How to Handle Patient Cancellations in Your Dental Membership Plan
Patient cancellations can be tough, but they’re also a chance to improve your dental membership plan. By addressing the reasons behind cancellations and taking proactive steps, you can enhance your offerings and maintain strong patient relationships.
Here’s how you can handle cancellations effectively and turn them into opportunities.
Reach Out to the Patient
After a cancellation, reaching out shows empathy and helps maintain trust. Start by thanking the patient for their time as a member and expressing understanding. Avoid being defensive and focus on resolving their concerns. Possible solutions you could offer include:
● Adjusted plan options
● Discounts
● Temporary membership suspension
This step can help rebuild the relationship and even encourage re-engagement in your plan.
Understand Why the Patient Canceled
Understanding why a patient decided to cancel is an important step in addressing their concerns and improving your plan. Use a cancellation survey to gather insights. Ask questions to learn the following:
● Was the plan too costly?
● Were their expectations not met?
● Did their circumstances change?
Review survey responses and look for any recurring concerns.
Evaluate Their Membership Utilization
Review how frequently the patient used their membership benefits. Analyzing their history can help identify if underutilization or unclear communication contributed to their decision. These insights are critical for adjusting your plan or improving communication strategies moving forward.
Learn from Cancellations
Tracking cancellations over time helps you identify patterns or seasonal trends. Use this data to refine your membership plan and implement changes that reduce future churn. Train staff to proactively communicate plan benefits and address concerns before they lead to cancellations.
Improve Membership Plan Offers
Use all this information to review your membership plan to ensure it meets patient needs and expectations. You may decide to:
● Modify or add services based on patient feedback
● Introduce tiered plans or add-ons for flexibility
● Make sure terms are clear, transparent, and easy to understand
Regular updates and adjustments help keep your plan competitive and appealing to a variety of patients.
Maintain a Positive Relationship with the Patient
Even after cancellation, maintain a positive relationship with the patient. Share occasional updates about new plan features or promotions, and encourage regular visits even without a membership. Highlight alternative payment options for non-members to keep them connected to your practice.
Think of cancellations as opportunities to improve your membership plan. Proactively addressing concerns, analyzing feedback, and refining your offerings can help reduce churn and build stronger patient relationships.
Contact Dental Menu for a demo and explore how our software can help retain and re-engage members.
