Brainstorm to improve your practice
By Bob Levoy

Looking for ways to attract new patients, keep current ones, or reactivate former ones? Reduce operating costs? Boost patient satisfaction?

A brainstorming session with your staff may provide some answers.

This method for developing ideas was originated by Alex F. Osborn, founder of the world famous Batten, Barton, Durtsine, and Osborn Advertising Agency. He called it “brainstorming.”

Its basic principle is that no one person can have all the ideas, but one person’s ideas can spark a chain reaction.

A problem is presented, and a group of experienced people collectively use their ingenuity and imaginations to find solutions.

In his classic text on the subject, Applied Imagination, Osborn states four ground rules for success:

1. Criticism is not permitted. Adverse judgment must be withheld until later. Free-wheeling is welcomed. The wilder the idea, the better: It’s easier to tame down than to think up.

2. Quantity is wanted. The greater the number of ideas, the more likelihood of useful ideas.

3. Combination and improvement are sought. In addition to contributing ideas of their own, participants should suggest how the ideas of others can be turned into better ideas; or how two or more ideas can be joined into still another idea.

The worst possible position to be in when it comes to ideas is to have too few of them. That’s why the primary rule of brainstorming is to amass quantity, not force quality.

Unfortunately, many people forget this rule. They ask for ideas, stifle the conversation by judging each idea as soon as it’s mentioned, and then wonder why their team members don’t brainstorm well.

If you want to get ideas to improve your practice in some way, you need to generate lots of ideas and consider them all — even the ones that are too costly, time-consuming, or outrageous.

4. Creativity is messy. The best ideas never appear fully formed and practical. They are often hidden inside an idea that is impractical and silly. These best ideas need to be coaxed, nurtured, and defended. Creating an environment that encourages creative thinking isn’t always easy, but it’s usually fun.

Action steps: Conduct brainstorming in a relaxed environment. If participants are at ease and feel free to joke around, they’ll stretch their minds further and produce more creative ideas.

A brainstorming session requires a facilitator whose role is to get the proceedings started and steered in the right direction. As the group joins in, he or she should encourage participation, see that everyone gets heard, and maintain the tempo and enthusiasm.

A scribe is also needed to keep track of the ideas using a white-board or flip chart that is visible to everyone.

A time limit of 25 to 30 minutes is recommended, although more or less may be needed depending on the size of the group and the flow of ideas.

The most important element of a brainstorming session is the spirit in which it is conducted. For best results, it should be relaxed, permissive, friendly, and uninhibited. Laughing is encouraged. Criticism is not.

The hardest thing to accept, until you have tried it, is the complete suspension of critical judgment and negativity of any kind. The group can think creatively or it can think critically. If the group tries to do both at once, the inhibiting effect will stifle the flow of new ideas. Avoid at all costs, what I call “Idea Killers” such as “We tried that once before …” or “That won’t work in this practice …”

Important consideration: Whenever possible, implement changes in office procedures by consensus. People tend to be more supportive of decisions in which they have some input. And, they’re more interested in seeing a successful outcome than they are of decisions made by others and passed along to them to implement.

Bob Levoy is a seminar speaker and writer who focuses on the healthcare industry. His most recent book is 201 Secrets of a High Performance Dental Practice Elsevier/Mosby (January, 2005). He can be reached at b.levoy@att.net