The stress of final exams, case presentations and interviews is now behind you and the thought of telling people you are now a ‘real’ dentist seems like a sweet ideal. However, it’s not long before you’re facing a long list of patients on your first day in practice. All of a sudden, you wish you were back at university. The comfort zone has disappeared. But don’t panic! In truth, it’s not so bad; it’s just the fear of the unknown. You can do it, and you can do it very well! This short blog is aimed at giving newly qualified dentists 15 (hopefully helpful) tips for the start of their career. Let’s start with the first 8!
1. Be confident in yourself
Not having someone peer over your shoulder constantly can feel great but it can also be a daunting thought that you have to start making decisions for yourself. Your confidence will slowly build up as you generally do more work in the first few weeks of practice that you have done during the whole of dental school! However, try to be confident from that start; have faith in what you’ve been taught as an undergraduate and always remember to keep the patient’s best interests at heart.
2. Be confident to ask for help
It is also imperative that you ask for help when you need it. Don’t be afraid to ask for second opinions or discuss cases with other colleagues. The more you talk over issues with the people around you, the more you’ll begin to realise that there are plenty more people in the same boat. When help is available, push yourself to try things you normally wouldn’t, and that could be anything from rotary endodontics to surgical extractions – that’s the only way you’ll begin to feel more comfortable! If there is no one around to ask for help, don’t dive into anything that could be unsafe if it went wrong.
3. Keep up your record keeping skills
During our undergraduate years, we spent plenty of time and effort making impeccable notes. When under time restraints in a busy NHS practice, it is very easy to start picking up bad habits. However, it is very important to spend time discussing treatment plans with our patient and documenting all the important points. Time spent on detailed notes may save you hours of stress (and possibly a legal case) if the patient is not satisfied. We’re now living in a very litigious society and if any claims are made against you, the first thing that will be looked at are your notes. If something is not documented, it didn’t happen.
4. Develop good communication skills
Good communication skills are crucial to a successful and stress-free relationship with your patients. Listen to what your patients are saying. Pay attention to tone and inflection in their voice as well as body language. Take your time and try to establish their expectations. These will need correcting if they are too high! Treatment decisions should be made after a thorough and balanced discussion with your patient. Get to know your patients. If you don’t have a fantastic memory, write down some personal details on the patient’s record so that you can demonstrate that you know them personally. See your patient as an individual, not teeth with a treatment plan.
5. Invest in loupes with illumination
There are ergonomic and optical benefits to wearing loupes. 60-80% of dentists experience chronic back and neck pain, with a contributing factor being poor posture. In order to keep the patients mouth in focus, you must be at your loupes configured working distance, which will be set to an ‘ideal posture’. In my opinion, the earlier you get loupes, the better. This is because there is a clear learning curve to using them. You can get either through-the-lens or flip-up loupes. I prefer through-the-lens as it provides a larger field of view and the loupes are also much lighter. So which magnification? As you increase magnification, the learning curve becomes steeper, and the field of view decreases. After trying out a few pairs of loupes for a couple of weeks, I found 2.5x was a much more comfortable starting level for me. If you can, why not also get a light, it makes a huge amount of difference.
6. Take plenty of clinical photos
If you can, invest in a basic camera with a macro lense and ring flash. Try and take as many photos as possible, even if it is just simple shots, as it will be improve your photography skills. If you get any interesting cases or complete treatment that you’re proud of, make sure you take some photographs as it will be great to add to your portfolio.
7. Respect your nurse
A nurse is an invaluable member of the dental team and can make your job a lot more pleasant and less stressful. Establish a good working relationship with your nurse. Involve your nurse, ask for their input, and offer training. Show your respect and value. Put in the effort and you will be more efficient and happier.
8. Meet your technicians
Do you talk to the technician only on the phone and only when there is a problem? Go to the lab. I can’t stress enough that good communication with your technician can make a huge difference to the quality of your work. Go and see what the technician has to cope with and ask them to contact you if there is a problem with your work. Some technicians are even happy to come to the clinic to take a shade for more complex cases. Let your technicians know when they have done a good job.
First, I must praise you for a very good article. Second, I would like to endorse your advice under ‘Keep up your record keeping skills’, and then, if I may, and wearing my expert witness hat, add another a couple of further points. It is important that dentists record negative findings e.g. no swellings, no tenderness, no bleeding etc., and I would encourage everyone to add a note about anything that impedes your ability to do as good a job as you would like. Too many notes are better than too few.
Out standing content.I total Agree For respect your nurse..
Respect works both ways, Mark. I remember starting work (immediately post-qualifying) many moons ago and the nurse I worked with (a girl a few years younger than me but who had worked at this particular place for several years) delighted in catching me out whenever she could. Sadly some nurses are not mature enough or professional enough to work in a professional environment.
Yes I agree respect definitely has to be two ways for it to work
Hello Reena,
I wanted to say thanks for the great tips. As someone who has been thinking of taking those steps its great to read about them. Keep up the great work!