How identifying hidden waste transforms your orthodontic practice

00:00:00: Hello, I'm Dr.

00:00:00: Martin Baxman.

00:00:01: today i want to talk about something that affects every single one of us in our clinical practices the hidden invisible forces That drain our energy and profits.

00:00:08: we're going To learn how to spot these inefficiencies These different forms Of waste And more importantly How do eliminate them so Our work becomes not just More successful but fundamentally lighter.

00:00:17: Let's begin Does this feel familiar?

00:00:19: You know that feeling right.

00:00:20: you and your team are working Incredibly hard running from patient-to-patient But by The end of a day everyone is Just completely drained Your left wondering why it has to be such A struggle.

00:00:29: Well, the answer is often hiding in plain sight.

00:00:31: The source of that drain —the invisible enemy—in our practices has a name and that name is Waste!

00:00:38: In the world of business management, waste is the mother-of all evil.

00:00:42: It's the reason we're forced to use our valuable energy where it simply isn't needed...it's the primary reason.

00:00:46: we lose time…lose profit….and burn out our teams.

00:00:50: Now I know what some are thinking.

00:00:51: When you hear the word lean You probably picture car factory with robots & assembly lines but thats fundamental misunderstanding.

00:00:58: Lean isn't about turning your practice into a rigid, soulless system.

00:01:02: It's a mindset!

00:01:03: it is all about improving our productivity and efficiency while –and this the crucial part- making our work easier…it simply about removing friction from my daily clinical work.

00:01:11: So if we're going to remove that friction We first have to learn how to see it...It's so simple You cannot fix what you can not see.

00:01:17: This requires us develop brand new skill A way of looking at world which I call The Lean Eye.

00:01:23: What exactly is the lean eye?

00:01:25: Think of it as a specialist mindset that trains your brain to see hidden waste in any process.

00:01:31: And once you develop it, I have to warn you – You can't turn it off!

00:01:34: You'll be sitting at the restaurant and notice how inefficient their ordering processes is….

00:01:37: …you will be stuck in traffic and start analyzing poor flow of intersection….

00:01:41: This new perspective becomes a permanent and incredibly powerful diagnostic tool for business.

00:01:46: Alright let's make this real... Let us apply this new lean eye to most tangible forms of waste we see every day on our practices.

00:01:52: We'll start with two of the biggest culprits out there lost time, and unnecessary data.

00:01:56: Thirty seconds!

00:01:57: What is that really?

00:01:58: It feels like nothing an absolutely insignificant amount of time but I'm about to show you how this tiny-tiny number when magnified can reveal a massive inefficiency.

00:02:07: that's draining the life out your practice.

00:02:09: Okay let's do math together.

00:02:10: Picture a busy afternoon with fifty patients on schedule.

00:02:13: Now imagine your assistant needs just thirty second longer for each patient.

00:02:17: Maybe they're searching for instrument or walking up another cabinet.

00:02:19: Well, as you can see, you multiply those thirty seconds by fifty patients and you've lost twenty-five minutes.

00:02:25: And that isn't just a number!

00:02:26: That's overtime...that's team stress…That is the reason why we're running late again?

00:02:30: It is difference between patient feeling your practice in well oiled machine vs one who feels chaotic.

00:02:35: Now let us shift from clock to something more subtle.

00:02:38: In orthodontics We love our data Don't

00:02:40: we?!

00:02:40: We are rightly obsessed with diagnostics But our love for cephalometric analyses Can very quickly become what I call intellectual clutter A huge source of data waste.

00:02:48: For every single piece of data you collect, you have to ask yourself this one critical question.

00:02:53: You see it right there does This data actually influence your decision?

00:02:56: I've seen analyses with thirty even forty different values and when i asked a colleague okay that very obscure angle how Does It Actually alter the treatment plan for this patient?

00:03:05: The room often goes silent.

00:03:07: if A Piece Of Data Doesn't Change Your Clinical Decision Then Collecting Is Pure Waste Period.

00:03:12: Okay, so from the intangibles of time and data let's walk into the physical world of our operatories.

00:03:16: Here waste shows up as cluttered materials in a disrupted clinical flow And it almost always stems from one simple problem A lack of standardization.

00:03:23: This chart illustrates The Problem perfectly.

00:03:26: Think about It!

00:03:27: Does every doctor In your practice really need their own unique set Of preferred pliers?

00:03:31: That is the non-standardized Practice you see on left.

00:03:33: It leads to excessive stock Clutter drawers Your assistants constantly wasting Time just searching for things.

00:03:38: Now look at right A standardized practice.

00:03:41: Here the team has agreed on a single, efficient tool set.

00:03:43: The result is order, optimized inventory and smooth predictable workflow.

00:03:47: And this leads directly to waste of motion.

00:03:50: I see it constantly.

00:03:52: An intraoral photo was needed but camera.

00:03:53: in another room An assistant has stop Walk down hall Retrieve It.

00:03:57: What's happening in meantime?

00:03:58: Doctor waiting Patient waiting.

00:04:00: Every time someone leave that chair To get something Gloves Brackets Information.

00:04:05: You have broken clinical flow Creating ripple inefficiency.

00:04:08: Now We arrive at what I truly believe is the most critical and most overlooked form of waste.

00:04:14: And this moves us beyond simple operational tactics, and right into the very heart our leadership philosophy!

00:04:19: There's nothing more tragic in a practice than failing to recognize or utilize your true potential people.

00:04:24: It isn't just inefficient – it is profound loss for team members, you & entire organization.

00:04:30: we often equate hard work with good performance but more often then not opposite.

00:04:35: Real talent reveals itself when a task feels easy to the person doing it.

00:04:38: It just flows naturally!

00:04:39: If you have an employee who is constantly grinding, constantly struggling... ...it's very likely they're talented people that are simply in the wrong role.

00:04:46: As leaders, it is our direct responsibility to fix this.

00:04:50: We have to have conversations to discover our team's natural abilities.

00:04:53: we must encourage them to try different roles.

00:04:55: when you finally match a person's inherent talent To the right position The quality of their work goes up Their job satisfaction goes up and you eliminate that profound waste of human potential.

00:05:05: So you see, by identifying these various types of waste time and data motion materials.

00:05:10: And especially talent we can begin to systematically clean up our processes.

00:05:14: We stop running around like a headless chicken and we start operating with the beautiful precision and predictability Of A Swiss Clockwork.

00:05:20: That is The ultimate goal!