Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

9Practice ManagementUnited Kingdom Edition April 9-15, 2012 msc_ad_source_uk.pdf 1 03/08/2009 15:21:59 W e have multi-skilled healthcare profes- sionals in this coun- try who provide dental health care to the population. Dedi- cated, committed and highly skilled dental teams are fo- cused on offering high quality care for patients within and without the NHS. However, sometimes things can go a little awry and their pro- fessional integrity is called into question. If this happens the over- riding concern is always for patient safety but profession- als also need support and sensitively to ensure they are treated fairly by the organi- sation employing them. After all, for the majority, an epi- sode of sub-standard perfor- mance will not spell the end of a career. With the right support and management of the situation most professionals will con- tinue with their work and the treatment of patients. Quick and effective intervention regarding performance con- cerns should result in the de- sired outcomes – which must always include support for the practitioner. Importantly, all concerns must be treated in a fair and consistent manner. Consider these questions: • What constitutes a perfor- mance concern? • Who could/should raises concerns? • Do those who could or should raise concerns know how to do so? • Who should manage a per- formance concern once it has been raised? • Do you know the answers to these questions? A ‘poor performance’ reporting system should be simple enough to fol- low so that everyone knows who to speak to and what will be done, whomever the concern involves. Sometimes it is difficult to voice con- cerns especially if it relates to your boss, however, it is important to remember your reasons for raising a concern at this point. Your in-house process and procedure will have identified individuals who will be able to help at this point. Performance concerns may relate to: • Standard of work – for example frequent mistakes or not following a task through • An inability to handle a rea- sonable volume of work to a Improving practice performance Amanda Atkin considers what you should do when things go awry page 10DTà ‘The over-riding concern is always for patient safety, but professionals also need support’