There was a little bit of excitement at “The Dental Plan” as our office was evacuated due to a gas leak at neighbouring premises!

A gas tanker was discovered to be leaking when it arrived to fulfil an order, resulting in the neighbouring buildings being evacuated at 10.30am to allow the spillage to be cleaned up safely.

Thurso Enterprise Park remained closed for the rest of the day but fortunately there was no lasting damage and we were able to resume business as usual the following morning.

Our C.P.D. calendar saw yet another quality event on Tuesday 3rd November, this time for Practice Managers. An intimate group of nearly 20 managers converged on The Pond Hotel, Glasgow that provided the venue for an informative and interactive day without dentists… a novelty indeed!

Following introductions and housekeeping an interactive session proved a great “icebreaker”, sparking open and frank debate amongst the delegates. The roles and responsibilities of Practice Managers versus Practice Owners were explored in the absence of the latter. The quest for knowledge and the tools to fulfil their roles was highlighted and the need for structured training to achieve these goals. The concepts of procedures, forms and templates were introduced and examples of each circulated and discussed. The group gained an insight into the concept of systemisation within the Practice setting and how the application of these systems throughout the hierarchical practice structure results in a controlled and “managed” environment. To conclude the morning session John covered the “boring but incredible important stuff” succinctly and touched on the subjects of financial reporting, invoicing, Health & Safety and Human Resources.

After lunch, which gave everyone an opportunity to network and relax, the afternoon session was initiated with a surprise presenter. Always a delight to fill, the “graveyard slot” was taken by Barbara Naisby of The Black Isle Dental Studio. She gave the delegates an insight into her unique and innovative marketing strategies, which she calls “The A-Pile Bomb”. This engaged and enlightened the group whose attention was undivided and resulted in some interesting debate… a real eye-opener. Time was then spent discussing the appointment book and its role as the “engine of the practice”. Strategies to manage this tool effectively and efficiently were presented. The correlation between time and productivity was illustrated and the impact that failed appointments, late comers and emergencies may have on the average daily productivity and the hourly rates achievable.

An open forum concluded the day when the assembled Practice Managers bounced questions off John, Kenny and each other. This served to highlight the many issues covered and reinforce these important concepts. We will be providing more of these invaluable C.P.D. days for the teams who engage with us at The Dental Plan and an intensive 3-day course is scheduled for later this month commencing 23rd November.

Staff at "The Dental Plan" supported the Breast Cancer Campaign charity last week by wearing items of pink clothing on Friday. John Anderson, our Senior Administrator, is seen here looking dashing in a pink cowboy hat and matching tie!

Staff also donated items for a ‘pink raffle’ where all the prizes were pink. These included pink sweets, a pink piggy and a pink tie. The prizes can be seen in the photograph. This raffle was supported by local businesses and staff at some of our dental practices. In total the sum of £176 was raised for the charity.

A new business set up in Caithness and Sutherland by a Thurso entrepreneur is expanding quickly to fill a gap in the professional Services sector for Dental Surgeons.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) is supporting "The Dental Plan" Ltd (TDP), set up by registered Dentists Dr John Barry BDS NUI and Dr Kenny Barr BDS Glas, with a £45,980 grant to allow it to increase its workforce at its business park base just outside of Thurso.
“We have done the initial work to test the market and we are confident the time is right to move to the next level.  We are delighted that HIE has been able to support our efforts to employ more staff,” said Dr Barry. He went on to say that he has chosen to set the business in the north Highlands due to the availability of excellent quality people to work in this field. I am staggered by the quality of available skilled people in Caithness and am delighted with the initial core team of 5 staff so far. We aim to grow to a staff of twenty within a short space of time and we intend to be a market leader nationally in supplying quality services to Dental professionals. The North Highlands is a great working environment and we can deal with Dental Practices anywhere in the UK or even overseas from our base in Thurso with little difficulty.
The business works directly with dental practices helping them to run their businesses in a more professional and efficient manner. Dentists are usually trained to the highest standards clinically but have limited business or administration expertise which is where "The Dental Plan" fills a niche role.
TDP advises on best practice and implements systems including providing administration for practice membership plans and associated insurance for patients. TDP helps the practices to comply with a raft of legislative burdens including Health and Safety issues, and employment law. The company has already started training dental teams at its base in Thurso having held two training days so far where it can accord Continuing Professional Development points to its participating practices. This training role is also set to grow and this is attracting people from all over the UK to the North with all the positive “educational tourism” benefits
HIE is looking forward to an ongoing working relationship with TDP which is to be one of its ‘key account managed businesses’.  These are businesses from across the Highlands and Islands which have been identified as having significant growth potential and the development agency works closely with them to help maximize the opportunities available.
Keith Muir of HIE commented: “The market for private dental membership plans and associated insurance is huge and the practical knowledge of the directors at TDP puts them in an excellent position to tap into the opportunities available. The company is working in the National market with clients from the South of England to the Orkney Islands. HIE is pleased to be able to assist the company to see it employ the staff it needs to allow it to grow.”

 

MORE NEWS...

We are currently registering patients of practices who have joined us recently. The volume of registration forms is increasing every day which is exciting for all involved.

The British Dental Association conference was held at the start of June at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in Glasgow. This is one of the biggest events on the British Dentistry calendar. The Conference was well attended and was a great success from our point of view.

"The Dental Plan" building was successfully purchased outright in May by the company.

The building is known as James Traill House and was built by Highlands and Islands Enterprise around 2000. They commissioned a local architect to design the building who created an unusual, yet unique take on the office environment. The building is currently undergoing a transformation with the brick work internally and external being painted to compliment the wood work.