Young dentists explore their 'worth' with their peers

Young dentists explore the issue of 'worth' with their peers

Recently qualified dentists at this year’s Young Dentist Conference spent the day discussing their concerns about their future within dentistry, with a panel of other young business people at a similar stage in a variety of careers as well as with fellow dentists.

The expert panel of speakers included Neal Raval, a newly qualified dentist now working in Germany, Saaqib Ali winner of the FMC Young Dentist of the Year Award and James Hamill, a Northern Irish Dentist with an award winning practice.

James and Saaqib addressed the young dentists’ concerns about setting up in practice in the current economic and political climate. Both delivered advice to the delegates based on their own business models, suggesting that making a practice ‘stand out’ from others nearby would improve its chances of success.

Neal advised the young dentists on how to calculate the appropriate fees for services rendered – an area many young dentists feel uncomfortable discussing. Neal was confident that so long as a dentist is ‘consistent, predictable and successful’ when carrying out a procedure, and continues to build upon their professional education, they should not be embarrassed in charging a rate which reflects their knowledge and experience.

A young lawyer and young entrepreneur were on hand to amplify the points raised on fee charging, adding that any young professional feels a similar apprehension towards dealing with the issue of money and that having confidence in your skills and a knowledge of the ‘value’ of the service to the patient will help.

Finally, three young dentists in different areas of specialism – endodontics, periodontics and orthodontics acted as advocates for their chosen speciality in open debate to save it from being sent to Surgery 101; a take on the popular TV show, Room 101. Following the lively debate, the delegates chose to send orthodontics to Surgery 101, preferring to save the preventative attributes of endo and perio.

The Young Dentist Conference is organised annually by Dental Protection in association with the BDA and BDJ. This year it was staged at the Royal College of Physicians in London on 7 February, with over 250 delegates in attendance.