The Rush Case Dilemma

Rush cases create a conundrum for many lab owners. In our lab, we made a definitive decision to accept rush cases for an extra fee but to make that work, we had to make some changes internally.

This management decision couldn’t be made in a vacuum; we needed to build a consensus with our team of technicians. This involved very frank discussions about why I believed accepting rush cases represented a growth opportunity for our lab, and addressing the staff’s very real concerns about working on them.

I believe providing rush services helps distinguish our lab from our competitors. It helps us get a foot in the door with a lot of new dentists and, once these dentists experience the value of the work we deliver, we can earn their non-rush business as well. On the other hand, my staff was concerned with disruptions to workflow; as rush cases became the priority, other work had to be put aside. And, because...