Ideas That Work: Give Pediatric Patients a Say

Practical pearls from your colleagues

Prizes are a great way to reward pint-sized patients after procedures or appointments, but how you offer the prize is as important, if not more important, than what you offer.

Children’s Dentistry of Trappe (CDOT) in Collegeville, Pa., has a collection of old-school vending machines — the kind where you put in quarters and turn the knob — in its waiting area. All kids get to pick two prizes from CDOT’s retro machines, and a staff member physically inserts coins and hand-delivers the prizes to them.

Feedback on the vending machines has been overwhelmingly positive. Eric S. Hans, DMD, pediatric dentist at CDOT, believes the novelty of the machines is only part of their success. “Allowing the kids to make the choice is the key,” says Dr. Hans. “It’s that choice that really gets kids excited about coming back.”

If you work with pediatric patients, feel free to reach out to Dr. Hans for more info about the machines at [email protected]. OSM