CDA
at
W
ork
that your team isunhappyor unsupportive, theymay
doubt youas theauthorityonoral care. Not addressing
inter-team issues canpotentially take the focus away
from theneedsof thepatients. On theother hand,
addressing inter-team issues and reviewing the team
corevaluesona regular basiswill catch issuesbefore
theycanaffect thepatient.
Apositiveculture is a keypart of patient-centredcare.
How canwe reflect apositive
organizational culture in the
dental office?
Witha small investment of time, youandyour teamcan
defineyour organizational culture,which in turnwill be
noticedbyyour patients.
1.
Discuss:
Reflect onwhat you
want your practiceandyour team
toconvey topatients. Howdoyou
want them to feelwhen they’re
inyour care?What valuesdoyou
want tohave shine through?
Onceyou’veestablishedyour values, havean
opendiscussionwithyour team toestablishways
thosevalues canbeput intoaction inyour practice.
Dedicatea staffmeetingduringaquiet time in the
officeor outsideof officehours. Are thereways
to improve teamworkorworkflow?Doyour team
members feel theycan talk toyouand toeach
other?Does your team reflect your values
toyour patients?Anopendiscussionwithyour
teamcanhelp illustrateanygapsor areas inneed
of improvement. Once those factors are
determined,write themdownand refer to them
whenneeded. Youcanalso revisit thisdiscussion
in teammeetings to stayon trackand reinforce
the systems thatwork for your practice.
2.
Act:
Now that you’ve
discussedandarticulated
what youwant your
organizational culture tobe,
decidehow toput those
values intoaction. Are there
ways your practicecanbetter conveyyour culture?
Whatways canyouandyour teambehave to
showcaseyour values topatients? Every interaction,
from the front door all theway to theoperatory,
should reflect apositivecultureand thegood
workof your team. For example, thinkabout how
your values are reflected in thewayyour patients
aregreeted, how information is conveyed to team
members, andhow fees arediscussedwithpatients.
As the team leader, consider occasional team-
buildingor social activities to reinforcecomfort
and teamwork.
3.
Reassess:
Now that you’ve
articulatedyour values and
applied them inyour daily life
at thepractice, occasionally
reassess andcommunicatewithyour teamona
regular basis todetermine if anythingneeds tobe
revised. Talkwithyour patients to see if your culture
resonateswith themaswell. Ask them if they
likeanewprocess you’ve implementedor if they
receivedenough information tomakean informed
decision. Themanner inwhichyouget feedback,
suchas face-to-faceconversations, surveys, or
otherwise shouldalso reflect your culture. Patients
will notice thepractice’spositivecultureby theway
youandyour teamprovideexceptional care.
Organizational culturedoesnot changeovernight. It
takes timeandeffort tobuildaculture-centricpractice.
However, theeffort youput intocommunicatingwith
your team regularly to reviewgoals andvalueswill
reflect positivelywithyour patients andbewellworth
the time invested.
a
