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Practice Management Resources for AAP Members

Even the most skilled clinician can sometimes find practice management a challenge. The Academy offers a wealth of resources to help you.

Third Party Assistance

The complex issues related to third-party insurance are more manageable for members who take advantage of regular Academy policy statements, articles and workshops dealing with issues related to coding, effective utilization of dental insurance, trouble-shooting claims denial, submission to Medicare and submission to medical plans. "Coding Corner" columns appear regularly in AAP News and are archived on the Academy's Web site. The Comprehensive Insurance Workshop is offered several times annually at AAP-sponsored national meetings and throughout the country at various locations. Our Product Catalog offers member discounts on products that provide third party assistance, including the latest edition of Current Procedural Terminology for Periodontics and Insurance Reporting Manual. For really difficult problems, members can contact the Insurance Hotline (phone 800-282-4867, ext. 3241 or 312/573-3241; fax 312/573-3234; e-mail: insurance@perio.org).

AAP News

Published four times a year, the AAP News focuses on current topics and events that affect members and their practices. The AAP News also describes the latest AAP services and resources. Members-Only features reprinted from AAP News:

Glossary of Periodontal Terms

The Glossary of Periodontal Terms is the standard reference work defining terms relating to the art and science of periodontology. It contains over 1,200 definitions, including those developed at the 1999 International Workshop for a Classification of Periodontal Diseases and Conditions, an extensive listing of implant terms, the most current bacteria definitions, and the Academy's official definition of periodontology. It is updated periodically and offered to AAP members at a discount price.

Glossary of Periodontal Terms

Informed Consent for Surgical Periodontics

Members may access online guidelines and sample forms for securing informed consent from patients before doing surgical procedures commonly performed by periodontists.

Informed Consent: Information and Sample Forms

Public Information

Through a variety of public relations activities, the Academy helps educate the public about periodontal disease, the need for preventive care, and treatment options. These activities include nationwide distribution of news releases, promotion of Academy position papers and Journal of Periodontology articles, public service announcements, and assistance to reporters seeking information.

Patient Education Materials

The Academy sells a variety of full-color patient education brochures that members can distribute to their patients during office visits. Brochures are available on topics such as Women and Periodontal Disease, How to Brush and Floss, Periodontal Diseases in Children and Adolescents, What You Should Know About Managed Care Plans, Tobacco & Gum Disease, Diabetes & Gum Disease, Periodontal Surgery: What to Expect, and Dental Implants, with some titles available in Spanish versions. Full-color, reproducible Patient Pages on topics of interest, suitable for distribution in your office, may be downloaded free of charge from the AAP Web site.

Periodontist Referral Service for Consumers

The Academy's online and telephone Referral Service provides members' names and practice information to patients seeking a periodontist in their area. More than 4000 online consumers use this service each month to search for a periodontist by city, state, zip code, or area code. All Active, Life Active, and International members can have a free Referral Service listing, which can be created and updated using the PRS Listing Form in the Members section of the Academy's Web site.

Management/Marketing Resources

In addition to tracking scientific and clinical advancements, the Academy provides members with resources for developing and maintaining a viable practice. Patient education brochures and reproducible Patient Pages – and tips on how to distribute and use them – help increase patient understanding of periodontal disease and treatment, benefiting both periodontist and patient. The AAP Products catalog offers member discounts on practice marketing publications, including the handbook Designing Effective Practice Marketing Materials. An ongoing series of articles on practice management tips is published in the AAP News and on the Academy's Web site to help members with their individual practice needs.

Presentation Materials

These kits include lecture scripts, slides, study guides, handouts, and other materials that aid periodontists in educating general dentists and hygienists in their community as well as the public about periodontal issues. Evidence Based Periodontal Research Study Club Kits cover such topics as Epidemiology and Diagnosis of Periodontal Diseases, Periodic Reevaluation and Supportive Periodontal Therapy, and the Role of Pharmacotherapeutics in Periodontal Diseases. Periodontal Medicine Presentations, one for health care professionals and the other for patients, discuss the inter-relationship between periodontal and systemic health. The presentation on Periodontal Plastic Surgery uses dramatic before-and-after slides along with research information to demonstrate for members of the health care team the optimal results that can be achieved for patients.

Member Media Kit

The Academy also offers a media kit for members wishing to conduct a local media campaign. These kits include sample news releases, a fact sheet about periodontal diseases, sample letters to reporters, and a tip sheet to help members prepare for television, print, or radio interviews. Regularly added to the AAP Web site are news releases that members can customize and submit to local newspapers and other media outlets.