Dentist-staff interpersonal relationships

The growing demand for dental services has resulted in an expanded utilization of auxiliary personnel in an effort to increase productivity. Enlarged dental teams which have evolved from this effort have also magnified the potential for interpersonal conflicts in the office. Although such conflicts are sometimes unavoidable, they can be reduced through effective preventive management. Careful selection of personnel, well designed training programs, and attention to those factors which assist retention of qualified staff members are important in this process. Finally, the entire team must have common goals and work in a coordinated fashion to achieve ultimate success. The dentist of today must possess the skills of an effective manager as well as those of a competent clinician.