Managing Dental Drama

Practice owners and managers agonize over hiring decisions, especially when there are family members and friends in the pool of potential staffing solution options. Today, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss a mother/daughter hiring scenario that caused some issues for one practice owner. The team slowly began to see the duo in a different light, causing unwanted tension on the team. Dr. Kuba weighs in o...

Are background checks truly necessary? Today, Bethany discusses a recent scenario she encountered where a brand new employee had unflattering information show up on her required background check. She presents the scenario to Dr. Kuba to get her take on background checks and what she would do in this situation. Together they discuss the role that background checks should play in the hiring process,...

Feeling burned out after a busy summer? Dr. Reena Kuba and Bethany Petty share encouraging facts and trends in dentistry to help doctors, hygienists, dental assistants, and administrative team members get re-energized and fight the fall slump.   Dentistry has seasons. Summer is often one of the busier seasons for dental professionals. The schedule is naturally busier as patients utilize time off t...

What do flabby abs and arms have to do with dentistry? In one word - EVERYTHING! Today, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss the massive impact of motivation in our everyday dental lives. It is hard to ignore the impact of motivation on the overall health of the practice. In many situations, motivation can be the single reason for a practice surging to success or failing to move forward. Bethany encourage...

Bethany and Dr. Kuba are absolutely giddy to introduce you to a special friend and guest - Laura Diamond, Attorney to dentists. Laura is an absolute wealth of information. While Dr. Kuba has had the privilege of seeing Laura defend and advise dentists for years now, she finally gets the opportunity today to dish out some tough legal questions. Dental professionals need to hear the advice that Laur...

Bethany had an extremely interesting series of events with a client, and today she puts Dr. Kuba in the hot seat. “What would Kuba do with a fake two week notice?” Together, Bethany and Dr. Kuba unpack how to address an odd scenario where an employee turns in notice but actually did not intend for the doctor to accept the resignation. They dig into the details and speculate on the possible reasons...

Today, Dr. Kuba talks about the stresses and challenges of cultivating a successful practice when there are so many frustrating staffing problems. Much like her self-proclaimed best friend, Jerry Jones, who does his best to have a winning team, he ultimately is at the mercy of other factors and people - like the coaches and team. Dr. Kuba, too, recognizes the hardships of good staffing decisions w...

It is hard to believe, but MDD is celebrating its FIFTH anniversary! After surprising Dr. Kuba with this anniversary reminder, Bethany reflects on her favorite episode as well as the way the themes and topics have changed over the years. Dr. Kuba reflects on her favorite moments and aspects of being a show host. They both marvel at the international reach of the show (hello Germany!). Together, th...

It’s dental conference season! If you are like many dental professionals, you come back from seminars with an overwhelming amount of ideas and excitement. Yet, it is difficult to decide what to implement and even more difficult to decide how to implement. Dr. Kuba and Bethany jump into several tips in today’s episode to help you successfully incorporate new things. Whether it is a new product, new...

Dr. Kuba is all bent out of shape today over a recent medical visit. She recaps multiple instances of inefficiencies that push her to pause, reflect, and consider the hidden lessons. She and Bethany dialogue about the potential causes of such inefficiencies as well as what dental teams can do to avoid chronic medical mistakes. Everyone can relate to those terrible medical experiences, but today’s...

Dr. Jones is finally back, and he is passionate about today’s topic! In this episode, he reminds listeners what it takes to truly grow. He and Bethany discuss the challenges and setbacks to growing as well as the skills and determination it takes to make daily changes that lead to growth. Today’s episode will have you smiling and hopefully recommitting to the daily pursuit of growth. Rev up that e...

Dr. Kuba and Bethany put the gloves on today! While they often see things from different perspectives, today’s episode might represent the most they have ever disagreed on a subject matter. As Dr. Kuba reads through actual applicants from her recent job post, she shares why she accepted or rejected the candidate, and Bethany shares her perspective. If you struggle to determine who is a good applic...

The news story this week should cause us all to pause. Medical emergencies are a reality for which we should all be prepared. When an incredibly sad news story regarding a dental death occurs, we owe it to ourselves, our team, and our patients to pause and ensure that we are as prepared as we can possibly be. In an effort to remind us all, Dr. Kuba and Bethany have resurrected a recent episode reg...

The Texas heat forced Dr. Kuba and Bethany into their cozy closet to record today’s important episode. Dr. Kuba throws two completely different scenarios to Bethany and puts her on the spot for advice. Both with the question - Who you gonna call? A patient receives services in your practice and then three weeks later gets admitted to the hospital with facial swelling. Should you self-report to the...

Bethany’s sister-in-law is back!! Amanda has been a manager for many years now. She recalls a time when she felt, “If I want to have something done right, I have to do it myself.” This mindset led her to burnout, fatigue, and frustration. She and Bethany discuss her delegation mindset. Amanda shares how she strives to create a collaborative environment where delegation, teamwork, and equality is t...

Have you ever been in that uncomfortable situation where you feel like you might need to report something to either the state board or even the police? This episode digs into an incredibly yucky topic, but the information provided should make it useful for any listener. Dr. Kuba and Bethany shift through many of the various situations that can come across your plate that might necessitate you fili...

Have you been asking yourself lately, “Where is all the money going?” Or have you noticed that certain procedures are simply less productive than they used to be? Maybe you’ve even wondered to yourself, “I feel like I’m working harder and making less, what is happening?” If these thoughts sound familiar, then tune into this episode. Dr. Kuba and Bethany spend time discussing current trends in the...

Today’s episode continues the saga from last week’s episode (“Are Accurate Estimates Important?”). Dr. Kuba continues to unpack details about a disgruntled parent in her practice that ended up with an unexpected bill of $1,700. Today, they discuss more oversights from the team including coordination of benefit issues (involving primary and secondary insurance), miscommunication to the parent when...

Today’s episode jumps straight into the deep end of managing a practice. Dr. Kuba shares about a disgruntled parent in her practice that ended up with an unexpected bill of $1,700. Travel together with Dr. Kuba and Bethany as they discuss step by step how they investigated the account and used it as an opportunity to learn and improve. In today’s episode, they discuss what all went wrong with the...

As an addendum to last week’s “Money Matters” episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany dig into the various ways that a team member can unintentionally sabotage a practice. While collections (last week’s episode) is foundational to practice success, there are many other seemingly insignificant mistakes that can substantially impact success. Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss several important ones to consider. Thi...

Collecting money in a practice tends to be one of the more difficult tasks. At times, odd emotions get in the way. Sometimes we feel guilt over charging a patient for something they need, a service they receive. We attempt to lighten the guilt feeling by making unsanctioned collections agreements or even avoiding to collect altogether. Balances can loom over our heads at times and can cause patien...

Last week’s episode probably sounds like a beautiful pipe dream….so today, Dr. Kuba asks the hard question, “Can you really truly pass things off to team members?” She and Bethany discuss the times where tasks are passed off and teams either fail to accomplish them OR are not equipped to complete the task successfully. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss how to ensure that the right peop...

Check this episode out in both video and audio! Today, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss a foundational management strategy called “Directly Responsible Individuals” or as Kuba refers to “The Tag-You’re-It Person”. They discuss what a DRI and how it helps in managing a great team, inspiring confidence in your team members, and lightening the load on the practice owner and manager. If you want an inspir...

Need a little motivation for today? Bethany gets on a self-proclaimed soapbox today, but hopefully one that will inspire and encourage all dental professionals today. She shares of a recent encounter she had with a health provider that reminded her about the importance of what we do on a daily basis. Through dentistry and through relationships, we have the opportunity to be impactful. Today is a d...

Encore Performance: While disgruntled patients have always been a reality, they seem to be growing in number. The combination of massive social and economic changes has turned even some of the nicest patients into grumps. In this world-wide rise of grumpiness, the dental field certainly gets hit hard by the patients who are simply looking to fight. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss spe...