Have you ever had a last-minute cancellation blow up three hours of your day, then you walk up to the front desk and say, “That’s it. We’re pre-collecting from now on”? You can feel the tension immediately. Your team looks at you like you just asked them to charge admission at the front door.
That reaction is the whole problem. Pre-collections are not hard. Getting the team confident and consistent is hard. When you do, everything gets easier: AR drops, cash flow improves, patients show up, and your front desk stops chasing balances.
Here are the three tactical moves that make it stick:
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Script it first.
Pre-collections fail when your team is improvising. Give them a simple, confident script and a clear “why” that frames this as better for patients and easier for the team. -
Go zero-exceptions for 30 days.
Exceptions ruin systems. One exception becomes ten, then the policy becomes optional. Hold the line for one month so the habit forms. -
Audit and talk about it weekly.
Policies die in silence. Check for compliance, ask what objections came up, tighten the script, and celebrate wins while the team is building confidence.
Those three moves are the difference between a policy that lasts two days and a system that becomes automatic. If you want the full breakdown, including exact scripts, the mindset shift that removes resistance, and how to set your policy so it is smooth and predictable, listen to the episode.
P.S. The Freedom Practice Workshop starts tonight at 6pm CST and there is one seat left. If you are serious about building stronger systems and a practice that runs smoothly without constant stress, claim the final seat now.
