Looking back, even just over the last 19 years for me as a Practice Manager, never before has there been more responsibility laying on the laps of Practice Managers, and now more than ever they are finally getting the deserved acknowledgment.
There are not many roles where someone is expected to be a HR Manager, Marketing Manager, Compliance Manager, Business Manager, to name a few, whilst also being an approachable, occasional shoulder to cry on and not forgetting referee. All these roles are now expected of a typical PM, and are to be done to the highest of standards, often without any formalised, additional training, other than Core CPD.
Often, Practices are expecting their PM’s to take responsibility for situations/systems they sometimes do not fully understand.
Part of the problem is being aware of what they don’t know, and then finding out where they can gain the training and skills to equip them in their roles. There are often no allowances for error, and certainly not in the areas such as HR and Compliance where there are legal implications.
Interestingly following ADAM’s 2017 Salary Survey, it demonstrated that there is a huge range of pay scales, and this is now being recognised on the whole, but was not always dependant or linked to the scales of responsibility and skills the PM was working at.
So is this the fault of the Practice Owners not understanding, or the PM’s not asserting themselves and demanding the credit and pay that is due to them?
Well, in my experience, the majority of PM’s are happy to take on a huge workload, but too often, under not ideal circumstances, such as also being expected to be a receptionist one day and maybe a dental nurse the next in additional to their PM roles and often without reflective pay.
Quite a few dentists, are so busy treating patients, which is the way it should be, that they sometimes don’t realise the extent of the workload or the systems that are in place and being used by the whole team, to ensure the smooth running and success of their practices. In conclusion, it is up to the PM’s to ensure that their appraisals, meetings, huddles and communications with the practice owners are demonstrating to them their worth, and that it is acknowledged, because its quite likely that their PM is the glue holding the rest of the practice together.
Invest in your PM’s, look after them, and reflect this in their pay. Allow them to grow and fulfil the practical understanding they need, and they will look after you.
I would like to say that I don’t believe there is a majority of PM’s that are not being valued, but for those grafting away and feeling overworked, underappreciated and underpaid, the quote “You get what you pay for” springs to mind.
At a recent CQC Reference Group Meeting, we were discussing PM roles and I was absolutely delighted to hear and feedback to our members John Milnes comment.
John Milne, CQC’s Senior National Dental Adviser, said: “The CQC inspection programme, to date, has found that a delegated and empowered practice manager is a key component of a well led practice”
Considering that the majority of failed CQC inspections are in the are of the “well led” outcome, surely there is no better reason, to not only look after your Practice Manager but delegate, empower and reflect this in their salaries based on responsibilities