STAFF TO DENTIST: “YOO-HOO! ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?”

Most dental offices are exceedingly busy places.  Aspects of a small business with lots of customers and aspects of a hospital with lots of patients are combined and packed into your office every day.  Ideally, the most important aspect of yours or any dental practice is top quality treatment delivered with tender loving concern for patients.  To assure such care is part of your practice, you must have a superlative relationship with and among team members.  And in order to have such a relationship, you, Doctor, must take the time to listen and really hear what your staff is saying to you. 

The following staff survey, Questions about My Feelings and Our Practice, may prove helpful to start the kind of meaningful dialog that enriches a dental team, lifting it to the necessary level of trust and synergism.  Two ways to use the survey:  distribute copies a few days before the staff meeting or staff retreat at which it will be discussed to give team members time to consider their opinions and suggestions; or distribute copies to be completed by individuals on the team and schedule one-on-ones with each person.  Either way, you will receive invaluable input from your team---if you, Doctor, listen non-defensively, hear what is meant, and act on feasible suggestions.

Questions about My Feelings and Our Practice

What do I like best about our practice?

What do I like least?

What are one or two things I would change about our office?

What in the office made me feel stressed recently?

What did we do this week that was unnecessary?

What wasted time or money or energy this week?

What did our patients complain about this week?

What did one or more team members misunderstand this week?

What can we do to fix these problems?  Which should we tackle first?

What three positive things happened in the office this week?

What took too long this week?

What is top priority for our office?

What is top priority for me as part of our dental team?

What do I need to help me do a better job?

What do I tell people when I want to brag about our office?