Improve the Profitability of Your Dental Practice by Increasing Staff Productivity

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Copyright © 2009 Peter Gopal, Ph.D.


Payroll costs at many dental offices are high, and doctors are at a loss for ways to bring this under control. Across-the-board salary cuts are not the answer, as that will only result in turnover, and you may end up losing some of your best people.

The key culprit is usually low staff productivity. What we have noticed repeatedly is that an office with a skilled, motivated team and good systems will greatly outperform and out-produce another office with comparable doctor clinical skills.

Why Are Dental Staff Unproductive?

Some of the main reasons for poor staff productivity are:

The office has not set daily target production goals. Every staff member needs to know both the goal and their role in achieving and exceeding those targets.

Staff members have not received adequate training to excel at their jobs. Rework and inefficiencies are common. Everyone at the office seems diligent, but somehow things take longer to do. A task that should take 1 hour ends up taking 2 hours.

Cross-training has not been provided to team members. While each person has a specific area of primary responsibility, the top offices have people who have been cross-trained and can function effectively in a range of tasks. Front office staff can take X-rays and assist the dentist; dental assistants can check a patient out and schedule appointments.

Lack of proper systems. Detailed systems and protocols must be in place for every task within the office. In the absence of systems, people invent their own ways of doing things, which may either be inefficient or incorrect. Written systems and manuals are imperative.

Lack of an effective bonus system. Many dentists do not have an incentive system in place, fearing that employees will expect bonuses all the time, or that it will further increase overhead. This is a miscalculation. A bonus is a reward for exceptional performance, given for exceeding goals. As long as the goals are set correctly - after considering all costs for the dentist owner - and it is communicated clearly that the bonus kicks in only when targets are surpassed, a bonus motivates staff and actually helps decrease overhead for the office.

Performance management issues. At many offices, this is a dormant issue that goes unresolved and unaddressed for years. Often, the dentist keeps on payroll staff members who have been underperforming for months or years, without ever providing honest feedback regarding their performance. This is a disservice both to the staff person and the practice. The staff member underachieves and never performs to his/her full potential, and the practice never achieves its full potential, either.

Many dentists are terrified of giving honest feedback out of concern that they may lose their staff and will have to start from scratch. Some hand out automatic raises every year, even when the practice revenue is stagnant. This creates an entitlement mentality. Staff do nothing to upgrade their skills, get set in their ways, and are being paid disproportionately well in relation to their contributions. Eventually, the dentist realizes years later that he just cannot afford to pay them at this level and has to either cut hours or discharge people. We see this sad and bitter outcome all too often.

By tackling some of these problems, a dental practice can easily raise overall revenues 10% without any increase in staff hours. For a typical $600,000 practice, a 10% boost from higher staff productivity adds a whopping $60,000/year to the doctor's compensation. Isn't that worth the effort?




About the Author:
Peter Gopal, PhD, together with his wife, Hema Gopal, M.B.A. and D.M.D., consults with dentists who are intent on building a more profitable practice. Whether you are leaving money on the table due to broken patient appointments, improper scheduling, poor case acceptance, low hygienist productivity, excessive overhead, or unnecessary reliance on PPOs, they can pinpoint your weaknesses and prescribe remedies. Receive a free, realistic assessment of the earning potential of your dental practice by going to: http://www.visionary-management.com/assessment.php


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