Finding a good dentist in the context of a shortage of qualified medical personnel is not easy. Professional specialists with work experience are literally in high demand. Therefore, it is even more important for the head of a dental clinic to be able to properly assess candidates and know what to pay attention to when selecting a new employee.
Portrait of smiling male dentist looking at camera in dental clinic interior and holding clipboard, copy space
THE FIRST STEP IS TO DEFINE THE SEARCH GOAL
Before beginning the process of searching for a specialist who will successfully complement the dental clinic team, it is essential to clearly determine: who exactly do you need and for what purpose? For example, if there are plans to open a pediatric dental office, then a doctor with a specific specialization is required. If a clinic wants to enhance the expertise of its team and hire a top doctor who is well-known in the professional community, it should evaluate not only their experience but also their scientific work, portfolio of publications in specialized journals, and academic degree.
BASIC REQUIREMENTS
The search and selection of a dentist begins with the assessment of their basic criteria. A doctor is required to have a medical degree, complete an internship (specialist accreditation), and also have valid specialist certificates.
The main criteria also include the level of professional qualification (first, second, or highest category), skills and experience in using modern technologies in diagnostics and treatment, communication skills, and the ability to build interpersonal relationships.
FIRST IMPRESSION IS IMPORTANT
Although they say that first impressions can be deceiving, even during the initial interaction with a candidate, you can assess their adequacy and interest in integrating into a new team. Literally everything matters: neat appearance, behavior and manner of communication, response to questions, and the interests of the applicant themselves. Just imagine yourself as a patient of this dentist: would you like to have an appointment with them, or does the thought of it cause discomfort?
When choosing a dental practitioner, it is important to pay attention not only to their formal education and personal skills, but also to their knowledge of handling medical documentation, medical law issues, as well as their level of motivation not only for work but also for further professional development.
QUALITIES OF A GOOD DENTIST
A demanding attitude towards quality. In dentistry, there are no trivialities, and the doctor must clearly understand that the outcome of treatment is composed of numerous factors. In the work of a dentist, there should always be a healthy perfectionism, which means striving to perform any procedure as well as possible. There can be no ‘it will do’ here.
Planning Skills. Truly effective dental work is impossible without the ability to independently plan one’s working time, correctly set priorities, clearly define goals, and respond flexibly in the event of unforeseen situations.
Self-control and discipline. A good dentist will always pay attention to their appearance, respond appropriately to any patients, and maintain emotional balance. In many ways, it is the doctor and their behavior that determine how diligently the junior medical staff perform their duties and how the dental office is organized.
Teamwork. In a modern dental clinic, no doctor works alone. Each employee is part of a cohesive team. Both the productivity of the new employee’s work and the atmosphere within the team depend on how well they are able to interact with colleagues and work towards a common goal.
Aspiration for development. Every doctor learns throughout their life, it is one of the features of the profession. Dentistry today is considered the most rapidly developing field of medicine, with new treatment methods and technologies emerging every 2-3 years. Therefore, a good doctor is not only obliged to be ready to learn, but also to seek opportunities to improve their professional level.
The qualification of a dentist is very important. A competent specialist constantly strives to improve it, participates in specialized seminars and conferences, studies dental innovations, and implements them into their medical practice.
HOW TO ASSESS PROFESSIONALISM?
It is important to understand that only a specialist with relevant work experience can assess a dentist’s professional competencies. Therefore, the chief physician of the clinic or one of the leading specialists must be present at the interview with the candidate. A potential employee should not only be asked about their previous professional experience but also given a small test. For example, present the examination results of a hypothetical dental patient and ask to make a diagnosis, prescribe comprehensive treatment, and justify it. It is also possible to suggest examining one of the clinic’s staff and making a list of recommendations.
PERSONAL QUALITIES: WHAT TO PAY ATTENTION TO?
Any doctor should be able to listen to and hear the patient attentively, but for a dentist, communication skills and emotional sensitivity are especially important, arguably no less than the level of professionalism. To understand this, it is enough to look at the reviews of dentists that patients leave on specialized internet resources. Almost everyone evaluates not only the quality of the doctor’s work but also their attentiveness to the patient, delicacy, and willingness to answer any questions clearly.
Therefore, during the interview, it is essential to assess not only the candidate’s behavior but also their ability to communicate in a way that inspires trust in the interviewer. Don’t forget that for most patients, a visit to the dentist is a serious stress. And few people would want to be treated by a doctor who speaks harshly, insists too categorically on something, or simply performs all manipulations indifferently. The foundation of quality work by a dentist always lies in the trust between the patient and the doctor.
BIRTH OF A PROFESSIONDentistry as a separate medical specialty first began to be considered at the turn of the 17th–18th centuries in France, when a royal decree established the degree of surgeon-dentist. This happened thanks to the doctor Pierre Fauchard, who treated the teeth of King Louis XV and many celebrities of that time. Fauchard is considered the founder of modern dentistry, including orthodontics.
SHOULD BE AVOIDED
Consider only candidates with work experience. A professional dentist undoubtedly guarantees high-quality work, but they may not always meet the needs of the clinic. At the same time, when hiring a young doctor, the manager has the opportunity to train exactly the specialist the clinic needs under the guidance of experienced staff. Retraining a doctor with extensive work experience may prove to be more difficult than training a novice specialist.
Require a narrow specialization for all job vacancies. The professions of surgeon, therapist, and orthopedist allow for a deeper mastery of certain technologies and methods necessary for solving complex clinical problems. But in most situations, the qualifications of a general practice dentist are sufficient to treat patients. In fact, this is a versatile specialist capable of performing diagnostics (including hardware diagnostics), prescribing and conducting treatment, and only referring the patient to narrow specialists when necessary.
Inquire about having your own patient database. An experienced doctor often develops their own client base, but even inquiring about this issue would be inappropriate from the employer’s side and may create a bad impression on the applicant.
Request recommendations from the previous workplace. No characteristic guarantees that a specialist will possess all the stated qualities. At the same time, their absence should not be perceived as a ‘black mark.’ It only makes sense to trust a recommendation if you are personally acquainted with the person who provided it and have no doubts about their objectivity.
