by Mark Hartley
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Some 16 years after the last labor dispute in major league baseball, I’m starting to thaw a bit about abandoning the game I loved as a young adult. It all started when Dr. Sheri Doniger introduced me to Wrigley Field for a couple of games. Then I traveled to Kauffman Stadium with a pair of PennWell colleagues to watch the Royals play.
It’s step-by-step in reviving this relationship. I’m not as passionate about the game as I once was ... yet. Part of that passion is poring over statistics, and I haven’t reached that level.
Perhaps RDH eVillage will prod me along in that regard. RDH’s electronic sister publication continues to ask questions with its frequent surveys.
Maybe I’m just an old-time baseball fan, but I find the statistics to be interesting.
Did you know that only 24% of hygienists receive a service award or gift from a dental practice after five, 10, 15, etc. years of employment? I didn’t either. It’s a pretty basic management technique to initiate — acknowledging employee loyalty.
Did you know that 43% of dental hygienists would join the American Dental Hygienists’ Association if employers assisted with dues? Yeah, I know. There are several cans of worms associated with that statistic. However, as of this writing, only 6% of employers help with ADHA dues, and 46% of hygienists pay their own dues. Only 5% of the remainder said they wouldn’t join even if the employer offered to help with the dues. Should the ADHA start marketing to dentists more to boost membership?
Dentists might go for it. You never know. After all, only 36% do not provide any assistance with earning continuing education credits. The vast majority will at least pay for the course, and smaller percentages will cover travel expenses, and some even cover salaries during the courses.
Then there’s ‘Ewww’ ...
Did you know that only 43% of dental hygienists receive paid sick days? Most hygienists are not paid if they call in sick. However, I should point out that this particular question allowed RDH eVillage readers to comment on their offices’ sick day policies. A surprising number said they, as well as other staff members (including the dentist), take the illness with them to work, which, of course, happens to be a health-care setting. I’m not sure if Noel Kelsch, RDH magazine’s infection control writer, reads RDH eVillage (as well as other infection control experts).
But they must be shuddering over the uphill struggle involved in controlling disease in a rather volatile bacterial environment when staff members are ill.
In fact, Noel wrote a column about it in June 2008 titled, “Don’t Let Me Say, ‘You Make Me Sick.’” She also wrote a column in July 2009 titled simply, “That’s Gross,” about other unsanitary practices in a dental office.
All of this reminded me about a recent news story originating out of Minnesota. A dentist evaded suspension by the state’s dental board (conjuring up yet more visions of good ol’ networks) for an “unsterile office” that “failed to provide proper safety and sanitary conditions” (as well as other charges about the doctor’s verbal abuse of patients).
The local newspapers all have comment areas for the friendly Minnesota public to jump right in with their thoughts. One resident said “Ewww” in her comments. I double-checked, since “eww” usually has just two w’s. As an editor, I’m happy to report that the rest of the comment was clean, no typos. So this particular office deserved an “ewww.”
Speaking of percentages, I’m 99.9% certain that practice management consults advocate conducting yourself in a way that won’t get you an “ewww” in the public. It’s bad for business, eh?
