Chris Barrow’s Blog

Andrew Copping emailed to mention that Thaxted Dental have just completed a refurbishment of their web site.

A web site that hasn’t been designed:

• by a dentist who is on an ego-trip or
• by a web site designer who wants to win a web site design award at an awards ceremony for web site designers

It’s quite simple, effective and lovely.

It’s about the patients and their experience.

Click here.

Is your business card “bold, outrageous and provocative”?

Check out some funky designs here.

Thank you to Kim Black for showing me this.

Although I still believe that having your portrait photograph on the card is essential in a service industry.

Yesterday was a 4:45am alarm call in Manchester, a 7:05 train to Euston, a full day of IDH meetings and the evening in conversation with a London dentist who is interested in joining our Private Division.

I arrived at the Watford Hilton after 10.00pm last night feeling very happy with the day but understandably tired.

Normally that would be a soak in the bath and lights out – but I became utterly engrossed in Alan Yentob’s profile of sculptor Richard Serra, who is currently exhibiting at the Gagosian Gallery in London’s West End. Click here for details.

I checked on BBC i-player this morning and couldn’t see the programme (Imagine) as a download – but if I were you I’d keep and eye out for it.

A simply fascinating look inside the mind of one of the world’s leading artists – and a gripping explanation of the background to his life’s work and each of his creations.

Take a look at an uber-funky dental practice in Germany….

 

Click here.

I’m going to use this post to praise one of the best dental teams I have met in 12 years – and thank them for their hospitality and open minds.

Click here to see their web site.

A bright, happy team of individuals and we didn’t stop laughing during my visit – even though we were discussing serious business.

I genuinely believe I could parachute this team into any British dental practice and they would ignite it.

Congratulations and “respect” to Chris and Stephanie Shore, the principals.

So your patient writes:

Dear dentist

 Thank you for your letter 14 November 2008, in response to my letter 

 Tuesday 04 November 2008.

 I understand and acknowledge the comments you make.

 We greatly appreciate the quality of dental care we received, and thank 

 you personally on how you treat us as a family.

 As I am sure you can appreciate, as private patients our expectations are 

 higher than if NHS – however you and your team continue to deliver good 

 service and meet these expectations – thank you.

 For clarity, the question I was asking relates to how annual rises are 

 calculated/decided, etc. as they are clearly ‘excessive’ increases above 

 annual inflation rates.

 This has resulted in the the net rate of £17.31 per person from January 

 2009, compared to a starting point of £12.73 net per person in September 

 2005 (just over three years ago).

 Again thank you for your response – but I do not feel this addresses the 

 question I was trying to ask.

 To try and avoid ambiguity, there is absolutely no issue regarding the 

 quality of the service you provide – thank you – but a genuine surprise (? 

 concern) at the annual increases in the amount we pay – which each year 

 has been well above the rate of inflation.

 The question being asked is how annual rises are calculated/decide?

 I look forward to hearing from you.

 Yours sincerely

and you reply:

Dear Patient

Many thanks for getting back to me. I’ll do my best to answer your question.

When arriving at the calculation for current pricing, we are obliged to take the following influences into consideration:

1. The non-clinical operating costs and upkeep of the buildings;

2. The clinical operating costs and upkeep of the surgeries;

3. The recruitment, compensation and training of support staff in a competitive marketplace;

4. The recruitment, specialised training and compensation of self-employed clinical staff in an even more competitive marketplace;

5. The ability to take advantage of the latest advances in clinical technology, equipment and procedures:

6. The choice and quality of suppliers for clinical procedures and the quality and longevity of materials used;

7. The maintenance of robust systems for financial control, marketing and customer service;

8. The overall pricing strategy of the dental market;

9. The national and global economy;

10. The economic situation of the community in which we operate and the patients we serve and, by no means least;

11. The need to generate profits to remunerate the owners and to reinvest for the future.

It is self-evident that our prices have risen “faster than inflation” over the period to which you refer – due to the necessity to restore differentials that existed when we left the NHS. We had some “catch up” to do if the business was going to meet its customer service and clinical promises.

We believe that we now offer a dental practice that sits at the forefront of “best practice” in all of the areas mentioned in my list and we are very proud of that.

Yours

Matt Jackson and I filmed at the press launch.

click here

for The Academy of Clinical Excellence and my colourful friend and former client Prem Semhi

click here 

for The North of England Dental Academy and my equally talented friend and former client Nigel Hargreaves.

Is Yorkshire excluded from the recession?

Have they finally declared UDI and separated from the rest of the UK, to enjoy the income stream from global sales of puddings, beer and beefy ballroom dancers?

Or are these just people who are depression-proof and operating in the right markets?

And then let’s add:

Dream Implant and my mate and client Alex Jones – runners up for “Best New Specialist Website” at the Dentistry Web Awards 2008. Alex will be speaking with me at The Brits 2009 in February.

Bow Lane Dental – and my mate James Goolnik – runners up for Best Website.

Smile Essential – and the simply lovely Shrik and Lina Kotecha – former clients and good friends, winners of “Best Mixed Practice Website”.

OK – so Bow Lane is in the City and Smile Essentials is Leicester.

But you get my drift – there are people out there buidling successful businesses – and there are others helping them to get better both clinically and operationally.

I’m enjoying my work so much at the moment – and stuff like this really inspires me.

Actually – lets start with the rave. About the new HD Flip Video – fantastic micro-technology and an upgrade on one of the biggest selling “I need it for work – honest” blokes gizmos of 2008 – I love my Flip and I’m now deep in early-adopter envy.

Click here to see the beautifully designed web site and product.

You have missed my birthday but it’s nearly Christmas.

OK – rant – are you ready?

Its about Windows and Vista and the 3 hours of my life that evaporated in the last 24.

So, before you reach for the keyboard.

Yes – I know – I need a Mac.

I’m saving up for a Macbook Pro 15″, ever since I drooled in the Apple store Manchester and Wired magazine confirmed it’s “cool”-ness.

Though I have spiritually gone over to the Mac side, I have to save up and not just go out and swipe a card.

Even I have been thinking more carefully about money after those nasty Americans buggered up the world economy (Gordon Brown says so).

I arrived at Old Thorn Golf and Country Club at 9.30pm last night – so deep in the Hampshire countryside that there wasn’t a single street light at any point on the compass.

The two cars I parked alongside were a clue that occupancy was at a seasonal low – I felt rather insecure at the thought of solitary residence in the hotel block (Jack Nicholson – axe – “here’s Johnny!”).

Settling down to check my emails on the free wifi (!) I opened Outlook to discover that my calendar from 1st December onwards has disappeared - just gone – blank – nothing – nada.

As I watched in confused horror, my auto-sync then proceeded to wipe my Google calendar clean as well.

Now the good news – two items of good news that should be a lesson to all of you:

1. My calendar syncs with my 3G iphone using Mobileme – and a quick check of my iphone reveals the appointments still there – so I quickly switch off iphone sync. Moral – more than one back-up;
2. My IT guru Kimberly Black lives in California and so its about 2.00pm in the afternoon when I call her and we spend an hour on the phone looking at various recovery options. Moral – build a global championship support team.