As part of a collaboration with business analytics provider, Gaidge, after each calendar quarter and full calendar year the AAO receives and shares with members key metrics compiled from a subset of Gaidge client practices. This subset includes:
● More than 300 single-doctor practices under $1 million in quarterly productivity; and
● More than 200 multiple-doctor practices with up to 10 locations.
The purpose of the collaboration is to aid members with assessment of practice health, short-term and long-term goal-setting and other key practice processes.
The second quarter of 2020, of course, was the re-opening period for many practices as COVID-19-related lock-downs ended. (Many practices did not re-open until mid-June.) Additionally, physical distancing requirements and low patient awareness of office reopenings likely kept many practices operating at less than full capacity. Gaidge reports that second-quarter metrics from 2021 show large increases in most categories, which is not surprising as compared with 2020 Q2.
Highlights from the Q2 2021 Gaidge report include:
● Net production increased 92.5% in multi-doctor practices and 65.7% in single-doctor practices, over the second quarter of 2020;
● Net collection lags behind production, up over Q2 last year by 43.4% in multi-doctor practices and 23.8% in single-doctor practices;
● Total patient exams increased by 116.7% in multi-doctor practices, with adult exams up 146.2% over the second quarter of last year. In single-doctor practices, total patent exams increased 99.5% and adult exams were up 114.9%.
● Starts increased 86.2% in multi-doctor practices and 61.6% in single-doctor practices, with aligner starts up 130.4% in multi-doctor practices and 98.7% in single-doctor practices.
The Q2 2021 conversion rate in multi-doctor practices, 69.11%, represents a 12.9% decline compared with Q2 2020. Single-doctor practices saw a similar decline with the Q2 conversion rate of 69.1% an 11.8% decline from Q2 2020.
The conversion declines may reflect an increase in the number of “shoppers” since the early stages of the pandemic, when many orthodontists reported patients were starting treatment without visiting other practices. Conversion rates of 65% have not been uncommon within the specialty within recent years as reported by Gaidge and other sources, so the Q2 rates could be considered in the normal range.
View Additional Q2 2021 Metrics from Gaidge
