Amidst this ongoing pandemic, most of us have been faced with our inability to control various aspects of our lives. My life coach, Machele, would say, "We can only control our effort and attitude.” I have spent hundreds of hours over the last two months of quarantine emailing, video-chatting, calling, and answering live questions from doctors and dental hygienists around the country. Some dental hygienists have been hysterical and in tears during our calls, while others panic as they try to navigate returning to the office without childcare. As we embark on uncharted territory, it is time for each of us to face these challenges together. The new procedures, protocols, and systems will only work if we own our careers, respect one another, value one another, and most of all, collaborate with one another.
Now is the time to come to the table with solutions for your team. Dental hygienists often have a gift for identifying obstacles in the workflow. For instance, what considerations need to be made to manage patients’ arrival for appointments? During a recent reopening webinar I conducted, I discussed how to optimize the flow of patients from the parking lot to their individual providers. Live on the webinar, multiple peers and I discussed how to take each patient through a temperature screening, then escort them safely back into the designated treatment room. Practice owners are overloaded, which means that we have the opportunity to collaborate with them like never before. As hygienists, we should be proactive in reviewing the science, reviewing concerns, then coming up with a few good solutions to any obstacle we face.
Practice owners want more than just employees; they want stakeholders. A stakeholder is someone who is invested in the overall success of the practice. This translates into someone who arrives with a positive attitude, who willingly takes on something outside the scope of their job description, and who anticipates the needs of other team members throughout the day. In a time when many patients are hesitant to leave their homes, we will need to educate them on the technologies and systems we have invested in to keep them safe. We can play an active role in managing the hygiene schedule by utilizing patient reminder systems and practice software to pull reports daily so that we always know what to expect.
You can only control your attitude and the effort you choose to put into your day. Therefore, show up prepared and ready to collaborate. Our clinical days will present new challenges as we navigate practicing in a new environment. These challenges may include concerns about how PPE is being used, acquired, or disposed of. When you have concerns, it’s important to express them in a respectful manner, demonstrating a knowledge of the science and a possible solution to the problem. We will only become better when we focus on collaborating with one another, not attacking one another.
The Endeavor Business Media team has spent countless hours providing resources for dentistry professionals. We have disseminated information in various forms, such as live posts, up-to-date articles, free CE courses, and interviews featuring experts from all over the world. Organizations such as OSHA, CDC, ADHA, and ADA have all provided statements and resources to be used as a guide when going back to work. The information provided should be reviewed as a team to determine how to best implement the necessary changes into your practice.
At the end of the day, we find ourselves in unprecedented circumstances. Each dental team member must rely on critical thinking, science-based education, and collaboration to provide the least chaotic, safest care possible. We can change for the better and rise above the obstacles. We can bend and not break.
