Touring across the UK, Practice Plan’s Nourish and Flourish workshop tour, an exclusive event for Practice Plan members, sees Michael Bentley host an entertaining yet informative day to rebuild and re-energise practice teams after the past few years of relentless pressures.
After a challenging few years, many dental teams have lost their spark. Relentless pressures and multiple crises have exhausted many people in dentistry.
That’s why Practice Plan has been touring the UK with their annual workshop tour – to rebuild that connection, help practices thrive, and revive their passion.
With over 20 years in the dental industry, Michael Bentley, the workshop speaker, has a thorough understanding of the challenges practices face day-to-day and how to revitalise dental teams.
He said: ‘The main focus of the tour is about bringing the teams back together after a really, really difficult time. I think everybody’s resilience has reduced and we need to rebuild that.
‘The day is all about focusing on the team, so we look at resilience and passion and we look at how to implement brilliant systems so team members understand what’s expected of them.’
Working in harmony
For Michael and the Practice Plan team, the overarching theme of the tour is really important. ‘We came up with the nourish and flourish theme because of how vital the patient experience is. We need to make sure we’re always brilliant to patients.
‘But your team can’t always be fantastic with patients if they’re feeling depleted and unmotivated. We need the team to feel enthused and to be working in harmony.
‘So it’s my job today to nourish everybody so that they can go back and flourish in their practices – that’s how the event was born. ‘
As such, the topics of the day were meticulously designed by Practice Plan and Michael to help practices build mental resilience, develop their in-practice systems, and refresh their cultures. In addition, interactive discussions and exercises took place throughout the day to dive deeper into these topics.
Understanding what makes team members feel valued and how these things can help to retain dental team members was a key component of the workshop. The attendees were able to vote on how they feel valued, allowing the teams to really understand each other.
Michael also discussed the different cultures of dental practices and how to get the most out of team meetings.
For those that are HR savvy, the discussions on how to avoid grievances and how to deal with complaints were particularly useful.
He also paid a lot attention to welfare, including the importance of mental health first aid. The attendees were given access to a range of different resources, support and training such as financial support, mental health and wellbeing, and learning hubs, all created by the team at Practice Plan.
‘We left feeling so motivated’
The team at Panshanger Dental Practice attended the workshop so they could develop and grow together.
‘By being the best team it means we can consistently provide the best service‘, practice manager Kirsten Ibbetson said.
‘The energy of Michael Bentley was contagious. We left feeling so motivated and excited for the year ahead!’
When asked about what the team had taken away from the workshop, Kirsten said: ‘We are going to be implementing the morning huddle. Setting goals for the day ahead and starting the day in a positive way definitely sets the tone for the day.
‘I also will be taking the mental health first aid training soon which is provided through Practice Plan. It’s such an important role to have in the practice’.
Louise, practice manager of Church Street Dental Practice, felt the topics of the workshop were very helpful. ‘One of the most useful topics today was about recruitment because that’s a big thing that we’re going through at the moment.
‘Also, learning about how to get people passionate about what they do and pointing people in the right place for their passion has been great.’
She had very high praises for the workshop. ‘This has been hands down the best course I’ve been on’, she said. ‘He’s brilliant. It’s so engaging – it brings it to life. It’s been far better than a lot of courses – thank you Practice Plan’.
A sheer delight
While the workshop covered some heavy topics, such as mental health, discrimination, payrises, workplace bullying and dealing with complaints, Michael’s charisma and entertaining delivery made sure the attendees were engaged.
For Sam, practice manager at Distinctly Dental, Michael influenced her decision to attend the workshop. ‘I look forward to anything he has to say.
‘I’ve been to events where he’s presented before and he’s really interesting’.
As well as the attendees, Michael has really enjoyed the Nourish and Flourish tour. He said: ‘The workshop tour has been a sheer delight, really. For me to reconnect with all teams across the United Kingdom has just been an amazing experience.
‘Coming from practice myself and working in dentistry for the last 22 years, it’s been really lovely to be able to share my knowledge and give them an entertaining day full of substance and fun.
‘For me, people learn the best when they’re having a laugh – they remember things, and that’s what I like them to do.’
The same sentiment was shared by receptionist Donna from Godmanchester dental. She said: ‘Michael is very entertaining. He’s made it very enjoyable.
‘It’s not been a dry training session at all. It’s been very entertaining and I think that makes you remember it a lot more too’.
Practice Plan holds an annual Workshop Tour exclusively for their members – details for the next workshop will be announced soon.
For more information visit www.practiceplan.co.uk
