Chapter 2- Dental Team Managment

Elsevier items and derived items Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Mosby, Inc., an affiliate of Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Dental Team Management
Chapter 2
1

Setting Goals, Motivating Employees,
and Overall Staff Management
1. Define the key terms in this chapter.
2. Discuss the importance of establishing goals and objectives for a
dental practice.
3. Discuss factors that motivate employees and the importance of
business office etiquette.
4. Identify members of a dental practice and discuss the emerging
dental workforce model.
5. Discuss the shifting role of the administrative assistant in a dental
practice and list the various duties involved with the position.
6. Discuss the importance of staff management, including:
• Identify the five Rs of good management.
• Identify the functions of an administrative assistant.
• Identify characteristics of an effective administrative assistant.
• Discuss the attributes of an ethical administrative assistant.
Lesson 2.1
2

Establishing Practice
Goals and Objectives
 Before opening a practice, the dentist should:
 Define a practice philosophy
 Establish specific objectives
 Determine a mission statement for the practice
3

Sequence for Establishing
Objectives
 A common sequence for establishing
objectives includes:
 Develop a practice philosophy
 Develop practice objectives
 Develop a mission statement
 Develop practice policies
4

Sequence for Establishing
Objectives (Cont.)
 A common sequence for establishing
objectives includes:
 Develop procedural policies
 Develop business principles
 Develop a practice standard
 Develop a staff recognition program
5

Factors That Motivate Employees
 Recognition
 Compensation
 Challenging responsibilities
 Verbal expressions of gratitude
 Incentives
6

Business Office Etiquette
 In a professional business office, your actions
and behavior are observed by clients,
patients, visitors, and those who have the
potential to promote you
 For a dentist employer, the potential for
practice growth and patient acceptance
depends on the etiquette of the staff
7

The Members of the
Dental Team
 Dentist
 Dental hygienist
 Dental assistant
 Dental laboratory technician
8

The Members of the
Dental Team
 Emerging dental workforce models
 Expanded functions dental auxiliary
 Community dental health coordinators
 Dental therapists and advanced dental therapists
9

The Shifting Role of the
Administrative Assistant
 The title administrative assistant refers to the
person whose primary responsibility is to
oversee the business activities of the dental
office
 The duties of the administrative assistant vary
according to the size of the dental practice,
and duties may be assigned accordingly
10

Staff Management
 Dental office management is the process of
accomplishing things with and through people
by guiding and motivating their efforts toward
common objectives
11

Five Rs of Management
 Successful management can be attributed to
five basic Rs:
 Responsibility
 Respect
 Rapport
 Recognition
 Remuneration
12

Functions of an
13

Basic Skills of an
 A few of the most important skills for an
administrative assistant are:
 Conceptual skills
 Human relations skills
 Administrative skills
 Technical skills
14

The Ethical Administrative
Assistant
 An ethical administrative assistant should:
 Respect for the dentist and the practice concepts
 Maintain frequent communication
 Use feedback for positive communication
 Involve the staff in decision making
15

Assistant (Cont.)
 Avoid unnecessary delays in decision making
 Delegate authority
 Identify constraints with which work must be done
 Exercise self-control
 Make time available to staff
16

Assistant (Cont.)
 Respect diversity
 Build and develop strong followers
 Make yourself visible
 Learn from your mistakes
 Expand your leadership role
17

Staff Communication and Competency,
Office Procedures, and Hiring Practices
7. Discuss the importance of staff communication, including:
• Describe the channels of communication.
• Explain employee empowerment.
• Discuss the procedures for conducting a staff meeting.
• Discuss the management of staff conflict and barriers to staff
communication.
8. Explain the importance of hiring a skilled administrative assistant.
9. Describe how to manage time efficiently.
10. Explain the purpose and components of an office procedural
manual including the contents of a personnel policy.
11. Describe recruitment and hiring practices, including:
• Explain the use of pre-employment testing.
• Discuss the interview process.
• Describe new employee orientation.
Lesson 2.2
18

Staff Communication
 Communication is an essential element in
management and becomes a vital link in
establishing meaningful relationships among
you, the dentist, other members of the staff,
and the patient
19

Channels of Communication
 There are formal and informal channels of
communication:
 Formal channels of communication may be
downward, upward, or horizontal
 Informal channels of communication are also
referred to as the grapevine
20

Empowering Employees
 To be successful, the dentist must be able
and willing to recognize the value that each
employee brings to the office
 This means giving employees the power,
authority, ability, and permission to accomplish
office objectives and all legally delegable duties
independently
21

Conducting a Staff Meeting
 Two common types of staff meetings in the
dental office are:
 The morning “huddle” meeting
 The monthly team or staff meeting
22

Managing Conflict
 Conflicts between an administrative assistant
and an employee or between and patient and
a member of the staff are normal but should
not occur frequently
 Regardless of the nature of the complaint, the
administrative assistant should review the
details of the complaint and seek to resolve
the problem quickly
23

Steps in Resolving Conflict
 Make time available as soon as possible to
discuss the problem
 Listen patiently to all the issues, keeping an
open mind
 Determine the real issue
 Exercise self-control
 Avoid a delay in decision making
 Maintain a record
24

Barriers to Communication
 Barriers to patient communication include
prejudice, poor listening, preoccupation,
impatience, and even impaired hearing
 These barriers can also exist between staff
members
 Never assume that the message being sent will be
received as it was intended
25

Advantages of Hiring a Skilled
 A skilled administrative assistant is tech
savvy, people oriented and skilled in
management
 The best administrative assistants also have
a broad knowledge of dentistry, are curious,
organized, responsible, and decisive
26

Time Management
 Time management involves knowing how to
perform a specific task, when to perform each
task, how to choose which job to do first, and
how long each project will take
 Time management in the dental office
involves planning, scheduling work, and
avoiding wasted time
27

Maintaining Daily Schedules
 A calendar of activities and tasks, and a “to-
do” list are used to efficiently maintain a daily
schedule
 Remember to determine priorities, be flexible,
use free time, and review the schedule with
the dentist
28

Designing a Procedures Manual
 The procedures manual outlines the detailed
techniques to be implemented for each
procedure in both the business and clinical
areas of the office
 The procedures manual includes the dentist’s
philosophy of the practice and defines the job
responsibilities of each team member
29

Guidelines for a Procedures Manual
 Statement of purpose
 Statement of
philosophy
 Table of contents
 Office communications
 Staff policies
30
 Employment policies
 Office records
 Infection control
 Clinical procedures
 Continuing education
 Professional
organizations

Writing a Personnel Policy
 As part of the office procedures manual, a
well-defined personnel policy must be
established
 A fair and equitable personnel policy may
help eliminate conflicts that could arise
among the team members
31

Hiring Practices
 Writing a job description
 A current, accurate job description should exist for
each of the positions in the dental office
 A job analysis must be performed before an
accurate job description can be written
32

Hiring Practices
 Writing a job advertisement
 List the skills you expect the person to have;
require a résumé
 Identify attractive features of the job, such as
benefits, salary, and working conditions
33

Hiring Practices
 Interviewing prospective employees
 Interviewing applicants may be part of the
management role assigned to the administrative
assistant
34

Hiring Practices
 Legal considerations in hiring
 Employers must ensure that application forms
avoid questions about race or ethnic background
 Each applicant must be given the same type of
form
 An employer must require proof of an applicant’s
legal status
35

Hiring Practices
 Pre-employment testing
 Businesses such as a dental practice may legally
use professionally developed standardized tests to
verify knowledge, aptitude, and skills during a
selection process
 Many private sector employers are considering
drug and alcohol testing as a pre-employment
requirement
36

Hiring Practices
 Conducting an interview
 Before the interview
• Gather information about each candidate
• Develop an outline of questions
• Select the interview location
37

Hiring Practices
 Conducting an interview (Cont.)
 During the interview, you have two major
functions:
• Gather information about the candidate’s qualifications
for the job in a nondiscriminatory manner
• Convey information to the candidate about the office and
the specific job responsibilities
38

Hiring Practices
 Ask
 Are you available to
work overtime?
 What are your career
objectives?
 Where do you see
yourself in 5 years?
 Are there any reasons
you might not stay
with us?
39
 Do not ask
 Weight
 Age
 Marital status
 Place of birth
 Disabilities
 Religion
 Lawsuits or legal
complaints

Hiring Practices
 Concluding the interview
 Opportunity for the applicant to tour the office
 Opportunity for the staff to meet the candidate
 Inform the candidate of plans to make a decision
by a certain date
40

New Employee Training
 A well-organized dental team provides a
smooth transition into the practice for the new
employee
 The time required for a new employee to
become well established in the office varies
from office to office
41

Questions?
42

Chapter 2- Dental Team Managment

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