What They Don’t Teach in Dental School
Roger P. Levin, DDS
When you graduate dental school, you are a very well-trained clinician capable of performing many procedures flawlessly. You are also somewhat of an oddity in the business world. How odd? More than you think!
What other business would put a CEO with virtually no prior experience in charge of managing a potential multi-million dollar company? How many other businesses designate the CEO as the primary producer? I think you see what I’m hinting at - dentists are utterly unique in that realm.
More than likely, the following five subjects were never topics of study in dental school. But, I guarantee you they are as important as any procedure you were taught.
Your practice is a business.
If it’s not a business, what is it exactly? A charity? I don’t think so (and neither should you). Obviously, all dentists strive to deliver excellent care to their patients. That is your whole purpose for becoming a dentist in the first place. However, not wanting to think of a practice as a business has kept many well-meaning dentists working many years longer than they intended.
An inefficient practice is one major disadvantage that never goes away. It’s there year after year, hindering your best efforts to be a great dentist. Think about it. How can you be a great dentist if you are fatigued, stressed and anxious to go home? How can you live the life you want if your practice isn’t performing to your expectations? How happy are your patients going to be when they can sense the stress and frustration the minute they walk into your practice?
Your clinical skills do not bring in patients.
Actually, they would… if all of your patients were other dentists. The fact is, patients don’t judge you on your clinical skills. Often, they judge you on nearly everything else but clinical skills. Whether it’s how they were greeted to the appearance of your reception area, patients develop a gut feeling about you based on what they (as non-dentists) can observe. If you think it is unfair of patients to do this, well, you’d better get used to it! There are plenty of dentists who are equally annoyed about the matter.
Don’t lose heart, though. There are things you can do to emphasize your experience as a clinician, such as making it known that you attend continuing education classes to keep abreast of the latest advancements. Just be ready for the fact that your interior design may do more for your practice than that last CE class.
A “just the-facts” approach to presenting treatment doesn’t get you very far.
Many dentists think just the opposite. Blame it on dental school training. You are taught to be analytical, which is entirely appropriate. Therefore, a clinical approach is what seems most natural to you when presenting a case. You want your patients to realize how much you know about this procedure, right? There is just one little problem. As mentioned before, your patients are not dentists. They don’t think like you. They didn’t go to dental school. They don’t understand the intricacies of some of the procedures you are talking about. If you discuss at length the clinical aspects of the procedure that interest you, you will practically be able to see your patients’ eyes glaze over.
More than your training or your clinical expertise, patients want to know one thing -“what is this procedure going to do for me?” The day you answer that question to their liking is the day your case acceptance rates begin to skyrocket.
Team members do not have it easy compared to you.
Need proof? Well, suppose you had opened your practice without the benefit of going to dental school. Imagine if you had to learn every dental procedure on the job. How well would that work out?
Remember when a staff member - let’s call her Mary - joins your practice as an assistant, she likely has little to no dental experience. Everything she knows, she will learn on the job. You, on the other hand, received many years of clinical training for everything you do chair-side. You approach each patient with a certain degree of well-earned confidence. On the other hand, your new assistant approaches patients desperately hoping she isn’t forgetting something she was taught shortly beforehand. Mary is well aware that you are the expert, and she knows that you will immediately realize any tiny mistakes she is making. That’s quite a pressure cooker! How would you feel if your dental school instructors hovered over your shoulder each day to see if you violate the 1.5 millimeter rule in each box, groove or cut?
If you have a good team, they help drive your success. Appreciate them. They are crucial to your success. However, in doing so, there are limits...
Your team is not your family.
Wait, you say, didn’t I just say appreciate the team? Well, in real families, children don’t leave and join up with another family because they realized they could get a bigger allowance. In real families, parents don’t fire their children for repeatedly failing to clean their rooms and then hire others to take their place.
There will be times when you will have to let team members go for any number of reasons. You can’t allow yourself to be distracted by how you feel about them. Remember a staff member can be an absolutely wonderful person and still be lousy at her job - no matter how diligently you coach her. Yes, I know, that sounds harsh. But, hey, you are a CEO and CEOs have to make difficult decisions. In the end, keep in mind that her poor performance can have a very direct and negative impact on your personal income.
It’s good business sense to treat your staff well. It makes the day easier and much more enjoyable for the team and for you. Your universe is, after all, a pretty small one. It’s better to have a relaxed, friendly atmosphere than a stressed, distant one. However, don’t blur the line between your professional and personal life. You’ll regret it sooner or later.
Conclusion
Younger dentists always assume their biggest challenge is building their patient base. Although that is a concern, an equally large task is figuring out the things they didn’t teach you in dental school.Like how to manage a staff of people when you likely have no prior experience doing so. That’s why practice management is so important from day one. Nothing holds back dentists more than clinging to ideas and mindsets that hinder rather than help practice growth.
Dental school teaches you everything you need to know chair-side. Practice management teaches you everything you need to know once you step away from that chair! ■
Dental Entrepreneur readers are entitled to receive a 20% courtesy on the Levin Group’s Total Practice Success™ Seminar held for all general dentists on May 28-29 in Nashville. To register and receive your discount, call 888-973-0000 and mention “Dental Entrepreneur” or email customerservice@levingroup.com with “Dental Entrepreneur TPS” in the subject line.
