In Analytics, you can choose to have your production numbers calculated by either Gross or Net Production.
Changing your Production calculation setting will effect production data in the Performance Board, Provider Pulse, and the Month To Date production forecast in the Yesterday tab of the Morning Huddle.
You can quickly tell which Production Settings are selected by looking at the Production field displayed in the upper right of each dashboard:
How to Update your Production Settings
Access Settings by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right hand corner
At the top click General Settings
From here click on Production Settings
This will let you select and adjust the production settings for how production numbers are calculated in Dental Intelligence for your office. You can choose either Gross or Net
If you select Net, you will be provided the option to choose how the data is calculated (by Adjustment Date, Procedure Date, 90 Day Average, or Estimated [Estimated is available for Open Dental users only])
Once the production preferences are established, the modifications will be reflected in the Analytics displayed in the Provider Pulse, Performance Board, and Yesterday tab and Month-to-Date Forecast dashboards within the Morning Huddle.
Gross Production vs. Net Production
Gross Production
Gross Production is associated with procedures completed according to the Fee Schedules attached to the patients before any write-offs and adjustments. Gross Production will show work performed, but isn’t an actual indication of production that is available for collection.
Net Production
Net Production is your collectable production after write-offs and other adjustments.
If you select Net Production, you can choose to see this by Adjustment Date, Procedure Date, 90 Day Average, or Estimated* (Estimated Net Production is available for Open Dental users only).
Net Production by Adjustment Date means the adjustment will be accounted for on the day of the adjustment. This will give you a timely picture of this period’s Net Production, but if you make adjustments outside of the period the procedure was performed, then the Net Production may be under or overstated for that period.
Net Production by Procedure Date means the adjustment will be accounted for on the date of the procedure. In order for this to be accurate, each adjustment must be associated with the procedure. This setting will give you the most accurate reflection of collectable production performed in the past periods. It is important to note that accurate Net Production will not be reflected until several months have passed to give enough time to ensure that all claims are closed and adjustments have been made. These insurance claims must be processed, received and recorded. If there are any outstanding insurance claims, the Net Production will likely change when the claim is received and any final adjustments are made.
90 Day Average will show Net Production calculated by using a rolling 90 Day Average. This is calculated by taking the total adjustment over a rolling 90 days divided by the gross production over the rolling 90 days then multiplied by the current period’s gross production. This will give you the average adjustment used to reduce gross production. Then subtract this 90 day average adjustment number from the current period’s gross production to give you the current period’s average net production.
Example:
90-days Gross Production: $300,000
90-days Adjustments: $25,000
Current Period's Gross Production: $100,000
(25,000 / 300,000) x 100,000 = 8,333.33 90-Day Average Adjustment
Current Period's Average Net Production = $91,666.67 (100,000 - 8,333.33)
Net Production based on the 90 Day Average will give you a timely and consistent view of your estimated Net Production. In most cases this will be with less than a 2.5% variance from Actual Net Production without needing to ensure all adjustments are associated with the procedure, or that the adjustments are made in the same period (day, week, month, quarter or year) as the procedure. This is an estimated number and can have a variance larger than 2.5% if large adjustments are made in a period affecting the 90-Day Average.
A note for Open Dental users about Est. Net Production
Estimated Net Production in Open Dental is refined through the software’s capability to utilize initial write-off estimates for adjusting the production figures. This functionality provides a realistic view of the dental practice’s financial health by calculating actual production after subtracting estimated adjustments and write-offs from the total service fees. Estimated Net Production in OpenDental helps show the real earnings of the dental practice after taking out the estimated costs and write-offs from the total billed services. It’s used to get a clearer picture of how much money the practice is actually making.
