Recruitment challenges in dentistry are rarely caused by percentages, UDAs, or diary gaps alone. Far more often, they stem from a deeper mismatch in values, motivations, and developmental stage between a clinician and a practice. By understanding how both dentists and practices evolve through the Graves Drives, recruitment can shift from frustration and turnover to clarity, alignment, and long-term fit.
Culture is the flavour of your practice. Just as the right blend of ingredients creates a delicious cake, the mix of motivations, values, and thinking patterns within your team determines whether your practice feels calm and connected or tense and chaotic. By understanding Graves Drives, you gain the insight needed to recruit wisely, reduce conflict, prevent burnout, and build an inclusive, high-functioning practice where everyone can thrive.
Most practice toxicity has nothing to do with bad people and everything to do with mismatched values. The Graves Drives reveal why some teams thrive, others fracture, and why the wrong hire can destabilise an entire practice.
Many practices are struggling to recruit and motivate clinicians, cover fixed costs, and maintain high standards of care. The issue is rarely just the pay structure. It is the behaviour and motivation that the structure unintentionally creates.
Running effective staff appraisals in dentistry requires far more than a tick-box review. When team members reflect honestly on their current state, define their desired future, understand the real gaps, and follow a clear plan to bridge them, motivation rises and performance transforms. This article introduces the Achievement and Planning Review and a new Dental Nurse Scope of Practice Balance Wheel to help practices build confident, capable and engaged teams.
In the NHS, every clinician is paid the same UDA rate, regardless of experience or skill. But in private practice, that mindset limits growth, demotivates clinicians, and confuses patients. This blog explores why dentistry needs a transparent clinical career pathway and differential fee structure—mirroring professions like law and hairdressing—to reward development, improve retention and deliver care that truly reflects clinician expertise.
In Oldtown, Dr Solomon notices three ways patients seek care: those who prevent, those who act early, and those who wait until crisis strikes. A conversation under the wisteria arch with his coach, Purple Jane, reveals a parallel among practice owners: the navigator, the fire watcher, and the storm chaser. This parable invites dentists to reflect on their own path and what they might choose next
As household budgets tighten, many patients are delaying elective care, challenging young clinicians who have never worked through a recession. By strengthening core clinical skills, building trust, and adapting how you communicate, you can support patients through difficult times and position yourself for future growth.
Too many dentists assume that being an associate automatically means being self-employed — until HMRC says otherwise. Across the UK, both clinicians and principals are finding that their everyday working arrangements don’t match what’s written in their contracts. This article explores what it truly means to be self-employed in dentistry, how both sides can protect themselves, and why a truth-full conversation today could prevent financial and emotional pain tomorrow
In dentistry, teamwork is often spoken about but rarely fully lived. Just like a championship sports team, a high-performing dental team doesn’t simply turn up on match day — they train, plan, communicate, and commit to the shared vision. True teamwork means muddy winter training sessions, shared strategy, and playing full out for patients, the practice, and one another. Explore what teamwork really means with Jane’s Six Magic Questions.