The Practicon Viewpoint by Ann Page Griffin

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS FOR PROSPERITY IN DENTISTRY

PROFESSIONAL IDEALS CAN WORK MAGIC IN YOUR OFFICE

There are fundamental principles by which successful, prosperous practices operate. Dentists who emphasize these ideals are several steps ahead of colleagues whose primary goal is pumping out dentistry in pursuit of the almighty dollar:

1. Commit to your practice and your team. Make certain your staff fully embraces your practice mission of Do Right, Do Better, Do Together as you care for patients. Establish a cohesive sense of "We're one team." Make time for daily huddles, monthly team meetings, and an annual planning retreat off-site. Also consider hiring motivational speakers and/or team-building coaches.
2. Share your knowledge. Make training and continuous learning a habit in your practice. This is a golden opportunity for your entire team to grow professionally.
3. Establish performance standards for all team members as appropriate for each role. Be consistent in your expectations and schedule regular performance evaluations.
4. Listen well. Value staff and patient input and act on suggestions that are feasible and appropriate. Show staff members how much you appreciate them, their loyalty, and their dedication to quality patient care.
5. Exceed expectations, for both patients and team members.
6. Organize work systems and insist on adherence to efficient, effective patient care and business systems.
7. Set goals for production, collections, new patient visits, hygiene appointments, etc. Adapting the old adage, "You don't need to floss all your teeth, just those you want to keep," we can say, "You don't need to set goals for every system in your practice, just those you want to improve."
8. Create an annual budget for your practice and stick to it. Control overhead. Raise fees at least once a year.
9. Don't be afraid to swim upstream. Stay open to new ideas, methods, materials, work systems, etc.
10. Celebrate success!

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