DPAS Regional Support Manager, Tracy Webb, explores why wellbeing should form a central plank of your business strategy.
Wellbeing is often viewed as a ‘perk’ for staff, when in reality, it is an issue for the business. Looking after your team’s wellbeing is not an act of philanthropy, rather it makes sound business sense. Having a team that is happy, healthy and well-motivated has a direct effect upon the performance of the business.
Wellbeing improves performance
Wellbeing is more than offering benefits such as Employee Assistance Programmes or fruit in the staffroom. It’s about creating an environment where team members feel supported and safe, both physically and emotionally. Whether that support is to help them do their job, or for their personal and professional development, having it there helps employees to feel engaged, and engaged employees are more productive.
Dental practices can be stressful environments at times. Patients arriving late, clinicians overrunning, staff members off sick can all heap pressure on a team. If the team was already struggling with inefficient systems and staff shortages before the extra pressure hit, then these sorts of incidents could be what pushes a team member over the edge and into burnout.
Fostering an environment where job roles are clearly defined, where everyone knows who steps in when someone is absent and everyone communicates clearly with each other can help ensure things run more smoothly and staff feel well enough to continue to come to work. Efficient systems help ensure things still tick over nicely when the unexpected happens.
Happy teams deliver better patient experiences
A practice where the team is happy and working well together is easy to spot. It gives off a positive vibe. This is something patients pick up on too.
When a team is frazzled because everyone is grappling with systems that make life difficult or equipment that’s broken or out of date, it’s obvious to everyone who visits the practice that it’s not a happy ship. These kinds of problems tell on team morale and that dissatisfaction can leak out during interactions with each other. As a patient, especially a nervous one, the last thing you want is to enter an atmosphere of conflict and disharmony. Nobody likes to be made to feel like an inconvenience, which is what can happen when teams are stressed.
Conversely, patients love coming to a practice where they’re greeted by happy, smiling people. In a place where things run smoothly and employees enjoy coming to work, there is a greater likelihood that the atmosphere will be welcoming and comfortable for patients. Without the distractions caused by having to fight fires, team members have the opportunity to focus on the patient as an individual and to make them feel valued. There’s more time to build rapport which is an essential element of the type of trust that forges long term relationships between practice and patient.
Wellbeing aids staff retention
Staff recruitment and retention remains one of the top issues for practices across the UK. Replacing a team member can be a time-consuming and expensive process. It’s far better to hang onto the people you already have. Which means making sure that the people who work in the practice are healthy and happy is a no-brainer.
By supporting the team already in place, staff are more likely to want to stay. If you feel supported to do your job well, are not overburdened by stress, you get on with your team members and you feel valued as an employee, why would you want to look for another job? By taking care of the wellbeing of their team, practice owners and managers save themselves a great deal of disruption, time and money.
Practical ways to support wellbeing
There are some steps that can be taken to promoting the wellbeing of your staff.
First, encourage open communication. Teams that feel able to talk about things that affect them, either personally or professionally, are generally healthier. They’re not bottling things up and so can concentrate better on what they need to do at work. By fostering an atmosphere where people feel able to talk about what’s bothering them, you’re more likely to retain them as healthy employees.
Recognise achievements. We all like to feel valued. By recognising achievements and life events, you can demonstrate that your staff members are important, not just as team members, but as individuals. By recognising achievements, people are more likely to continue to strive to make improvements and to do great work.
Promote work-life balance. As we’ve already established, life in a dental practice can be hectic at times. People need time to rest and recuperate to be able to do their best at work and at home. Encourage your team to make sure they have the time to switch off from work and get the break they need to be able to come back refreshed and ready to do a great job.
Reduce administrative pressures through efficient systems and processes. Make sure the systems you have in place help, not hinder your employees. Does your practice management software make life easy for your team? Is your diary zoned to get the best out of surgery time? Do you have an efficient recall system? Do you have a list of patients who can attend at short notice if there’s a cancellation? Do you have a follow up system in place for patients who have been given a treatment plan?
By having systems in place that make the work day go smoothly you reduce unnecessary stress on your team. Not only does that benefit your employees and ensures they remain fit to come to work, it also benefits patients.
Tempting as it might be to think of wellbeing as something of benefit only to staff, in reality it’s a strategic priority for the business. A smooth-running practice with a team that’s happy to work there rubs off on patients and helps build lasting and loyal relationships. Investing some time and effort into making life better for your team will pay dividends in the future through reduced staff turnover and strengthened patient loyalty at the very least.
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