Free vs paid consultations

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#16 Post by **hippyhippo** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 4:51 pm

I went to some consultations that were free and some that required payment.

The way I see it is that there are two schools of thought. Some orthos will offer their time up for "free" because they believe it will generate more interest and therefore more patients. That "free" time is actually earning them money in the long run. Other orthos would rather not risk giving 10 free consults and only getting one patient as a result. So they charge for the time they are spending with the patient. Perhaps they get less people in for consults, but they aren't losing money on them either. I have no problem with either way.

I will say that the paid consults I had were much more thorough than the free ones. From my frist paid consult I walked away with a booklet that contained my digital photos, a detailed description of my treatment plan (including what exactly was wrong with my teeth and bite, explaining all appliances that may need to be used, what to expect, etc), pre-approval forms for my insurance company. I also had a full 30 minutes of talking with the ortho and another 30 minutes with an assistant.

My free consultations typically had me talking with the ortho for only 10 minutes (and an additioanl 20 minutes with the assistant who explained the basics) and I was just provided with a very general treatment plan and cost. To get a more in depth consultation I would have to spend the money on the records first.

I loved the treatment I got with my paid consultations, but I didn't like the treatment plans as much. So I ended up going with a ortho that had a free consult. Go figure

#17 Post by **platinum** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 4:58 pm

Hippyhippo: that's funny, as my consultation with "paid" orthodontists was just that he checked my teeth and told me the treatment possibilities.

The free one was more thorough. Fotos were taken and the doc checked my bite and explained me by using those fotos what's my problem.
I also got a written explanation about my problems and the estimated cost. Also he is against extractions, which is good.
It was very nice consultation. I went for this ortho.

#18 Post by **lionfish** » Thu Dec 21, 2006 5:01 pm

I didn't mind having to pay for the initial consult, but it was probably a deterrent to shopping around. I felt at ease with the ortho and everything is sweet so far.

Threadnap follows....

As a small business operator, I'm all too aware of treating customers right. The first consult is always free and I bend over backwards for repeat customers.

An experience with the local vet 3 months ago - whom we've supported for 10 years - put a sour taste in my mouth. After having spent around $1500 on a dying cat, we were stung $64 for a 3 minute phone consult and 4 pills that I confirmed to cost about 50c on the open market. This was a desperate attempt by us to get puss to eat. It didn't work and she was put to sleep the following day. Only last week we were sent a rude note saying we'd not paid the euthanasia bill (how could we if it took them all this time to tell us?). I went in and paid it, of course, gave them a piece of my mind and said they'd not be seeing any more of us (we have another cat on their books). Interest shown by them? Zero. Which I find truly remarkable because there are that many vets around where I live, you'd think they cared.

#19 Post by **ssfw** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 2:13 am

I think alot of orthodontists in the United States do not charge for a consultation appt. I went to 4 consultations and they were all free. The consultation appt. included examination of my teeth and bite, what treatment I may need, cost of orthodontic treatment and answering all of my questions.

ssfw

#20 Post by **lionfish** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 2:51 pm

Meryaten wrote:How callously they dealt with all that Sorry, lionfish.

Thanks for your concern.

#21 Post by **thesallymonster** » Fri Dec 22, 2006 4:57 pm

All three of my consultations were free. The third consult included two free x-rays, but the first two just looked at my teeth and felt my jaws before making treatment recommendations.

I don't think I would've ever went in for a consultation had it not been free. In fact, the fact that consultations were free was what led me to get my teeth looked at by an ortho. I felt like I had nothing to lose.