The Big Dental Squeeze
It is no secret that dental practices are feeling the economic squeeze between today’s employment shortages and increasing overhead expenses. Never have I seen the need for team development and operational efficiency to be more critical to the success of a dental practice than now, and I have been in dentistry for 42 years.
The Dental Economics publication cited a survey by the American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) and wrote, “8% of dental hygienists have left the profession since COVID struck, and we have every reason to believe that the same is true for other dental office positions.” Staffing shortages, Dental Economics argues, have created a bottleneck in the dental industry’s recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: ADA Health Policy Institute. COVID-19 economic impact on dental practices, week of August 16, 2021, results.
Filling a position or replacing an employee is pricy (around three times their salary), stressful, and time consuming for everyone. The costs of operational inefficiencies are even worse. For instance, a one-hour hygiene opening per day results in a loss approximating $100,000 per year.
Keeping your team happy and your financial leaks to a minimum requires a twofold effort:
(1) First, the issues must be uncovered. Ask yourself these questions:
Do conditions exist that encourage your employees to look elsewhere for work? If so, what are they?
Where are the financial and time leaks in your operations and how much are they costing you?
What opportunities is your practice missing?
What systemic weaknesses are holding your practice back?
Uncovering these answers requires an objective analysis of your practice and team – in other words, a Practice Evaluation.
(2) Second, determine how can these identified issues can be resolved.
Answering the above questions and integrating the solutions into your practice requires the input and engagement of every member of the team. Therefore, a dedicated time must be set aside to discuss, brainstorm, and strategize in the form of a Team Retreat.
Both the short- and long-term impact resulting from a Practice Evaluation and a Team Retreat on dental practices is profound. Pressure from the “Big Squeeze” is reduced with these two efforts: Employees are more engaged and visibly happier and additional income is captured to cover the higher overhead. Additional benefits include increased production, less staff turnover and absenteeism, better patient reviews, and more patient referrals.
To learn more or to implement these two steps to take your dental practice from surviving to thriving, contact Sandy for a complimentary, initial consultation.
