CONTINUING EDUCATION
FOR EVERY TEAM MEMBER PAYS BIG DIVIDENDS
The most successful practices with whom I have consulted
during my 35-year career make CE for staff members a priority. Additionally, these offices embrace many ways
of providing continuing education in addition to the occasional sponsored
seminar.
A practice dedicated to continuous learning by the entire
staff emphasizes CE as a condition of employment. From day one on the job, every team member is told
and understands that this practice is committed to each individual team
member’s personal growth through CE. The
goal is to develop an aura of enthusiasm for learning--learning for work skill
growth and learning for the pleasure of personal growth.
Ideas for emphasizing CE in your office:
·
Set up a resource center in the office,
preferably in its own small room, but even a corner in a storage area will
suffice. Include a dental dictionary; textbooks
for technical study; training videos to be viewed in the office or off site;
current dental periodicals including the ADA News and practice specialty
publications; and motivational or personal growth books. Encourage staff members to use these resources,
perhaps by setting up a reward system.
·
Dedicate 5 to 10 minutes of each team meeting to
training or a review session on particular clinical treatments or business desk
details. Rotate leadership of the short
sessions among team members or the dentists.
·
Encourage individuals to write a brief summary
of a book, periodical article, or video they found particularly
instructional. Post the reviews in the
staff area or ask the author to read it aloud at a staff meeting. Every sharing effort may be rewarded with a
$20 bill or some such to applaud the effort.
·
Begin every morning huddle and team meeting with
a humorous or inspirational or current-event or historical-event one-minute
reading with staff members rotating the privilege of sharing the writing they
have chosen.
·
Name one staff member as CE coordinator. She/he can maintain CE-hour records for the
team; schedule in-office training sessions for systems such as material and
personnel safety, emergency protocols, and verbiage used with patients; and
alert the team to appropriate off-site seminars.
Ideas to encourage CE are unlimited. In my experience, the staff that learns
together grows together. CE promotes
individuals’ skill growth, professional pride, and loyalty to the
practice. And growth in those areas
assures significant increases in productivity.
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