Comments for Dental Management University http://www.dentalmanagementu.com Dental Practice Management Tips and Information Tue, 08 Feb 2011 01:59:02 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 Comment on Almost 10 Things Your Staff Hates About You by mike http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/dental-practice-management/almost-10-things-your-dental-staff-hates-about-you/281#comment-614 mike Tue, 08 Feb 2011 01:59:02 +0000 http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/?p=281#comment-614 I agree with you wholeheartedly, Julie! The dental practice is NOT a democracy, yet the staff do feel a need to have their voice heard. It’s a balancing act. The doctor(s) listen, weigh the information and make a decision. Then they move forward as a team, following the doctor’s decisions. Not all will agree with the decision, but they WILL respect that a decision was made and is adhered to! There are times, obviously, when quick action is important and there’s no time to gather opinions. But for the most part, if the office has productive, informational, varied team meetings, the opinions can be gathered. What team members want and need….and what most offices struggle with is firm, fair, consistent leadership. Leadership doesn’t mean giving away the farm. It means getting information and then making the decision. Many offices struggle a if no decision is made, or if a decision is made and then, nothing happens. With regards to family, I stand behind my thoughts: Family have to go above and beyond as they’ll always be looked at with a different set of eyes. And, the doctor/owner/manager has to hold this person to the same standards as the rest of the team. Interestingly, I’ve seen some doctor’s/managers be extremely harsh or critical of family, holding them to unreasonable standards, micromanaging and belittling. Obviously, the opposite is possible too. The family member that does well is ….also in a balancing act. Work hard, blend with the team, be open to change, not gossip or spread negativity…be positive, upbeat and have a can do attitude…just what we’re looking for in all team members. Cheers! Rhonda R. Savage, DDS I agree with you wholeheartedly, Julie! The dental practice is NOT a democracy, yet the staff do feel a need to have their voice heard. It’s a balancing act. The doctor(s) listen, weigh the information and make a decision. Then they move forward as a team, following the doctor’s decisions. Not all will agree with the decision, but they WILL respect that a decision was made and is adhered to!

There are times, obviously, when quick action is important and there’s no time to gather opinions. But for the most part, if the office has productive, informational, varied team meetings, the opinions can be gathered.

What team members want and need….and what most offices struggle with is firm, fair, consistent leadership. Leadership doesn’t mean giving away the farm. It means getting information and then making the decision.

Many offices struggle a if no decision is made, or if a decision is made and then, nothing happens.

With regards to family, I stand behind my thoughts: Family have to go above and beyond as they’ll always be looked at with a different set of eyes. And, the doctor/owner/manager has to hold this person to the same standards as the rest of the team. Interestingly, I’ve seen some doctor’s/managers be extremely harsh or critical of family, holding them to unreasonable standards, micromanaging and belittling. Obviously, the opposite is possible too.

The family member that does well is ….also in a balancing act. Work hard, blend with the team, be open to change, not gossip or spread negativity…be positive, upbeat and have a can do attitude…just what we’re looking for in all team members.

Cheers!

Rhonda R. Savage, DDS

]]> Comment on The High Cost of a Broken Appointment: 6 Ways to Keep Patients on your Schedule by mike http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/dental-practice-management/the-high-cost-of-a-broken-appointment-6-ways-to-keep-patients-on-your-schedule/261#comment-611 mike Mon, 07 Feb 2011 22:45:35 +0000 http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/?p=261#comment-611 Thank you Cynthia for the wonderful words! We enjoy offering this information. Look for even better things from our website in the near future! Thank you Cynthia for the wonderful words! We enjoy offering this information. Look for even better things from our website in the near future!

]]> Comment on Almost 10 Things Your Staff Hates About You by Julie http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/dental-practice-management/almost-10-things-your-dental-staff-hates-about-you/281#comment-533 Julie Fri, 14 Jan 2011 18:01:17 +0000 http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/?p=281#comment-533 This is a very timely article for our practice. Management is such a delicate balancing act. One issue that we struggle with is keeping employees in the loop. Deciding how much information is too much and how much information is too little is a challenge for us? Yes, the days of dictatorial leadership are gone, but a dental practice cannot function as a democracy either. It has been my experience that too much focus on teamwork and on providing a strong team environment can also have negative results. Primarily, that by keeping team members too much in the loop, the employed team members feel that they have too much say in how the practice is managed. I've even seen instances where the employee/team member will attempt to sabotage the implementation after a decision has been made when the doctor/owner doesn't heed the employee team member's opinion on the subject. Creating a stronger “team” environment may improve team morale, but would an indication that we’ve gone too far with that concept be when the doctor’s morale goes down?! Are we to be at the mercy of our employees and have them dictate to us how to manage the dental practice? How can the doctor/owner of the dental practice clarify in a non-dictatorial way that ultimately all business decisions regarding practice management are up to doctor/owner and yet still promote a strong team oriented work environment? That is our current dilemma. Rhonda, you know I can’t let the statement about hiring dental spouses go by without comment! There are many factors to consider besides never hiring someone you can’t fire and every dental spouse situation is unique. The dental spouse may in fact be the creator of the practice vision! However, I’m grateful you went on to elaborate that many family members are truly advocates and great team players and it is definitely true that family members have to do more, be more and be even more accountable that a “regular” employee, and in my opinion, maybe even more than their dentist spouse!.  Julie Brandt, R.D.H. Executive Manager Dental Spouse This is a very timely article for our practice. Management is such a delicate balancing act. One issue that we struggle with is keeping employees in the loop. Deciding how much information is too much and how much information is too little is a challenge for us? Yes, the days of dictatorial leadership are gone, but a dental practice cannot function as a democracy either. It has been my experience that too much focus on teamwork and on providing a strong team environment can also have negative results. Primarily, that by keeping team members too much in the loop, the employed team members feel that they have too much say in how the practice is managed. I’ve even seen instances where the employee/team member will attempt to sabotage the implementation after a decision has been made when the doctor/owner doesn’t heed the employee team member’s opinion on the subject. Creating a stronger “team” environment may improve team morale, but would an indication that we’ve gone too far with that concept be when the doctor’s morale goes down?! Are we to be at the mercy of our employees and have them dictate to us how to manage the dental practice? How can the doctor/owner of the dental practice clarify in a non-dictatorial way that ultimately all business decisions regarding practice management are up to doctor/owner and yet still promote a strong team oriented work environment? That is our current dilemma.
Rhonda, you know I can’t let the statement about hiring dental spouses go by without comment! There are many factors to consider besides never hiring someone you can’t fire and every dental spouse situation is unique. The dental spouse may in fact be the creator of the practice vision! However, I’m grateful you went on to elaborate that many family members are truly advocates and great team players and it is definitely true that family members have to do more, be more and be even more accountable that a “regular” employee, and in my opinion, maybe even more than their dentist spouse!. 
Julie Brandt, R.D.H.
Executive Manager
Dental Spouse

]]> Comment on The High Cost of a Broken Appointment: 6 Ways to Keep Patients on your Schedule by Cynthia Sellers http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/dental-practice-management/the-high-cost-of-a-broken-appointment-6-ways-to-keep-patients-on-your-schedule/261#comment-532 Cynthia Sellers Fri, 14 Jan 2011 01:18:31 +0000 http://www.dentalmanagementu.com/?p=261#comment-532 Dear Miles & Associates -- Just a quick note to say how much I LOVE this website. You have done all the homework FOR US and I greatly appreciate it. Your site is very informative, especially honing in on the "hot topics" relating to the business of dentistry. Amazing. Thank you for taking the time to create this and for sharing it with all of us. I plan on ordering some products soon. Much appreciated!!! Cynthia Sellers (the hispanic Linda Miles in South Texas!) Dear Miles & Associates –
Just a quick note to say how much I LOVE this website. You have done all the homework FOR US and I greatly appreciate it. Your site is very informative, especially honing in on the “hot topics” relating to the business of dentistry. Amazing. Thank you for taking the time to create this and for sharing it with all of us. I plan on ordering some products soon.
Much appreciated!!!
Cynthia Sellers (the hispanic Linda Miles in South Texas!)

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