Running a small dental practice as a dentist or office manager can be daunting, as it involves finding a balance between meeting the demands of patients and catering to the needs of your staff. Creating an effective dental staffing plan is crucial to ensure smooth operations of your practice.
Explore the benefits of having a well-crafted staffing plan and provide actionable steps to help you kick-start the process.
What is a Dental Staffing Plan?
A dental staffing plan is a document that outlines the number of staff members you need, the roles they’ll play, and the schedule they’ll follow.
It should consider the number of patients you see, the services you provide, and the skills and experience of your staff.
An excellent dental staffing plan will help you ensure that you have the right people in the right roles at the correct times and that your practice runs smoothly and efficiently.
The Negative Impact of Not Having a Dental Staffing Plan
Not having a dental staffing plan in place can have serious negative consequences for your dental practice.
Without a plan, you may experience issues that can harm your practice’s reputation and financial stability.
Here are some specific ways a dental practice is negatively impacted when they don’t plan out their dental staff.
Understaffing or Overstaffing
One of the main problems with needing a dental staffing plan is the potential for understaffing or overstaffing.
When you don’t have a plan, it can be challenging to determine the optimal number of staff members needed to handle patient volume.
Understaffing can lead to longer wait times, decreased patient satisfaction, and lower revenue. Overstaffing can be costly and inefficient, with staff members sitting idle and drawing a paycheck while not contributing to the practice’s bottom line.
High Turnover Rates
Without a staffing plan, your practice may experience high turnover rates as staff members become frustrated with unclear roles and schedules.
A lack of job security and low morale can cause staff members to seek employment elsewhere.
This can harm your practice’s reputation and make it harder to attract and retain quality staff members.
Lack of Job Security
Not having a dental staffing plan can also lead to a lack of job security for your staff members.
Without clear roles and schedules, staff members may not know what is expected of them, leading to confusion and frustration.
This can lead to a lack of engagement and job satisfaction, making it more difficult to retain quality staff members.
Inadequate Training for New Staff Members
Without an overall employee onboarding plan, new staff members may not be adequately trained, leading to mistakes, miscommunications, and decreased patient satisfaction.
This can harm your practice’s reputation and lead to potential legal issues.
Additionally, when new staff members are not adequately onboarded, it can lead to a lack of confidence and job satisfaction, negatively impacting their performance.
Decreased Productivity
Without a dental staffing plan, it can be challenging to ensure that staff members are working at their highest level of efficiency.
When staff members are unsure of their roles and schedules, it can lead to confusion and decreased productivity. This can impact patient care, revenue, and overall practice efficiency.
The Benefits of a Dental Staffing Plan
Creating a dental staffing plan is crucial to running a successful dental practice.
It helps ensure that you have the correct number of staff members in the right roles at the right times, which can lead to improved patient care, increased productivity, reduced costs, improved staff morale, and increased revenue.
By creating a staffing plan and overall employee onboarding plan, you can help your practice run smoothly and efficiently while creating a positive work environment for your staff members.
The following section will explore the benefits of creating a dental staffing plan in more detail:
Improved Patient Care
Having a well-designed dental staffing plan can improve patient care by ensuring that you have enough staff members on hand to handle patient needs.
According to a study published in the Journal of Dental Education, increased dental staffing levels were associated with improved patient satisfaction and higher quality of care.
In fact, practices with higher staffing levels were found to have a 21% higher patient satisfaction rate than those with lower staffing levels.
Furthermore, reduced wait times can have a significant impact on patient satisfaction.
A survey conducted by Solutionreach found that 97% of patients consider wait time an important factor in their overall satisfaction with a dental practice.
By reducing wait times through proper staffing, you can increase patient satisfaction, leading to better reviews and increased business for your practice.
Increased Productivity
Having the correct number of staff members in the right roles can lead to increased productivity, which can help you see more patients and generate more revenue.
According to a study published in the Journal of Dental Hygiene, proper staffing can increase productivity by 5-10%, leading to an average increase in revenue of $30,000-$60,000 per year.
In addition, having the right people in the right roles can also reduce mistakes and rework, saving time and money.
According to a Society for Human Resource Management study, replacing an employee can cost up to 50-60% of their annual salary. You can reduce turnover and associated costs by having the right staff members in the right roles.
Reduced Costs
A dental staffing plan can help reduce costs by avoiding overstaffing and the associated expenses.
For example, the cost of providing benefits and salaries for an employee who is not needed can add up quickly.
A report by the National Association of Dental Plans found that the average cost of providing dental insurance for an employee was $832 per year.
Additionally, having the right people in the right roles can reduce mistakes and rework, saving time and money. According to an article in the International Journal of Healthcare Management, poor staffing can lead to increased errors, costing up to 30% of a practice’s revenue.
Improved Staff Morale
An excellent dental staffing plan can also help improve staff morale, reducing turnover and increasing job satisfaction.
Furthermore, having clear roles and schedules can reduce stress and improve job satisfaction.
A study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine found that job satisfaction was positively associated with low job demands and high job control, which can be achieved through proper staffing and scheduling.
Increased Revenue
A well-designed dental staffing plan can help you increase revenue by ensuring that you have enough staff members on hand to see more patients.
According to a study published in the Journal of Dental Hygiene, increasing staff levels can increase revenue by $30,000-$60,000 annually. Additionally, by reducing costs and improving staff morale, you can help increase the profitability of your practice.
Tips for Creating a Dental Staffing Plan
Now that we’ve explored the benefits of a dental staffing plan, let’s look at some tips for creating one.
Determine Your Patient Volume
The first step in creating a dental staffing plan is determining your patient volume.
This will help you determine how many staff members you need to handle the volume.
You can collect data on patient volume by keeping a record of the number of patients you see each day, week, or month.
You can also use practice management software to help you track your patient volume.
Practices can look to this article to help understand how your practice can track patient volume.
We work with a ton of dentists, and over time, we’ve shortlisted the following practice management software that you can use at your dental office:
Dentrix
Dentrix is a popular practice management software used by thousands of dental practices worldwide.
It offers features like appointment scheduling, patient charting, insurance and billing management, and treatment planning. Dentrix also integrates with various other dental software and technologies.
Eaglesoft
Eaglesoft is another popular practice management software that offers features such as appointment scheduling, patient charting, billing and insurance management, and reporting.
It also offers a patient portal for patients to view and manage their appointments and treatment plans.
Open Dental
Open Dental is an open-source practice management software that is free to download and use.
It offers features such as appointment scheduling, patient charting, billing and insurance management, and reporting.
It also integrates with various other dental software and technologies.
Determine the Roles You Need
Next, you’ll need to determine the roles you need. This will depend on the services you provide and the skills and experience of your staff.
Typical roles include front desk receptionist, dental assistant, and dental hygienist. You’ll also need to consider the number of patients you see and the number of staff members you currently have on hand.
We’ve shortlisted two resources you can use to help determine what roles and qualifications you need at your practice.
Common roles in a dental practice: https://www.dentalpost.net/dental-jobs/content/7-roles-every-dental-practice-needs
Skills and qualifications needed for dental staff: https://www.dentalcare.com/en-us/professional-education/ce-courses/ce59/staffing-a-dental-practice
Create a Schedule
Once you’ve determined the number of staff members and roles you need, you’ll need to create a schedule.
This should take into account your patient volume and the availability of your staff.
You may need to adjust the schedule as your patient volume changes or as staff members come and go.
We recommend using the resources below to help your practice create staff schedules:
Tips for building a dental staff schedule: https://www.dentaleconomics.com/practice/article/16395057/creating-an-efficient-dental-staff-schedule
Sample staff schedule templates: https://www.sampletemplates.com/business-templates/staff-schedule-template.html
Cross-Train Your Staff
To increase flexibility and reduce costs, consider cross-training your staff. This will allow you to have staff members who can perform multiple roles, which can be especially helpful for small practices with limited staff.
For example, a dental assistant who can also handle some front desk duties can help cover for absences or busy periods.
Consider Outsourcing
Outsourcing has become increasingly popular among dental practices as a way to meet their staffing needs without the long-term commitment and expenses of hiring full-time employees.
According to a recent Dental Entrepreneur Woman (DEW) network survey, 61% of dental practice owners have outsourced at least one aspect of their practice, with the majority citing cost savings as the main benefit.
Outsourcing can be cost-effective for dental practices, especially those with fluctuating patient volumes or limited resources.
Outsourced staff members can provide various services, from administrative tasks such as billing and coding to clinical services such as dental assisting and hygiene.
There are various options for outsourcing dental staff, including hiring a temporary agency, working with a virtual assistant or freelancer, or partnering with a dental staffing company.
Each option has advantages and disadvantages, so it’s essential to research and choose the option that best fits your practice’s needs.
A growing number of practices are choosing Edge to be their staffing partner.
Edge provides dental practices with full-time, trained, vetted, globally sourced remote resources.
With a 97% employee retention rate, Edge has established itself as a leader in helping dental practices find and retain employees through innovative staffing solutions.
Use Data to Make Informed Decisions
Finally, use data to make informed decisions about your staffing plan. Look at your patient volume, revenue, and expenses to determine if your plan is working.
Use feedback from staff and patients to identify areas for improvement.
We’ve identified that implementing key performance indicators (KPIs) can help dental practices learn to make more informed decisions.
Key performance indicators for dental practices: https://www.dentaleconomics.com/practice/article/16394260/the-five-kpis-every-dentist-should-monitor
Staffing Plans Catered for Your Practice: Partnering with Edge
Creating a staffing plan that meets the unique needs of your dental practice can be daunting.
Partnering with a staffing and workforce management solution provider like Edge can help remove the guesswork from the process.
Edge, a provider of staffing and workforce management solutions focused on dental practices, is at the forefront of this trend. With a 97% employee retention rate, Edge has established itself as a leader in helping dental practices retain their employees through innovative staffing solutions.
Edge’s comprehensive staffing and workforce management solutions include sourcing, onboarding, training, and managing staff and providing equipment, infrastructure, and IT support.
This allows dental practices to focus on providing high-quality patient care while Edge oversees staffing and HR-related tasks.
By partnering with Edge, practices can benefit from their expertise in staffing and workforce management and their commitment to employee retention and engagement.
This can lead to a more efficient and effective practice, with reduced staffing costs and increased productivity.
Overall, partnering with Edge can help dental practices create customized staffing plans that meet their unique needs and help them stay competitive in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape.
Conclusion
Creating a dental staffing plan is essential in managing your dental practice.
Ensuring you have the correct number of staff members in the right roles at the right times can provide better patient care, increase productivity, reduce costs, improve staff morale, and increase revenue.
Use our tips to create a staffing plan that works for your practice and use data to make informed decisions about your staffing needs. You can help your practice thrive and grow with the right staffing plan.
