Positive nursing attitude at Absolute Dental, Kingsbridge

“It’s a great feeling when you begin to feel like you know what you’re doing!”. This was the reply from our latest recruit, Melanie, in response to my question on how she felt her morning had gone today, working alongside our clinical director.

Melanie came to us with no experience in dental nursing and underwent the intensive “boot camp” course for new dental nurses, so that by the end of her first week, she had the correct skills and knowledge to be able to safely nurse with our dental hygienists.

From there, her development and training have been carefully tailored to suit the situation. Too often we see new dental nurses thrown into the proverbial deep end of dental nursing within their first week, hoping they will “sink or swim”, with too many sinking because they have not been given enough support to keep them afloat!

What happens in the first few weeks and months of a new team members career (and we SHOULD invest our time and energy in them as if it WILL be their career), should prepare a dental nurse for their career in YOUR practice. Training plans need to be carefully designed to ensure development is structured and that your new recruit is not merely bombarded with information, but is allowed to ask questions and give and receive feedback on their progress.

Today, when Melanie gave me feedback, she did so with her usual beaming smile and positive attitude, and I know that she felt proud in her achievements today.
In my mind, that is how good training should make you feel; confident, positive and proud. Good, sound training for dental professionals is essential.
Anyone entering a new profession or seeking to develop their exisitng skills is asking to be helped, and as trainers and dental professionals ourselves, it is with great pleasure that we can be of support to those who ask for our help.

For more information about the training courses we offer dental professional call 01548 854894, we are here to help

Is sickness causing you a headache?

I often find myself being asked my view as to how to reduce sickness levels in practice.

Sickness can be a real problem in a small business setting where we are all very reliant on each other in order to operate successfully.

The first thing I ask a practice manager is what the policy on sickness is and if all the team are aware it. I believe this is the ideal starting point.

Many managers now feel very concerned about the “employees rights and the legalities associated with sickness” and as a result dont take any action when the employee phones in.
Dental teams need to be very aware of what will happen in the event of them phoning in on a Monday morning to declare they are unfit to attend.

Practices need to have a very clear sickness policy which includes a framework of what will happen in the event of sickness. As well as the usual copy in the practice manual I really advise each staff member having their own copy. Sickness should also be covered during induction so all team members are very clear of what they should do and what they can expect us (the management team to do) in the event of absence.

Initally it is the responsibility of the employee to contact the practice, if they dont they are in breach of contract. If they dont contact you it is perfectably acceptable and “legal” for you to contact them and ask why they are absent.

When phoning an employee remember there may be very understandable circumstances for them to have not made contact with you and this should be remembered during the initial contact. The employee should not feel you are contacting them initially to “tell them off”.

As managers we are permitted to ask a variety of questions that allow us to understand why the employee is absent including;
“When do you expect to return to work”?

“What effects does the illness have on you”?

“Are you going to be visiting your doctor”?

Always keep a note of the information an employee gives you and this information should be kept as part of their personal file, along side the date the employee initally started the period of absence.

It is also perfectably acceptable for us to make contact again with the employee if their absence lasts for more than one day. Again this should be included in your practice policy.

If of course the employee has not informed you of their absence and having made your telephone contact decided there was no real justifiable reason behind the lack of contact them disciplinary action should be taken. If you dont take action the scenerio can happen again and will set a precident for other team members.

If as a practice you explain really clearly the effects and costs sickness can have, most dental teams are really keen to embrace a clearly defined protocol of what to do.

I should add of course that sometimes employees can become unwell for a period of time and will be given certification from their GP. There seems little point in contacting employees during this period as they may need rest and contacting them could become stressful for them. The GP will have made it clear when he/she would expect them to be fit to return to work and this should be noted.

If you require any further help with any aspect of team management do give me an email emma@absolute-dental.co.uk or call 01548 854894

Regards

Emma

Training for dental teams, hot of the press

EMMA JOHN

Full day – The perfect front desk

Date: 23rd Feb 2012 & 20th March 2012
Location: Bristol & Leeds
Speaker: Emma John
Cost PP and BoD members: £120*
Cost non member: £200*
CPD: 5 hours
Refreshments: Lunch and refreshments will be provided during the day
Dress code: Smart/casual

The perfect front desk
A one-day intensive workshop for practice managers and team members, designed to encourage a front desk team to be more effective and develop team ethos. Creating a loyal, motivated team who can create and run systems whilst giving first class customer service.

Outcomes of the course:
You will create a team that can develop and run systems that they are proud of and as a result, be able to deal with everyday occurrences calmly, smoothly and efficiently

Staff that understand the qualities a successful front desk team must have

A team that appreciates the importance of gaining patient confidence and their commitment

A team that will have increased self-confidence and can communicate your message clearly

Personnel that want to buy into systems and become responsible for maintaining them

A team who will pass the baton smoothly

Problems will be solved on the day.

Each event will cost £200 and only £120 for Business of Dentistry (BoD) and Practice Plan members.

*Prices exclude vat

For further information, please call 0845 003 0048.

Looking back at Absolute training in 2011….and forward to 2012

As another year draws to an end, and we prepare for another busy year here at Absolute Dental Training, I look back on 2011 and consider the highs and lows of the dental nurse training year.

The highs by far outweigh the lows; we’ve had excellent exam results; we’ve met and taught some very dedicated student dental nurses; implemented some innovative systems in practices we’ve visited to help motivate and raise the profile of the dental nurse; examined at the two National Certificate examinations; written CPD articles for industry magazines and websites and been I was asked to speak at the South West Peninsula BSDHT group.

I find all aspects of dental nursing training a challenge, one that I enjoy, and one that often finds me a little out of my comfort zone! But when it reaps the results that we had from the May National Certificate exam (100% pass rate – and yes, I’m still smiling about it!!!), I find it all worthwhile.

As I look towards 2012, I know the results for the November National Certificate will be out within the first few weeks of January – this is always an anxious time for myself and my students, but I’m hoping our hard work will be rewarded.

The change of format of the examination has brought with it some fairly major changes to the way we teach an assess our dental nurses course – I know this has not please all training providers, but I believe the changes are for the best and the dental nurses will benefit from the changes.

Looking further into the new year, I have been asked to speak at the Dentistry Show in Birmingham in March, which is a huge honour – and one of those “out of my comfort zone” moments I was speaking of earlier! However, Absolute Dental Training will rise to the challenge, and I’m sure it will serve to benefit ourselves and all of our students too……roll on 2012!!!

Merry Christmas, Diane

Practice Management Qualification Success

I am delighted to have received the following press release this morning. I am very proud to be associated with UMD professional and to be acting as a tutor for them, Emma

RECORD NUMBERS ACHIEVE ILM MANAGEMENT QUALIFICATIONS WITH UMD PROFESSIONAL

A record-breaking 72 dental practice managers and dentists have achieved an Institute of Leadership and Management qualification with UMD Professional in 2011.

The successful candidates all achieved a qualification awarded by the ILM, either through attending a workshop–based course or studying via distance learning, and can now look forward to the presentation of their certificates at a ceremony in London in January 2012.

These exceptional results highlight the continued success of UMD Professional in providing effective business and management training for dentists and managers, and consolidate their position as the leading provider of management qualification training in dentistry.

Fiona Stuart-Wilson, Director of UMD Professional Ltd. said, ‘We are delighted to be celebrating the achievements of all those who have worked so hard for their qualifications, and congratulate everyone on their success. The high number of candidates this year demonstrates the increasing importance that managers and dentists place on having a management qualification and the benefits that this brings to their practices.’

UMD Professional has more Level 5 and Level 7 Diploma in Management regional workshop programmes starting in the New Year, and continues to offer a distance learning option for those studying for the Level 3 and Level 5 management qualifications. A limited number of grants are still available for the Level 5 and Level 7 diploma courses in some areas; for more information please contact Penny Parry at UMD Professional on 020 8255 2070 or by e-mail at penny@umdprofessional.co.uk

Testimonials galore for Diane

Having returned from a training day in Northern Ireland last Friday I wanted to share some of the fantastic feebback received by Diane. Diane gave a two hour presentation to the whole dental team on the nurses role as part of the dental team and the part they play in meeting the standards of HTM 01-05

“All our expectations were met, excellent course, I know have all the knowledge I need to update our cross infection protocols”
“The best information on HTM01-05 I have seen so far”
“I feel ready to make a plan to better my myself as a nurse”
“At last, pratical uses of HTM01-05″