I recently became aware of the trend towards cross-training in dental offices. I immediately called my friend,
a dental hygienist to see if "cross-training" in the world of dentistry was a real, or common, phenomena. I was somewhat unsettled to learn that it was.
It was time to do some research.
So - what exactly is cross-training anyhow? Cross-training is the practice of training an employee who has been hired for one role to do tasks associated with another. This has historically been used to increase engagement as employees learn new skills and gain additional experience and improve workplace efficiency.
In recent years, it seems that dental hygienists are being asked to step into a number of different shoes, including the role of a dental assistant and the front desk staff. Those who aren't agreeable to filling in when times are busy can risk being branded not team players.
Why doesn't this work? There are a number of reasons. Cross- training typically works best when employees get the opportunity to learn new skills that help career growth. Cross-training really shouldn't be used as a way to eliminate job positions, or avoid bringing on new staff to meet demands.
A dental office staff all have well defined technical skills. As The Myth of Cross-Training accurately notes, cross-training in a dental office devalues everyone's roles and training. Everyone has different skills. As the co-founder of a start-up, I'm very familiar with needing to fill a number of roles both technical and not. That front office desk team has honed their customer service skills and is familiar and comfortable with the software you use to book appointments and bill patients. A dental office assistant is more comfortable sterilizing equipment. Sometime cross-training can actually end up costing you more in terms of efficiency, staff engagement, and ultimately customer satisfaction - a value that's terribly hard to quantify - than you save.
But what is one to do in a small practice where every dollar counts? It's expensive to run your own practice and its not always feasible to bring on new staff. Not to worry - it's situations like this for which we created Kabuk. Kabuk let's you focus on your customers and helps increase office efficiencies. We are here to give your front office desk a break, reducing the amount of time they need to be on the phone scheduling appointments, and letting them focus on other tasks like increasing customer satisfaction. Empowering clients to schedule and manage their appointments online can significantly increase the efficiency of your office. As a bonus, our helpful automated appointment reminders - proven to reduce no-shows- mean that your office staff has one less task to worry about.
Its time to bring booking online for your practice! Sign up on Kabuk for your free trial today.
Not ready to think about online bookings? We are currently offering free profile listings on our platform. Its just like LinkedIn for healthcare pros and a great way to increase your online presence and get found by more patients today.
a dental hygienist to see if "cross-training" in the world of dentistry was a real, or common, phenomena. I was somewhat unsettled to learn that it was.
It was time to do some research.
So - what exactly is cross-training anyhow? Cross-training is the practice of training an employee who has been hired for one role to do tasks associated with another. This has historically been used to increase engagement as employees learn new skills and gain additional experience and improve workplace efficiency.
In recent years, it seems that dental hygienists are being asked to step into a number of different shoes, including the role of a dental assistant and the front desk staff. Those who aren't agreeable to filling in when times are busy can risk being branded not team players.Why doesn't this work? There are a number of reasons. Cross- training typically works best when employees get the opportunity to learn new skills that help career growth. Cross-training really shouldn't be used as a way to eliminate job positions, or avoid bringing on new staff to meet demands.
But what is one to do in a small practice where every dollar counts? It's expensive to run your own practice and its not always feasible to bring on new staff. Not to worry - it's situations like this for which we created Kabuk. Kabuk let's you focus on your customers and helps increase office efficiencies. We are here to give your front office desk a break, reducing the amount of time they need to be on the phone scheduling appointments, and letting them focus on other tasks like increasing customer satisfaction. Empowering clients to schedule and manage their appointments online can significantly increase the efficiency of your office. As a bonus, our helpful automated appointment reminders - proven to reduce no-shows- mean that your office staff has one less task to worry about.
Its time to bring booking online for your practice! Sign up on Kabuk for your free trial today.
Not ready to think about online bookings? We are currently offering free profile listings on our platform. Its just like LinkedIn for healthcare pros and a great way to increase your online presence and get found by more patients today.
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