A loose bracket on a Monday morning
Parents ring on Monday: a bracket came off at the weekend, a wire is poking, a band is loose. Reception does not know whether it needs seeing today, this week or can wait until the next adjustment. So most are booked in as soon as possible, squeezed between planned appointments. The orthodontist runs late.
Some patients break brackets repeatedly, and nobody notices the pattern until the treatment is running behind.
Mondays and the days after school holidays are usually the worst, because breakages from several days arrive at once. Without reserved capacity, the first families who ring get seen and the rest wait, regardless of which problems matter more.
Why breakages cause so much disruption
- Every breakage is handled by phone, with little information.
- Reception cannot judge urgency, so everything is urgent.
- There are no reserved slots, so breakages are squeezed in.
- Photos, when sent, come by email or WhatsApp.
- Breakages are not recorded in a way that shows patterns.
What breakages cost
Clinicians run late. Planned patients wait. Some breakages that could have waited take up slots, while others that needed prompt attention are not prioritised. Repeated breakages can extend treatment and add appointments, which matters for practices on fixed fees.
Repeated breakages are also a conversation the practice needs to have with the family, often about food or sport, and without a history it is hard to raise. The orthodontist sees one breakage in the notes and may not realise it is the fourth.
The breakage process we build
- A breakage report form on your website and linked from your phone message, asking the questions your clinicians set and inviting photos.
- Reports go into a triage list for the clinician or trained team member, with the patient's next planned appointment shown.
- The clinician decides: see soon, see at the next planned visit, or other action. Reception books or sends the patient the practice's written guidance for that type of breakage, which your clinicians write.
- The diary holds reserved breakage slots each day, released for routine use if not needed by a set time.
- Each breakage is recorded against the patient with the type and date.
- Patients with repeated breakages are flagged for the clinician's attention, with the history.
| Report | Clinician decision | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Loose bracket, next visit soon | Wait | Guidance sent, note on record |
| Wire causing discomfort | See soon | Reserved slot booked |
| Repeated breakage | Review | Flag for clinician at next visit |
The form does not diagnose or advise. What to do about each breakage is decided by your clinicians, and the guidance sent is theirs.
A diary that absorbs breakages
Breakages are triaged with photos and details rather than guesswork. Reserved slots take the ones that need a visit, and the planned diary runs closer to time. Patients who can wait receive clear guidance. And repeated breakages are visible early.
Reserved slots that are not needed are released for routine use at a set time, so holding them does not waste the diary. Over a few months, the record shows how many breakage slots each day really needs.
Nurses benefit too. Knowing which breakages are coming in, and what they are, means the right materials are out before the patient sits down.
Is this what breakages do to your diary?
- Every breakage call is booked as soon as possible.
- Clinicians run late because of squeezed-in appointments.
- Breakage photos arrive by email or WhatsApp.
- You cannot see which patients break appliances often.