A question for those who work in Dental Office....?

[~~Penny~~]

~ I am a client relations specialist,,,my job is to make sure our clients (Dentists) and their pts are satisfied with the quality and service our Dental Lab provides. I spend my day at work making many phone calls to the Drs. offices to follow up on case restorations we do for them. Most offices are sooo very nice and helpfull, but there are a handfull that really act like the Gate Keeper, they do not let me talk to Dr, or Assistant or Office Manager. They wont even take a message they just say call back. What can I do to let the office know that I am not a "sales person" I am truley calling to make sure Dr is getting everything from our lab that he/she expects. The Dr and Pt are my first priority,,,but getting past the receptionist is almost impossible some times. Even when I ask them when is the best time to call, I dont want to intrupt Dr when he is with a Pt. And still I get " try calling back some other time" and they just hang up...
Any helpful hints ????
~ I do a mailing aprox one week before I call......I also send handwritten thank you cards to our Drs, because we truley do appreciate the work they send us....I sometimes even send the office staff little thank you promo gifts because they are just as important......

[CDA~NY]

I agree... someone else should be answering the phones..

The front desk staff should know which Dental Lab the office uses, so if a call comes in, it should be relayed to the dentist or an assistant. What if the call was in reference to a particular case?

You may want to include a form relating to the case that the dentist/assistant can fill out and return....and for those offices that have a 'piranha' at the front desk, let the doctor know you've been trying to call repeatedly, and left messages, with no response...

Business is business, so unless the front desk staff is paying the lab bills, they shouldn't decide which lab calls are important and which are not.........