{"id":5004,"date":"2021-05-24T15:24:17","date_gmt":"2021-05-24T21:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/?p=5004"},"modified":"2024-08-14T16:18:52","modified_gmt":"2024-08-14T23:18:52","slug":"set-your-dental-hygienists-up-for-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/blog\/set-your-dental-hygienists-up-for-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Set Your Dental Hygienists Up for Success"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>\u201cA rising tide lifts all boats.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>That quote has primary reference to economic conditions and forecasts. But in principle, it could certainly apply to your practice culture and how you set your dental hygienists up for success.<\/p>\n<p>The \u201clift\u201d you provide your hygiene team can impact your practice in general and your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/blog\/create-loyal-patients-by-improving-the-patient-experience\/\">patient experience<\/a> specifically. As with all teams, each member brings unique contributions to overall success.<\/p>\n<p>And that sets the tone for what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n<h2>They\u2019re still in-the-game<\/h2>\n<p>No doubt <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/blog\/dentistrys-accelerated-path-to-normal\/\">dentistry faced big challenges in 2020 (and into 2021)<\/a>. Your clinical teams (including your hygienists) were especially tasked with carrying the extra \u201cweight\u201d of additional PPE and infection control protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>As some protocols relax to pre-pandemic modes, hygienists in particular are collecting their strength. But they, like you and your assistants, are in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/blog\/building-a-resilient-practice\/\">need of renewal<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>What\u2019s on their minds?<\/h2>\n<p>Content relative to the world-of-dental hygiene indicates a season of reflection. Perhaps this reflective consciousness is nothing new but seasonal challenges have heightened its relevance.<\/p>\n<p>Connect with what your hygienists are thinking these days and you\u2019re more likely to help them succeed.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Hygienists are seeking empowerment<\/li>\n<li>Hygienists are relying on their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/blog\/building-a-resilient-practice\/\">resilience<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Hygienists are owning their role<\/li>\n<li>Hygienists are committed to growth<\/li>\n<li>Hygienists are self-aware<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In essence, dental hygienists desire a \u201cwholehearted\u201d approach to their role. A related article in RDH Magazine confirms this drive:<\/p>\n<p>\u201dWholehearted hygiene professionals have figured out how to move past the obstacles and create a career where they don\u2019t feel like something is missing at the end of the day. So, what\u2019s their secret? Can they just give us the blueprint, and then we can do exactly what they are doing so we\u2019ll feel just as valued and fulfilled?\u201d <a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\"><sup>[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Likewise, there\u2019s a contrary emotion some hygienists might feel. Lacking a sense of being \u201cvalued\u201d and \u201cfulfilled\u201d could lead some on your team to feel \u201chalf-hearted\u201d about their role.<\/p>\n<p>\u201d\u201dHalfway hygiene is the idea that we know so many things as hygienists and can make such a difference, yet we\u2019re still stuck in a decades-old hygiene model that doesn\u2019t allow us to treat patients to the entire scope of our practice . . . and certainly nowhere close to what we\u2019re capable of.\u201d <a href=\"#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\"><sup>[2]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Whatever mindset each of your hygienists is experiencing, it\u2019s good for your practice and your patients to help them succeed.<\/p>\n<h2>How to set your dental hygienists up for success<\/h2>\n<h3>1-Empower your dental hygienists\u2019 skills and education<\/h3>\n<p>Most dental hygienists stay current with clinical trends. Their training provides them perspective into research that enhances their evidence-based care.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Perspective and research around preventive care and periodontal therapies<\/li>\n<li>Supportive insights into systemic care<\/li>\n<li>Professional development that assists with training new and current dental hygienists<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Support their growth and development. And showcase the training and skills they bring to your clinical systems.<\/p>\n<h3>2-Trust your dental hygienists\u2019 appointment protocols<\/h3>\n<p>Your hygienists will feel your commitment to their success as you give them some degree of appointment latitude. Within reason, allow them to \u201cown\u201d the time they spend with a patient.<\/p>\n<p>This instills your trust in how they choose engage with patients. Of course, this isn\u2019t carte-blanche permission to waste valuable patient or schedule time. It\u2019s more about trusting that time invested is for the benefit of the patient, their oral health conditions, and their oral health goals.<\/p>\n<h3>3-Align your examination narratives with your dental hygienists\u2019 patient conversations<\/h3>\n<p>Keep in mind that your dental hygienist has already spent time discussing areas of concern, current issues, preventive care priorities, etc. Allow them to bring you up-to-speed as you prepare your examination comments.<\/p>\n<p>Remember that typically you\u2019re seeing teeth and gums that have already been scaled, cleaned, and polished. Their efforts reveal a best case scenario rather than the one the patient brought into the chair.<\/p>\n<p>Hearing from you, as the dentist, that you support the hygienist\u2019s recommendations further supports their relationship with the patient. It\u2019s a win-win-win.<\/p>\n<h3>4-Keep your dental hygienists dialed-into the business of dentistry<\/h3>\n<p>Like you, your hygienists have an educational bias toward the clinical side of dentistry. Business-thinking requires more intentional effort.<\/p>\n<p>This is where the economic wisdom of the \u201crising tide (lifting) all boats\u201d comes into play. Hygiene success helps lift the practice.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s important to keep this in perspective as you coach and lead your hygiene team.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Guard against giving the impression that \u201cmoney\u201d is the focus. Join your practice manager in keeping the focus on patient care and how the hygiene team uniquely contributes to practice success.<\/li>\n<li>As necessary, provide guidance about how revenue streams, KPIs, insurance adjustments, etc fit into the financial margins of the practice.<\/li>\n<li>Highlight the hygiene connection to scheduling, production, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/blog\/5-dental-marketing-ideas-for-dentists-to-acquire-and-retain-patients\/\">patient retention<\/a>, and overall practice profitability.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Of course, these aren\u2019t one-and-done conversations. They require consistent revisiting on a quarterly and annual basis.<\/p>\n<p>Bottom-line: the business of dentistry is everyone\u2019s business from front office, to clinical treatment, and of necessity &#8211; the hygiene department.<\/p>\n<h2>Give your dental hygienists the resources they need to help drive practice success<\/h2>\n<p>Planet DDS has experience with the ins-and-outs of how to run a successful dental office. Our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/solutions\/denticon\/advanced-security\/\">dental practice management software<\/a>, Denticon, provides a streamlined system for the success strategies we just shared.<\/p>\n<p>Denticon is the proven cloud-based <a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/solutions\/denticon\/advanced-security\/\">Dental Practice Management Software<\/a> in today\u2019s market among solo private practices, private group practices, and top DSOs.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/contact-us\/\">Contact us for more information<\/a> about how Denticon can streamline your workflow systems and operational tasks that can help you (and your dental hygienists) stay productive and successful.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\"><sup>[1]<\/sup><\/a><sup>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/sup><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rdhmag.com\/career-profession\/article\/14197561\/from-halfway-to-wholehearted-dental-hygiene\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.rdhmag.com\/career-profession\/article\/14197561\/from-halfway-to-wholehearted-dental-hygiene<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\"><sup>[2]<\/sup><\/a><sup>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/sup><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rdhmag.com\/career-profession\/article\/14197561\/from-halfway-to-wholehearted-dental-hygiene\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.rdhmag.com\/career-profession\/article\/14197561\/from-halfway-to-wholehearted-dental-hygiene<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cA rising tide lifts all boats.\u201d That quote has primary reference to economic conditions and forecasts. But in principle, it could certainly apply to your practice culture and how you&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5005,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[146,138],"tags":[161,222,27,467,109,13,550,551,89,552,553,199],"class_list":["post-5004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-practice-management","category-trends","tag-clinical","tag-covid","tag-dental-practice","tag-dental-practice-management-software","tag-dentist","tag-dentistry","tag-employee","tag-hygienists","tag-practice","tag-resources","tag-success","tag-team"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5004"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5004\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.planetdds.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}