Dental Office Manager Needed for Immediate Hire

By Cynthia Robinette- Regional Manager

No one wants to fail at their job but some jobs are set up to fail because the owner/CEO or in this case the managing dentist does not understand the nature of the job duties in relationship to the success of the practice.

According to SHRM, the Society of Human Resources Management the two industries reporting the highest levels of recruitment difficulty were health/social assistance and manufacturing but all fields have reported higher than average difficulties in the last three years. A common lament in the dental practices is that there is a reluctance to do performance reviews or to withhold pay increases for fear of losing even the most average of workers.

A recent question was asked as to how much of a bonus should be given to the staff when the Accounts Receivables was over 40% percent in 90 days past due. How can you pay a bonus when you haven’t collected the money you’ve earned?

Many excellent people have left the world of dentistry for greener pastures as far as benefits and better working environment now that the job market has gotten better and more companies are hiring.

Why do they leave dentistry? Many have cited the “sink or swim” mentality of dentists that leaves the new hire struggling to learn how things are done and having to rely on the “spotty” training of existing or exiting employees. The Office Manager position is often complicated with a huge Accounts Receivable that has aged beyond 90 days and unpaid insurance claims that are not consistently worked because no one has the time. Dentists don’t want to pay for software training and want the new person doing the job like a pro in a week. The problem with that is each dental practice has adopted ways of doing business that don’t match a standard of operation. Every time a practice loses a key person that person often goes on to another practice until they find one that fits their experience level or is willing to grant them time to learn their systems for doing things.

Some of the reasons it is difficult to find trained experienced Dental Managers is:

Low numbers of applicants in the field of dental business
Lack of experience needed to do the job such as customer service, handling money, phone finesse, knowledge of dental insurance, managing staff, practice revenue management, etc.
Lack of experience in using the computer and knowledge of the practice software program
Lack of specific dental knowledge to be able to schedule patients and talk about treatment options

Most successful businesses have discovered the value of ongoing training and support of the staff to ensure the success of the business. The best way to make sure that your staff is trained and operating at maximum efficiency is to see that their training and knowledge is up to date and fits the needs of your practice. As the CEO this is your responsibility. Ask:

Where did this person receive their training?
Are they certified in any area of dental practice management?
What kind of training was it; professional training or by the existing staff?
Have they taken CE courses or other training related to their profession over the last six months?

At eAssist, we cannot afford to fail because we would be failing our dental clients who rely upon us to collect the money they have earned through knowledge based insurance filing and appeals. We have a complex hiring process that tests applicant’s knowledge of dental software and dental insurance, HIPAA and customer service. After assignment of a job position we continue to provide ongoing support for each position within eAssist to ensure success of the worker and also for the office or offices under their care.

eAssist Helpful News and Billing Tips; Edition #106