Managing Dental Drama

 Dr. Kuba and Bethany are back in the closet today because they have an extra dramatic topic – stealing employees! When should a doctor check references? What are the rules about contacting an existing employer? What if the employee works for somebody that you know – what should you do? Dr. Kuba and Bethany dive deep and talk about some sticky situations that can come up in this process. It is a d...

Bethany’s dad, Dr. Jones, is back in the studio, and today he is talking about a subject that is often on everyone’s mind – retirement! He takes us through the history of retirement as well as his personal subjective evaluation of retirement. Listeners will be eager to know – when is Dr. Jones retiring?? He answers this and much more while also thoroughly discussing this important subject. Whether...

20 minutes – that is all it is going to take to listen to this week’s essential episode. Listen as Bethany quickly unpacks eight foundational resources that every practice needs. She focuses on two different “buckets” of advice – first, she selects her top four (gasp, only four!?!?) favorite books for practice leaders and teams. Then, she tells listeners the MUST-HAVE professionals to ensure that...

The hardest decision any leader must make is when to ultimately call it quits on an employee. It is a gut wrenching process that cannot be taken lightly. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss the importance of giving a team member every opportunity to be successful, and it is important for the practice leader to consider changing the person’s roles and responsibilities to better fit his or...

First impressions are everything, especially when welcoming a new employee to the team. Just as the leadership team is hoping that they struck gold with their new employee, the new team member is also hoping they risked everything for the right practice. So, these first few days and weeks are critical for setting the right tone and creating a welcoming experience. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bet...

Bethany’s dad, Dr. Jones, is back!! In this episode, he and Bethany discuss the importance of recognizing that restless energy and even apathy that some team members experience in the summer months. It is hard to stay focused on work when we really want to play. Yet, the summer months can often be productive months for the practice IF we have a team that is focused and willing to work hard. Dr. Jo...

Why are changes and improvements so hard to implement? Maybe we start strong, but then old habits die hard. Or, maybe we never even started with the improvement. Why? In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss the challenge of implementation. They incorporate several real scenarios of team members and discuss the WHY behind the lack of implementation. In one of the scenarios, an attitude of res...

 A dental conference can be so incredibly exciting and ALSO so incredibly overwhelming. It is such an investment of time, money, and energy. So, it is critical to get an excellent return on your investment. In this episode, Bethany gives a specific strategy to ensure that every course attendee (includes ALL team members) gets the most out of the conference. In this episode, she tells course partic...

Can my practice survive if I drop insurance? Where should I begin? What if all my patients leave? – These are just a few of the questions that practice leaders ask when considering whether or not to drop an insurance plan or two. Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss various points of view with this topic and specifically dig into the important topic of the practice surviving and even thriving after an ins...

When do you know if you are TRULY out of space? What are the options to consider to increase space or decrease your patient count? How do you know if you need a second location? In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss the potential highs and the potential lows of starting a second location. They also discuss all of the “signs” that may indicate that you are truly out of space. If you are fee...

To all of our male listeners, this episode is ABSOLUTELY a must listen for you, even if “Mom” is listed in the title. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany talk about one thing that is plaguing practice owners, hygienists, RDAs, and business team members alike – working mom guilt. Bethany sits with so many women who are constantly beating themselves up. They want to be better employees but also wa...

Associate dentists play an important role in private practice. They come alongside the owning doctor and help to carry out the dentistry needed to care for the patient base so that the practicing owner can see more patients, take more time away from the practice, or utilize freed-up time to focus on the administrative needs of the practice. Yet, associateships can cause problems from time to time....

Conflict amongst team members is almost unavoidable. At times, it can hit your perfectly happy team in the most unfortunate way. For others, it could be that conflict is the ongoing saga that always ends with “To be continued….”. It can be exhausting for all parties involved and can absolutely beat down the practice owner or leader. In this episode, Bethany shares of a recent client of hers who wa...

At times, a practice owner or team leader is utterly surprised when they realize that an iron clad system is not being utilized by the team. How did this happen? How long has the system been out of use? The consequences of unfollowed systems are numerous. First, team members can be confused, leading them to spend too much time seeking clarification from others. Second, team members can become inef...

For all the amazing, positive talk about associateships, there are aspects of it that are not glamorous or fun. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany talk about all of the sticky points that can come up between practice owners and associates. From who gets the credit on x-rays to fairly dividing up the new patients, issues can arise. Bethany encourages both the practice owner and the associate to...

New patients are essential to not only the growth of a practice but also to the maintenance of a practice. Because it is impossible to keep every single patient in the practice forever, new patients become critical to maintaining (or growing) the size of the patient base as well as the productivity of the practice. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss the various types of marketing and th...

Kuba offers up her shoe today to Bethany, fully prepared for Bethany to beat her. While tempted, Bethany engages in a conversation with Dr. Kuba regarding a recent (gasp) drama development at her office. In an effort to make swift and necessary changes, Bethany suggests a couple of schedule changes to Dr. Kuba. The team was not a fan of the changes! Dr. Kuba and Bethany dialogue about what they co...

 In deep reflection, Dr. Kuba and Bethany realized that most of the Managing Dental Drama episodes center around what to say and how to say it. However, they realized that there is also a time and a place to be quiet. In this episode, they dedicate an entire episode to the important topic of “When to Shut Up.” Together, they discuss several examples of when it is better to stay quiet than to speak...

After spending the entire month of February focusing on compensation reviews, Dr. Kuba and Bethany get together to discuss the aftermath. After being extra excited to jump into the reviews, Dr. Kuba experienced a bit of a disappointing let down after they were complete. She and Bethany dialogue about the real reactions to expect as well as how to mentally and emotionally prepare for these meetings...

It is a moment that everyone dreads – the departure of a beloved and critical team member. Whether a spouse’s career takes them elsewhere, they retire, or they find a career elsewhere, it is always devastating to lose a team member who brings so much to the team. Replacing him or her seems like an impossible task, and yet it must be done. In this episode, Dr. Kuba and Bethany discuss the importanc...

Searching for a new employee is wrought with challenges and often with insecurity in the process. Trying to find an associate tends to be an even more challenging process. In this episode, Dr. Kuba shares how she is currently in the associate search process. Together, she and Bethany discuss the specifics of how to search for a doctor to join your team.  They start by reviewing how to market the p...

With an alarming growth of angry and unhappy people in the world, it’s not a surprise that the dental field is seeing its fair share. As disappointing as it is to have an angry, unhappy, or even volatile patient, it only gets harder when a dentist considers the options for dealing with the angry patient. What should a doctor and team do with the unhappy customer? Should they seek to reconcile? Sho...

In this exclusive bonus episode, we continue the conversation from January 20th’s "Compensation Reviews." We dive deeper into how sharing financial insights with your team can foster stronger relationships and elevate morale. But what happens when transparency goes wrong? Learn how to strike the perfect balance between transparency, spending, and communication to create a more productive...

Patient care is often a shared process among various providers. Dentists must coordinate care with dental specialists like oral surgeons, orthodontists, periodontists, pediatric dentists, and endodontists and vice versa. In addition, dental professionals must coordinate care among medical providers to obtain medical clearances as well as important information regarding medicines/pre-medication rec...

In this exclusive bonus episode, we continue the conversation from January 20th "Compensation Reviews." We explore how sharing financial insights with your team can strengthen relationships and boost morale. But what happens when transparency is mismanaged? Learn how the right balance of spending and communication can lead to a more productive, trusting environment — and what you can do...