BDCDS 2022: positive solutions and changing mindsets can unite the profession
Featured Products Promotional FeaturesPosted by: Dental Design 1st August 2022
To say a lot has changed since the last time the BDCDS was at the NEC Birmingham is an understatement. Not every road leads back to the pandemic – for the business side of dentistry, the impact of factors like Brexit have also started to bite, particularly on the workforce. The BDCDS was a chance for the profession to address issues from recruitment and retention, to compliance and mental health. For speakers and delegates, it provided an opportunity to see what solutions others are using to stay thriving.
Reversing the recruitment crisis
Opening at the Practice Management & Services Theatre, Dr David Fraser, iLearn Dental Lead at Agilio Software, discussed positive strategies to retain your team. With so many leaving the profession, recruiting – and keeping – good people – is increasingly difficult. Poor pay and renumeration, compared to industries perceived as less stressful to work in, was given as one reason why it’s becoming harder. Offering progression, via training and rewards can build stability, Dr Fraser said, discussing how remote learning can enable career development.
Staff retention was also discussed in the Dental Business Theatre, by a panel that included Emma Anastasi, CEO and founder of Diamond Dental Staff, Sarah Buxton, Head of Dental Employment Law and HR at FTA Law and business coach, writer and speaker Chris Barrow. All three agreed that how, to encourage retention, you must attract the right candidates in the first place. Chris talked about widening the net, and looking outside dentistry. With the retail, hospitality and leisure industries all having lost experienced staff over the past two years, the market is full of candidates with core skills and a great attitude who would be an asset to any practice, he said. Emma, whose own career path took her from hospitality/leisure to dentistry and now founder of a dental recruitment service provider, asked attendees to think about the community they’re creating. Is equality and diversity represented on your website? Sarah echoed the importance of being mindful of the messages you are sending out to potentially brilliant new team members via your social media; people want to feel they’d fit in. Also, if someone leaves, she said, think about what you really need, as recruitment doesn’t have to be like-for-like.
Mental health for everyone
A priority of the show was to promote better mental health and wellbeing. Back at the Dental Business Theatre, Dr Ritesh Aggarwal, practice owner and CEO of Psynergy Mental Health along with Dr Mahrukh Khwaja, dentist, positive psychologist and CEO of Mind Ninja gave accounts of their own experiences with burnout. Both talked about the need for culture change, and the factors – from organisational to individual – that lead to problems. Share the wins, Mahrukh suggested, and use gratitude to increase positive emotions in your practice. Ritesh looked at redefining leadership; if a principal or owner is struggling, who is looking after them? Not only should everyone in the team be a leader, but they all be aware of the signs and symptoms of poor mental health. Gather data about staff wellbeing, he said, to help you manage it. This is a snapshot of two highly personal conversations, but it is clear that this is topic is central to the delivery of quality dentistry and patient care.
Positive vibes
The overriding sense was that the potential for change has never been greater. Perhaps we are seeing the beginning of a new understanding about what it takes to be a great clinician. This was reflected in a high-energy presentation by Dr Mamood Mawjee, dental business and life coach at Re-IGNITE, who managed to get the audience shouting “Yes, Mamood!” despite it being one of the last sessions of the show. Mamood talked about how, by conquering the subconscious mind, you can change your mindset. There was more positivity from Phil Kolodynski and Anil Sokhi of Dental Elite, who told delegates in two well-attended sessions that, whether you’re selling a practice of buying, the market is buoyant.
Although individual concerns vary, there are many common threads. Dental hygienist Rebecca Gowda, who attended a session from Dr Patricia Langley in the Compliance Clinic said the “great seminar reinforced the fact that we’re all in the same boat. It encouraged support and getting the practice united in decisions.”
It is this sense of unity that will enable the profession to steer its way through any challenges ahead, understanding how we need to take care of ourselves and each other. For proof that there is strength in numbers, all anyone had to do was look at the busy hall full of smiling faces. Dental associate Dr Jane Samways summed it up perfectly when she said, “I am sensing palpable excitement that we have the BDCDS back after a two-year absence”.
The British Dental Conference and Dentistry Show 2023 will be held on Friday 12th and Saturday 13th May, NEC Birmingham, co-located with DTS.
For more information, visit birmingham.dentistryshow.co.uk, or email dentistry@closerstillmedia.com
