AADOM News |4 min read

Creating the Best Morning Huddle Template for Your Dental Team

Leslie A. Lytle, DAADOM with text, "Real-world insights from AADOM authors"

The best way to start the morning at the office is with a meeting of the minds, aka the morning meeting, huddle, gathering, etc.

Up until about six years ago, our dental practice didn’t hold morning huddles.

Once we did, we went through the trial and error of figuring out discussions that would be relevant to everyone.

In this quick blog, you’ll learn tips on making your dental practice stronger with the best morning huddle template.

Keeping the team engaged was a challenge

We started the morning gathering process utilizing a template from one of our suppliers.

The template structured the meeting to review:

  • “The numbers”
  • What happened yesterday
  • What was scheduled for today
  • A look into the day after

We also incorporated a bible verse or uplifting quote to start the day off right.

But:

It wasn’t long before we noticed we were losing the attention of the team.

They weren’t engaged, and even the doctors weren’t at each meeting.

I knew this had to change quickly.

I did my own research about holding morning huddles, including:

  • Watching webinars and zoom sessions
  • Seeking the advice of mentors
  • Searching online for dental office management tips

My goal was to develop our own meeting to make sure our team, including the doctors, was engaged.

Deciding what to cover each morning

The first step was to determine what to cover each morning.

We put together an anonymous poll for the team to complete. Having the input of everyone would gain buy-in to the meeting.

We asked them to jot down three to four areas they felt were most important to cover each morning.

What we found was very interesting; none of the team wanted to hear about the numbers and stats, and the doctor really didn’t want to cover this information each morning either.

Not all offices feel this way, hence the need to customize the meeting based on what the team and doctor feel are most important.

Here are some of the items our team felt were most important to cover each morning:

  • Verify if any patients were missing paperwork and/or x-rays, including transferred records.
  • Review staffing & case schedules: Are there any team members out today, do we have any cases first thing in the morning, or any starting right after lunch?
  • Are there any patient referrals to follow through on?
  • Go over oral sedation cases or major medical concerns that may need attention.
  • Review patient treatment plans so that doctors know if they need to express the need for completion.
  • Verify if any patients are on both hygiene and restorative the same day, or if a patient can be moved over for same day treatment. Discuss where the openings may be whether hygiene or restorative.
  • Discuss new patients being seen that day and allow the doctor to review where and what time they are needed for those exams.
  • Shout-outs to coworkers who did something uplifting or helped out in an area that needed assistance.
  • Reading patient reviews and celebrating work well done.
  • Incorporating a game or a group exercise each morning. We’ve done hand massages thanks to Kristen Brown and just received a Thumball we’re going to start using!

Team input has made the difference

Making the changes based on the team input, we’ve already noticed everyone becoming more involved and engaged.

They’re excited each morning to review the items they felt were important.

Shhh…

Even though they didn’t want to review “the numbers,” I do share the positives, especially when treatment acceptance is high or after a great week of rocket high numbers!

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Meet the Author

AADOM Author, Leslie Lytle, in fall apparel with trees in the background, author of blog on career enhancement as a dental office manager.
Leslie holds multiple degrees and certifications in business management, marketing, and dental assisting.

Over the past 20 years, she has grown her dental knowledge and skills to encompass the ultimate “top-notch” patient experience for each of her practice’s clients. One of her favorite parts of dentistry is caring for multiple generations of the same family who grew up as patients and now have children of their own.

Leslie is past president of the AADOM Wilmington, NC… This text opens a new tab to the Wilmington, NC chapter website… and was nominated for Practice Administrator of the Year. In 2021, Leslie was inducted as an AADOM Diplomate.

 

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