Australasian Dentist Issue 92

CATEGORY 130 AUSTRALASIAN DENTIST W ell, unless another variant strain of Covid 19 bursts onto the scene, the data from around the world, including Australia, would indicate we are only weeks away from Covid becoming endemic and we will move into a new era of living with the disease, not hiding from it. But what does this mean for your practice? Well, the answer to this is how well you have been preparing for this moment in time. With the exception of the lockdown periods, particularly in Victoria, for many practices, the pandemic has actually been a highly productive time, with patients spending more on their oral health than pre-pandemic years. A lot of practices have been booked out for weeks in advance and patients have been readily accepting treatment. However, it is a human tendency to ‘Make hay whilst the sun shines’, but not to be prepared for when the clouds roll in. So, what have you taken your eye off the ball in the past two years? Here are three of the common mistakes I am currently seeing: 1. Customer service protocols Retaining and recruiting staff over the past couple of years has been a nightmare for many. Good members of staff have left the profession due to vaccine mandates, the loss of income during lockdowns, plus a It’s not the time to be complacent By Carl Burroughs general sense of contemplating where their life is going and reviewing their options. In times of high staff turnover and uncertainty it is very easy to let your internal customer service protocols slip. You might not have had the time to do staff training. It might have been hard or inappropriate to hold staff meetings. Plus, what is the point of doing activities such as patient reactivations when you are booked out for six weeks and are struggling to fit patients in? These are all legitimate reasons for letting slip certain protocols that you have worked hard to implement over many years, but now is the time to focus on these customer service activities once more. The chances are you will have new members of staff that don’t have the legacy knowledge of how you used to run things. Morning huddles, staff meetings, formal customer training sessions, TLC calls, patient reactivations are all key protocols that should be focused on as it takes time to get these activities happening once more. 2. Plan your marketing for 2022 One of the many great things about running a dental practice, is you can see your forward orders simply by reviewing your diary over the coming weeks. If like many you have got used to full days and having to juggle patients to fit them in, you would be forgiven if you are no longer reviewing your forward book and planning for a time when the gaps inevitably appear. It’s hard to predict when things will slow down. But with the threat of the first interest rate rise in over a decade and the mass exodus of Australians when overseas holidays are allowed and safe once more, there will be plenty of pressure on the average Australian’s purse over the coming years, and history tells us oral health will take a back seat. Knowing this means you should be planning your marketing now. It takes time to build landing pages on your website, write advertising copy, format Google and Facebook ads, so having these marketing tools ready to go for when the inevitable happens will give you the edge over your competitors. 3. Recruit with vigour According to an article published by the ABC this month, 58% of employees are currently considering changing jobs. This is fuelled by the promise of a pay rise in the process of moving employers and as previously mentioned a long period of reflection about what is important in life. This means 58% of your team may be considering a change, but it also means you are going to have a much better prospect of recruiting star players if you advertise aspirational roles. If your team is reviewing their options, maybe it’s time for you to review yours? Recruitment over the last two years, both in auxiliary and clinical has been tough. You may have employed someone just because they were the only person to turn up for the interview and maybe they are not the ideal person for the role. In summary, as we enter a new phase in society, our businesses are going to be affected and the more we plan in advance and get back to thinking about how we can create a world-class patient experience, the better we are going to emerge from what has been a very difficult time to navigate. Here’s wishing you a successful and exciting 2022 – let’s bring excitement and passion back into our businesses. u Contact Carl on: 02 9211 1477 Carl Burroughs COLUMNISTS