**Practice Management Series: Dedicated Reception Staff**
Over the past year we’ve been trialling having dedicated rostered shifts for phone and email management and would like to share our experience. This article is directed at larger surgeries (>4 chairs). Overall, it was a success and something we will be implementing going forward.
The reason we initially looked at this was due to feedback from our reception team at our 8-surgery site. The team explained that they were regularly being interrupted and constantly switching between tasks leading to less work overall getting done. We have online appointments but the volume of calls and emails received at this surgery is also high due to the large number of patients we see per day. We also provide the complete range of dental services including the specialties and also GA.
In terms of the specifics, at this 8-surgery site we implemented having 2 dedicate receptionists to answer all calls and manage emails. Another 2 to 3 receptionists were rostered for all other tasks (attending to patients, addressing dentist inquiries and managing other various office duties).
There were several benefits. Firstly, it allowed the receptionists not answering the phones and responding to emails to focus fully on patients as they arrive and depart from the surgery. Many of us have experienced those busy and understaffed GP practices with grumpy receptionists that barely acknowledge you as you arrive. We make it a top priority to stand-up and greet every patient that walks into the clinic with a warm smile.
Secondly, it has also allowed the receptionists dedicate to phone calls and emails to manage these tasks more effectively throughout the day. Emails are replied to in a timely manner and calls are answered within a few rings with minimal hold times. Thirdly, the reception team was much happier and reported significantly reduced stress levels. Lastly, we noted reception as a whole was much more efficient with tasks being completed within the appropriate timeframes.
One of the downsides we initially thought of was that the staff may favor 1 of the dedicated roles and not want to be rostered on the other and thus “deskill”. We needed our whole reception team to be able to do both roles due to rostering, filling-in, emergency situations and also as they may work at our smaller surgeries where they need to be able to do both roles. However, over the year we didn’t find this to be an issue. We ensured staff were rostered in both roles regularly. Several receptionists did enjoy handling phones and emails. Alternatively, others preferred to work on the front desk, engaging directly with patients. Overall though, we didn’t have any pressure from the team to change the roster or swap out of a role.
Anyone who has worked on a busy front desk knows interruptions can significantly hamper efficiency. Constantly switching between tasks can also lead to more stress for staff members. Overall, we found implementing these dedicated roles led to a much more enjoyable work environment for our reception team.
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