Making mistakes and patient complaints top the list of worries for young dentists, according to latest figures.
New data from Dental Protection shows one quarter (25%) of young dentists in the UK say they worry most about receiving complaints from patients following treatment.
In addition, 17% worry most about confrontation and disagreements during treatment.
Published today, the top 10 worries for early career dentists are:
- Making a mistake – 42%
- Complaints directly from patients after treatment – 25%
- Confrontation or disagreements with patients during treatment – 17%
- The impact of Covid-19 on financial security – 17%
- The impact of Covid-19 on their mental wellbeing – 16%
- Their career choice – 16%
- A clinical negligence claim being brought against them – 14%
- A GDC investigation into their practice – 13%
- Negative media coverage or reputational damage following a case or claim – 9%
- Disagreements with colleagues – 8%.
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Unsurprising
George Wright is deputy dental director at Dental Protection. He said: ‘The chief concern for early career dentists is a fear of making mistakes and this is understandable.
‘This has and always will be at the top of the list of worries as nobody wants to feel responsible for causing harm to a patient. It is also not surprising to see patient complaints and confrontation so high on the list.
‘The restrictions affecting access to routine dental care during the pandemic, and the resulting treatment backlog, are still impacting some dental professionals and there are of course a number of other factors affecting access to care including lack of NHS funding and practices being disincentivised from taking on new high needs patients.
‘Handling complaints after treatment or disagreements during treatment can be extremely challenging for any dental professional, however we understand that for those starting out in dentistry the ongoing “firefighting” reality may be particularly stressful.’
He added: ‘We support members in handling complaints and difficult interactions with patients’ day in day out and know it is unpleasant.
‘Now more than ever, early career dentists need to be confident in handling situations effectively to help avoid them escalating. This makes skills like expectation management, good communication, detailed record-keeping and establishing clear consent critical.’
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