Holiday Staffing Tips From Your Onboarding Manager

The holidays are the busiest, most unpredictable stretch of the year for dental offices. Patients rush to use their benefits, team members take well-earned time off, and seasonal colds make their way through every household.

So we asked someone who helps offices get set up for success every day: Gretchen Richard, Onboarding Manager at Cloud Dentistry. Here's her advice on getting ahead of holiday PTO and keeping your schedule full through the new year.

What's the one thing offices should do now to get ahead of holiday staffing?

Gretchen: Make a backup plan, and make it before you need it.

One of the biggest concerns I see this time of year is seasonal sickness. With the holidays, people are naturally spending more time together, which means more exposure. And sometimes it isn't the team member who gets sick, it's their kids, and that means they need to stay home too.

When you add holiday PTO on top of sick days, gaps in the schedule are almost guaranteed. Having a backup plan like Cloud Dentistry in place before those call-outs happen takes the stress off everyone: the office manager, the rest of the team, and your patients.

What's a common holiday staffing mistake you see offices make?

Gretchen: Assuming they'll be fully staffed during the end-of-year busy season.

A lot of patients want to use their insurance benefits before the year ends. That's great for the practice, but if you don't have the staff to handle the influx, you have a problem: longer wait times, rushed appointments, and patients you can't fit in at all.

The fix is to plan for demand, not just for your current schedule. Having access to Cloud Dentistry's professionals is the safest way to make sure you can see every patient who wants to get in before December 31.

What's your hot tip for making an office profile stand out?

Gretchen: A profile picture and a practice description go a long way.

Many professionals research an office before they commit to a shift. They want to know who you are, what kind of practice you run, and what a day with your team looks like. The more information you provide, the more confident they'll feel picking up your shifts, and the easier it is for top professionals to choose you.

Your holiday staffing checklist

• Build a backup plan for sick days and holiday PTO now, before the call-outs start
• Plan for the end-of-year rush of patients using their insurance benefits
• Add a profile picture and practice description to your Cloud Dentistry profile

Ready to get ahead of the holidays? Post your shifts on Cloud Dentistry and have trusted dental professionals ready when you need them.