Claire and I are kicking off 4th quarter with challenges we see in the dental office between the front and the back. We both spend a lot of time sitting side by side with admin and clinical team members observing their workflow, listening to how they talk to each other and watching some things can negatively affect patient care. In our conversation today, we look at solutions for better intra-office communication and how to create a more cohesive team.

This quarter’s theme is “Take it all the way to the finish line.” Or, as Claire said, “Closing the loop.” There are many tasks in the dental practice that require our attention and many of these tasks impact both the admin team and the clinical team. When you have a busy practice, and you are being pulled in several directions, these tasks can only get halfway completed … and ultimately forgotten. When this happens, you spend more time searching for information and finishing the original task than you would have spent just completing it in the first place.

Over the few months, we will talk about how we can work together and better support each other so you don’t feel like you get to the end of the day wishing you had a stiff drink to numb the pain. I want you to go home at the end of the day and raise a glass because you had an amazing day.

Claire is the operations director for a large perio group in the state of Washington and understands how details matter. In her experience, clarity and respect play a huge role in how the team communicates with each other. Being clear on your what you are asking for and being clear on your expectations of each other will eliminate a lot of the miscommunication we see so often in the dental practice.