By Richard Carlson, DMD
How online training is making it easier to turn someone with no dental experience into a valuable member of your clinical team.
The Dental Assistant Bullpen: A Smarter Solution to the Staffing Shortage
What if the answer to your dental assistant shortage isn’t finding an experienced assistant—but developing your own?
Throughout my many years of practicing dentistry, one of the most frustrating challenges I faced was finding qualified dental assistants when I needed them. There were times when it seemed that there simply weren’t any experienced assistants available to hire.
And when you’re short an assistant, the consequences go far beyond the inconvenience. Production suffers, schedules become disrupted, patients may need to be rescheduled, and the entire office feels the stress.
But thanks to today’s online training technology, I believe there is a better way to approach this problem.
What If You Could Develop Your Own Dental Assistants?
Think about how many times you’ve encountered a bright, personable, hardworking young individual working in a restaurant, grocery store, or another service business and thought, “That person would make a great dental assistant.”
In the past, hiring someone without dental experience was difficult. How could you possibly train a new assistant while simultaneously trying to maintain a productive schedule and provide excellent patient care?
The answer, for most dentists, was that you couldn’t—at least not without a significant investment of time and a temporary loss of productivity.
Today, online dental assistant training programs are changing that equation.
There are now structured, self-paced educational programs that allow someone with no previous dental experience to begin learning the fundamentals of dental assisting through online coursework and instructional videos.
Instead of relying entirely on the dentist or an experienced assistant to provide every aspect of training, a new employee can learn much of the foundational material independently.
They can work in your office during the day, gaining valuable hands-on experience, and continue their education at home on their own schedule.
Of course, online instruction doesn’t replace supervised clinical training or any certification requirements established by your state. But it can significantly reduce the amount of time your existing staff must devote to teaching the basics.
Some programs can even be purchased once and used repeatedly, although additional fees may apply when enrolling new employees.
This creates an opportunity that I believe many dental practices are overlooking.
Introducing the Dental Assistant “Bullpen”
In baseball, a team doesn’t wait until its pitcher gets injured or exhausted before thinking about a replacement. It has other pitchers warming up in the bullpen, ready to step in when needed.
Why shouldn’t a dental practice operate the same way?
Instead of waiting until you’re desperately searching for an experienced assistant, consider hiring and training someone before you actually need another chairside assistant.
Start that individual in a position that immediately benefits the practice.
For example, the new employee might initially work as a sterilization technician, helping with instrument processing, stocking supplies, preparing treatment rooms, and breaking down operatories between patients.
These responsibilities provide immediate value while allowing the employee to become familiar with the dental environment, equipment, instruments, terminology, and daily workflow.
Meanwhile, the employee progresses through a structured online dental assisting program.
As their knowledge and skills improve, they can gradually assume additional clinical responsibilities under appropriate supervision and within state regulations.
Over time, you develop someone who is capable of stepping into a chairside assisting position when needed.
You’ve created your own dental assistant bullpen.
The Financial Benefits Can Be Substantial
Consider what happens when one of your experienced assistants calls in sick, takes an unexpected leave, or resigns.
Without adequate coverage, you may have to reduce the schedule, postpone procedures, or cancel patients entirely.
Now imagine having a trained employee already in your office who can step into that position.
Instead of losing production, your practice continues operating with minimal disruption.
But the financial benefits don’t stop there.
Consider those days when an emergency patient calls and your schedule is already full. How often have you wished you had another assistant available so you could open an additional operatory and take care of that patient?
Having an additional trained team member may allow you to accommodate more emergencies, improve patient service, and generate additional production that otherwise might have been lost.
The financial equation is worth considering:
● Production preserved by avoiding canceled or postponed appointments.
● Additional production generated by accommodating emergency patients and making better use of available operatories.
● Reduced recruiting and onboarding costs by developing employees internally.
● Improved efficiency when sterilization, room turnover, and instrument preparation are handled by a dedicated team member.
● Less dependence on the availability of experienced assistants in your local job market.
Naturally, there is a cost associated with employing and training an additional person. But when you compare that expense with the potential cost of lost production and staffing disruptions, the investment may make excellent financial sense.
There’s Another Benefit: Team Accountability
Having a trained person in the bullpen can also influence the dynamics of your existing team.
When employees know that the practice has no one available to replace them, it can create an unhealthy dependence on individual team members.
In some situations, that can make staffing problems more difficult to address.
A well-trained backup gives the practice greater flexibility and allows the dentist to manage personnel decisions without feeling that the entire schedule depends on one individual.
This isn’t about making employees feel threatened or easily replaceable. It’s about creating a stronger, more resilient team in which everyone understands that the practice has a plan for maintaining excellent patient care.
It also provides your newer employee with a clear opportunity for professional growth and advancement.
The Benefit You Can’t Easily Measure: Less Stress
Anyone who has owned a dental practice knows the feeling.
An assistant calls in sick. Another employee is on vacation. Your schedule is full, and you start wondering how you’re going to get through the day.
Or worse, one of your best assistants gives two weeks’ notice, and you know there may not be a qualified replacement available in your area.
That kind of uncertainty creates tremendous stress for the dentist, the office manager, and the rest of the team.
Now imagine knowing that you already have someone trained, familiar with your office, and capable of stepping in.
How much is that peace of mind worth?
For many dentists, it may be just as valuable as the additional production.
Stop Waiting for the Perfect Assistant. Start Developing One.
If your community consistently has a shortage of experienced dental assistants, continuing to rely exclusively on recruiting experienced people may not be the best long-term strategy.
Instead, consider building a system that allows you to identify promising individuals, train them gradually, and create your own dependable supply of dental assistants.
You don’t necessarily need someone with dental experience. You need someone with the right attitude, intelligence, work ethic, and willingness to learn.
The technical skills can be taught.
With today’s online educational resources, developing your own assistants is more practical than ever before.
The best time to train your next dental assistant is before you desperately need one.
And the next time an assistant calls in sick, resigns unexpectedly, or your schedule fills with emergency patients, you’ll appreciate having someone ready in the bullpen.
Dr. Rick Carlson is the founder of Dental Profit Advisor. After many years of owning and operating a highly productive dental practice, along with eight years teaching part-time in the University of Florida’s Advanced Education in General Dentistry residency program, he now helps dentists improve practice efficiency, profitability, and team performance.