And the award goes to…
Featured Products Promotional FeaturesPosted by: Dental Design 4th November 2024
Thousands of years ago, the Ancient Greeks gave laurel wreaths to their Olympic champions, highlighting their sporting brilliance. Awards have endured as an invaluable part of our culture ever since, serving as a way to identify and celebrate talent and allow the recipient to share their success with others. Awards vary from knighthoods to Oscars, gold medals to Nobel Prizes – all of which recognise and reward hard work.
As we may link awards with sporting competitions or the arts, it is easy to overlook the importance of recognition in the workplace. In dentistry, an industry associated with a risk of burnout, and in a post-pandemic economy, where job retention is crucial, finding ways for your work to be valued and rewarded can be beneficial for your mental health and continual career progression.
The importance of recognition
Humans have a deep-seated psychological need to be recognised or validated, and this is as true in the workplace as anywhere else. A study of workers found that 65% said they would work harder if the management team noticed their contributions.[i] However, 65% also said they would still work for an unappreciative boss if their co-workers appreciated their work.i This shows that recognition is important regardless of who it is from; teachers, mentors, parents, employers, friends and co-workers can all support you in your work.
Recognition can take many forms. You could receive a thankful letter or a Christmas bonus, an award or a certificate, verbal praise or a congratulatory cake. Regardless of the way you are recognised, there will be a sense of accomplishment.
The psychological benefit
Receiving recognition generates pleasure and pride.[ii]This shows the enormous psychological benefit that being rewarded or recognised can have, making you feel more assured in your work. The positive feeling stems from the secretion of dopamine in the brain, a chemical messenger that is part of the reward pathway.[iii] Dopamine neurones are controlling; they mediate the positive influence of potential rewards on behaviour, reinforcing or motivating certain actions that can release dopamine and give that feel-good rush.[iv]
Being recognised for your work, be that for an excellent clinical case, an independent research project or a successful lecture, can therefore create a greater feeling of pride. This can reduce the risk of burnout or work apathy and keep you focused – recognition is the biggest reason (37%) why workers are driven to excel in their jobs, far ahead of other influences such as being self-motivated or seeking higher pay.[v]
Community building
There are many ways a dental practice can motivate the whole team through recognition, ranging from customised awards for team players or years of service, professional development opportunities, personalised thank you notes and even upgraded equipment. These ideas can create friendly competitions by encouraging others to aim for greatness, increasing employee engagement and boosting overall workplace wellbeing.[vi] Any staff member, from practice owner to dentist to dental nurse can make a difference by recognising their co-workers’ contributions.
A rewarding work environment is a supportive one, and staff that feel part of a team and connect to the company values may be more likely to stay in that job – recognition may then help with staff retention.v Doing so will facilitate the growth and development of both the practice and your own work.
Becoming a member
Being a member of a society is another route for achieving recognition for your work. The British Endodontic Society (BES) doesn’t just promote first-class endodontology, it honours it, with a large variety of awards available. From the Pitt-Ford Undergraduate Prize in Endodontology to the Mark Hunter Early Career Award in Endodontology and the Outstanding Clinical Case Award, there are opportunities for all: undergraduates, foundation dentists, endodontic researchers, general dental practitioners, inspirational lecturers can all be recognised. The BES Awards are a superb way to measure your skills and success in a competitive yet friendly environment. With rewards such as free BES membership, cash prizes and BES certificates depending on the award you may win, your contributions to endodontology can be given the spotlight they deserve.
Work can be hard, stressful and repetitive. But being recognised for great work is a mentally fulfilling goal for many, one that can inspire them and those around them to do the very best they can.
For more information about the BES, or to join, please visit the website www.britishendodonticsociety.org.uk or call 07762945847
[i] Castrillon, C. (2022). Why Employee Recognition Is More Crucial Than Ever. [online] Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2022/11/20/why-employee-recognition-is-more-crucial-than-ever/.
[ii] Bromberg-Martin, E.S., Matsumoto, M. and Hikosaka, O. (2010). Dopamine in motivational control: Rewarding, aversive, and alerting. Neuron, [online] 68(5), pp.815–834. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2010.11.022.
[iii] Juárez Olguín, H., Calderón Guzmán, D., Hernández García, E. and Barragán Mejía, G. (2016). The role of dopamine and its dysfunction as a consequence of oxidative stress. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, [online] 2016(1), pp.1–13. doi:https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/9730467.
[iv] Walton, M.E. and Bouret, S. (2019). What Is the Relationship between Dopamine and Effort? Trends in Neurosciences, [online] 42(2), pp.79–91. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tins.2018.10.001.
[v] Hastwell, C. (2023). Creating a culture of recognition. [online] Great Place to Work . Available at: https://www.greatplacetowork.com/resources/blog/creating-a-culture-of-recognition.
[vi] Yang, T. and Jiang, X. (2023). When colleague got recognized: Third-party’s reaction to witnessing employee recognition. Frontiers in Psychology, 14. doi:https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.968782.
