Modern Hygienist - February 2009 - (Page 30)

career | KEEP YOUR JOB The economic impact on you Uncertain about the safety of your position? Clear advice on how to become indispensable. by Keverly Sugden, RDH, BASDH Helping patients keep natural dentition longer is a great way to build loyalty to your practice. Consider implementing a CAMBRA protocol in your practice using products such as Oral BioTech’s CariScreen. Visit carifree.com for more info. We will all look back on 2008 as a year of economic uncertainty. Many dental hygienists have experienced the fear that their hours and even days will be cut now or in the near future. New graduates may be wondering if they can secure a job. Hygienists who want to keep their jobs will need to look for ways to boost production and retain current patients. We are one of the greatest assets to a dental practice, and knowing our worth is critical. The hygienist who understands his or her contribution and worth to a practice can survive the current economic downturn. EMBRACING PRODUCTION You can start to realize your worth by understanding the business end of a practice. Most dentists are happy to have you take an interest in their business and your ability to help it succeed. One of the easiest ways to ascertain your worth is to track your daily production and strive to improve upon your current numbers. A rule of thumb is to be able to produce, at minimum, three times your hourly or daily pay. You can do this by averaging your weekly production and dividing the number of hours you have worked into that figure. Remember, this should be minimum production; hopefully, your hourly production will be a much higher number. The No. 1 bargaining chip you possess in any practice is your capacity to produce while retaining patients. Your ability to track this production and show your employer your net worth to the practice is an important skill to possess in a competitive job market. Think of your hygiene department as a business within the dental practice. GIVE ME A BOOST Once you understand the business end of dentistry, then you can look at ways of boosting production and controlling expenses. You can accomplish this simply by doing the right thing for your patients. Every patient is owed a comprehensive periodontal examination, caries assessment and oral cancer screening. Many of us feel constrained by time and wonder how we will include it all. The best way to fit in these three components is to systematically plan for them and find ways that work best for you. If you implement these fundamentals you will be profitable, professional and useful to your boss. Periodontal examination. A comprehensive periodontal program begins with a periodontal examination. I am blessed to work in a totally paperless practice with voice-activated periodontal charting. If you can’t go voice-activated, try to find an assistant who can help write down numbers while you chart. Patients benefit from hearing these numbers and you can relate this informa- tip Prime your doc as to a patient’s restorative needs/wants and track what work he or she has completed or lined up. webexclusive For articles you and your doc can read together on best practices for helping your practice stay strong in a down economy, visit dentalproductsreport. com/dpr. 30 modernhygienist.com | February 2009 PHOTO: SOMOS/VEER/GETTY IMAGES http://www.carifree.com http://www.dentalproductsreport.com/dpr http://www.modernhygienist.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Modern Hygienist - February 2009

Modern Hygienist - February 2009 Contents Editor's Letter Letters News Modern Solutions Caring for Kids The DNA Difference A Healthy Perspective The Economic Impact on You How Single Moms Make it Work Ad Index Classified Economy 101

Modern Hygienist - February 2009

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