New Patient Call Scorecard for Dental Offices (Free)
By Blake Hickey, founder of Double Jaw Marketing. For office managers and the team on the phones. Updated October 26, 2026.
Most offices can tell you how many new patients they saw last month. Far fewer can tell you how the calls behind them went. This scorecard fixes that in about 20 minutes a week: listen to five recorded new-patient calls, check ten yes-or-no points on each, and track the team average over time.
- Score five recorded new-patient calls a week on ten yes-or-no points.
- Each point is something the caller hears, so the score is about the call, not the person.
- Post the weekly team average and coach one point at a time.
- In Florida, every party has to consent before a call is recorded. Put the notice at the start of the call.2
- Pair it with the front desk call script: the script says what to do, the scorecard checks that it happened.
What goes wrong on new-patient calls?
A Dental Economics article on front desks lists seven gaps that cost practices new patients. Each one maps to a point on this scorecard.1
Paraphrased from Dental Economics, "7 reasons your front desk may be losing new patients."1
How do you score a front desk call?
Play the recording and check each point you hear. One point each, ten points per call. Try it here on a call you remember:
Check the points you heard on the call.
How many calls should we score each week?
Five is enough to see a pattern and short enough to actually get done. Pick them at random from new-patient calls, not just the ones that went badly. Score them the same day each week, write the average in the trend row and chart it. If one point is missed on most calls, that's next week's coaching topic. Fix one point at a time.
- Orthodontics: most first calls come from a parent. Add "asked the child's age and who referred them" in your notes column.
- Oral surgery: many callers are referred. Add "asked for the referral slip or imaging from the referring office."
- Speech therapy: add "asked who referred them and explained the evaluation comes first." If a payer needs a physician referral, note whether it was mentioned.
New patient call scorecard
One sheet per week: five calls, ten points, plus an eight-week trend you can fill in by hand.
Print it, or choose Save as PDF in the print window. Only the sheet prints.
Scored by: [Name] Week of: [Date]
New patient call scorecard
Five recorded new-patient calls, picked at random. One point per item heard. Ring limit: ____ rings. Hold limit: ____ seconds.
| Point | Call 1 | Call 2 | Call 3 | Call 4 | Call 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Answered within ring limit (or called back in time) | |||||
| 2. Practice name and own name | |||||
| 3. Asked for and used caller's name | |||||
| 4. Asked how they heard about us | |||||
| 5. Reason for call, and who the visit is for | |||||
| 6. Insurance and cost handled, no price promised | |||||
| 7. Offered two specific times | |||||
| 8. Booked, or callback set with day and time | |||||
| 9. Phone, email and text yes or no confirmed | |||||
| 10. Hold under limit | |||||
| Score out of 10 |
This week
| Team average this week | Point missed most | ||
| Coaching topic for next week | |||
Eight-week trend (shade to the average, 0 to 10)
Score the call, not the person. Only use recordings made with every party's consent, and keep them under your practice's privacy policy. Call scorecard from Double Jaw Marketing, doublejawmarketing.com. General information, not legal advice; have your attorney approve your recording notice.
Common questions
How do you score dental front desk calls?
Listen to a recorded new-patient call and check ten yes-or-no points: answered in time, greeting, caller's name, how they heard about you, reason for the call, insurance handled without price promises, two times offered, booked or callback set, contact details confirmed and hold kept short. One point each.
How many calls should we review each week?
Five random new-patient calls a week is a workable starting point. It shows patterns without taking more than about 20 minutes.
Can we record patient calls in Florida?
Florida requires every party to consent before a call is recorded (Fla. Stat. 934.03). Give the notice at the start of the call, stop recording if a caller says no, and have your attorney approve the wording.2
What do we do with a low score?
Find the point missed most often and coach that one point for a week, with the script line that covers it. Then score again. Keep the focus on the call, not the person.
Do we need software to score calls?
No. Any phone system that records calls works with this printed sheet. Some phone and call tracking tools score calls automatically, which saves time once the team agrees on what a good call sounds like.
Blake sets up call tracking by source, the recording notice and a weekly scorecard as part of a Method Plan. It starts with a 15-minute Method Review. Book a Method Review
Sources
- Dental Economics, "7 reasons your front desk may be losing new patients." dentaleconomics.com
- Florida Statutes 934.03, interception and disclosure of wire, oral or electronic communications. leg.state.fl.us
