Bridging the Gap Between Front Office and Back-Office Communication

Real-World Insights from Jenny Turner, MAADOM.

 

When I became a dental office manager, I realized there was poor communication between the front-office and back-office teams. To me, as an office manager, we all must know each other’s role to an extent.

I quickly learned that we needed a lot of help from the two of them. I wanted to set clear expectations from the start.

Bridging the Gap with Policies and Procedures

First, I set policies and procedures in place. I started with job descriptions that included role-specific responsibilities. I then had my front team go back individually to watch how the back office ran and vice versa.

The entire team learned that the front office and back office run differently. I feel if the front team is good at communicating with the back team, the office will run a lot easier.

The Importance of Morning Huddles

I also started a morning huddle where we all had to go over the schedule every day together to make our day run smoothly.

One team member goes through our schedule one week ahead of time to ensure we have the most current X-rays and patient information. If, for some reason, we do not, we have plenty of time to reach out and get what we need.

In a specialty office, the patient is referred for a specific situation, so the more accurate we can get, the better. The front office team ensures we have a referral from the referring doctor’s office so we know exactly what we are looking at.

We gather as a team 30 minutes prior to patients to go over the details of the day, which in turn makes the day typically run smoother and easier.  The doctors are also active with our huddle, which is very important because they see that we have the schedule down and know what is going on from the beginning to the end of the day.

We add some fun trivia at the end of our huddle so we can end with something fun. It keeps us all engaged until the very end.

This has been a great tool for communication, and we are all on the same page when we start our day.

Learn More About Morning Huddles

Get Creative with Team Building Exercises

Another form of communication we like to do is team building exercises. We do this as a team twice a year, and twice a year, we bring our family, and they join in our team building.

I believe this strengthens our team in a very positive way because knowing we can do things outside of the office as a team with our families is amazing. We all enjoy each other’s company even when not in the office.

Communication is clearly an excellent way to bring your team together. Effective communication is about sharing your thoughts in an understanding way. It also leads to happier and healthier relationships and a better feeling about everything around us. When you communicate, you have a great collaboration with your team.

 

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About the Author

 

Jenny Turner, MAADOM

Jenny Turner graduated from dental assisting school in May 1998, marking the beginning of her dental journey. Over the years, she has gained valuable knowledge and takes pride in the expertise she has contributed to the dental field.

Jenny has been married for 18 years and has a 7-year-old son whose life revolves around baseball, one of her favorite activities to watch him enjoy.

Jenny has been a member of AADOM since 2018 and earned her AADOM Mastership Distinction in 2024.

 

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