allow us to start a dialogue with our patients about the feedback we receive,” he says. He uses feedback as a learning tool for staff and to check against his overall goals for the office.

Dr. Windham says that Lighthouse has become the ultimate support system for his business and he would advise other dental practices to give it a try. “I have the utmost trust and confidence in Lighthouse. If you’re serious about the business of dentistry and about helping people then it’s a no brainer to use Lighthouse.”

A Growing Dental Practice

When Kim Jordan, former office manager and now team leader assistant at Pennsylvania-based Weaver, Reckner & Reinhart Dental Associates, saw the office growing at a rapid speed, she knew they needed to find a more efficient communication system for reminding their expanding patient base about upcoming appointments. “We were starting to see up to 200 patients a day and we didn’t want anyone to fall through the cracks,” Kim said. The staff was using a tedious and time consuming manual system, which included printing out multiple reports weekly and mailing reminders by hand.

After learning about Lighthouse’s strong background in dentistry and history of helping practices effectively automate communications with their patients, Kim was sold.

The Difference is Clear

The office experience has completely changed since signing on with Lighthouse for both staff and patients. The automatic confirmations Lighthouse provides to clients cuts down on cancellations and no shows. Kim shared that “we used to have someone do confirmation calls all day long, now they barely make calls because most patients confirm by email.” Kim also says at least one patient a day will comment on how much they love the last minute text reminders

Additionally, the efficiency that Lighthouse has delivered has improved the service that the staff is delivering to patients when they’re in the office. Employees now have more time to speak with patients as they walk in the door instead of having a phone to their ear all day.

A Seamless Integration

The staff loves Lighthouse so much that they can’t imagine running the practice without it. “It’s such a seamless part of our day. It’s a system we don’t even have to think about,” said Kim. She also points out RateABiz, Lighthouse’s patient review tool, is a particularly important piece of the puzzle. This feature allows Kim’s team to effortlessly receive testimonials and feedback from their patients to share across the web and directly on their site. RateABiz has proven to be a much more effective method than asking patients to fill out survey cards. The team also looks at constructive feedback as a way to improve the office and the patient experience. As an added bonus RateABiz reviews from the past year have helped to improve the practice’s ranking on Google.

Kim credits Lighthouse with transforming Weaver, Reckner and Reinhart Dental Associates into an even more customer-focused and user-friendly experience for all patients. “I can’t recommend any other company more highly than Lighthouse. They have been a godsend for our business.”