Dr. Louise First
SCENE 1 – Navigating Minor Bumps
The husband and wife team of Kevin J. Quade, D.M.D. and Louise R. First, D.M.D. were very pleased with their two successful practices in the St. Louis, MO area. They had staff that had been with them for years and things were going very well. There were only “minor” bumps in the road that every practice experiences.
As Pankey-trained dentists, the doctors established the practices’ goals to mirror the Pankey philosophy. They were committed to providing excellence in dentistry and customer service. Drs. Quade and First figured everyone on the team was on the same page. After all, the staff knew what the doctors wanted and expected of them. That’s all that’s required, right?
The problem was that while the staff knew and enthusiastically worked toward achieving the goals, they weren’t necessarily all on the same page at the same time. The doctors thought that eventually the minor, occasional glitches would work themselves out. After all, the office functioned very well; there were only minor problems. But, even with time, they didn’t seem to be resolved.
While at Pankey, a friend and instructor told Drs. Quade and First to contact Kirk Behrendt and his team at ACT. They discovered that Kirk doesn’t just “know” about the Pankey philosophy; he has gone through the continuums himself. “That is how Kirk is,” says Dr. Quade. “He doesn’t just try to learn about excellence, he dives in head first. He is truly an expert in excellence.”
SCENE 2 – Concerns About Consultants
While the doctors were enthusiastic about pursuing outside consulting, their team, which had been with them for up to 32 years, was completely against talking to another consultant, even it if was ACT. They came to the doctors with their arms crossed, arguing that they had been down that road before. They were convinced that they would be wasting money. And they were simply not interested. Dr. First adds, “After being with us for so long, they are pretty opinionated, which is also one of the things that makes them so good!”
SCENE 3 – Making a Great Practice Even Better
In spite of the team’s concerns, Drs. Quade and First contacted ACT and invited them for a visit. “ACT was really good with our team”, says Dr. First. “The ACT team are great listeners and asked really good questions, which our team wasn’t used to.”
The team was used to a consultant just telling them what to do. With ACT’s interactive, “become part of the team” approach, it wasn’t too long before they uncrossed their arms and started listening.
“After a little more time, they began to like Kirk and his team and were very open to the things they had to say,” says Dr. Quade. “Not long after that they started to depend on ACT to solve issues. They even began calling ACT themselves!”
“We thought that was pretty neat for them to go from being completely against talking to ACT to liking them and depending on them,” says Dr. First. “That hasn’t ever happened before.”
“Kirk has a knack for communicating with people in a very positive way,” says Dr. Quade. “He is well liked at our office. The thing that helped the most is that our team realized that ACT truly did understand our practice and all of us. They didn’t take a cookie cutter approach.”
The ACT team helped each person on the team write a job description, defining who they were to the practice and outlining exactly what their individual goals were. With these descriptions in place, the staff “gelled” better and began to work together seamlessly and cooperatively.
“We had a great practice before we met ACT, but Kirk and his team made it even better,” says Dr. First. “He helped find what problems we had and help to correct them.”
“We have a great staff, but they helped us make our staff even better,” says Dr. Quade. “Through them, we got our staff all on one page. Our team wrote out job descriptions for everyone. This way they all know each other’s jobs and can multitask. I can only imagine what ACT could do with a practice that needs a total revamping!”
But it wasn’t just the staff that needed to be pointed in the right direction. The doctors needed a little guidance too. “It can be trying at times for spouses to be in the same practice,” says Dr. First. “Although it was enjoyable, it could be stressful at times.” ACT helped homogenize the practice so that the doctors and the team could both be happy.
“We always felt good about the profession and were happy to be in it, but now that things run smoother, it is even more enjoyable,” says Dr. Quade.
Fixing the Small Things Made a Big Difference
“ACT came in and gave our practice a thorough examination,” says Dr. First. “The things that they found were small compared to some offices. But it is the small things that make all the difference.”
“They got everyone thinking in the same direction,” says Dr. Quade
The practice, with Kirk and the ACT team’s help, has gone from good to great.
“I think that patients understand more now that we strive for excellence in everything we do,” says Dr. First. “It seems to be more obvious to them now. We really get a lot of compliments.
“I think that when things don’t go perfectly, which is fairly rare, patients are understanding since they know we do everything we can to do things exceptionally well.”
Today, everyone on the team loves ACT. And since there are fewer glitches in the day-to-day operation of the practice, everyone is much happier.
“We’ve recommended ACT to many people,” says Dr. Quade. “I’ve had some dentists call me for a testimonial regarding ACT. After talking to them for a while, they are pretty convinced to call them. At the end of the conversation I always tell them to ‘just do it.’ They usually tell me that others have told them the very same thing!”
