What does Dr. Oz know about dentistry? Apparently not much! But you do!
Most of dentistry has just about had it with Dr. Oz. The television doctor personality continues to disseminate misleading dental information like dental x-rays cause thyroid cancer and recommending that patients negotiate with their dentist for lower fees. I am sure there will be more.
With a daily show to produce, I am sure there is a back room of producers working tirelessly to come up with something they think people will find of interest. Sometimes these producers get desperate.
If you get riled up about Dr. Oz, consider the following thoughts and actions:
1. Much of what is produced on this show is created by front line producers who are not too deep into facts. They are trying to be creative. Sometimes they are more creative than they are factual.
2. The target audience for the Dr. Oz Show is older women of the 60 year old plus variety. Not very many other people have the time to watch his show which airs during the work day. Unless you are a die-hard follower and you TiVO his show, the market is relatively limited.
3. Take a proactive stance. Keep an eye on anything that comes out in the media about dentistry. Be the local authority and set the record straight. Have information in your practice about what the truth really is about things that may have been broadcast or printed in the national media. Your patients will appreciate your being up-to-date and addressing what is going on today.
4. Negotiate fees? Why don’t you suggest people do that with their physician Dr. Oz? Oh, that’s because most physicians have no clue what they charge for anything. They have lost total control of their business model. I think Oz and his fellow physicians that lost their way from the “Emerald City” are just jealous!
5. Need a response for the occasional patient that wants to negotiate fees? “Mrs. Jones, we carefully set our fees once and explain them to our patients so we would never have to apologize for the quality of our work.” Everyone knows that you get what you pay for.
6. Get focused on what is working, not on what is not working. The effect that someone like Dr. Oz has on the whole market is minimal. When you get one or two comments from patients about things that sound related, it is easy to think it is a bigger problem than it really is. Focus on the patients that get it. Don’t give the small minority of patients more share of your mind than they deserve.
With that, I am off to Kansas…the real place Dorothy lived. After all, the whole “Oz” thing and the “Emerald City” were a dream, not reality. Remember? We should all treat Dr. Oz the same way.
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