Management monday: Who is your training manager?

In a large practice the ‘management’ duties often need to be shared as there is so much for every manager to do, it’s difficult to fulfil the role!

This week we wanted to share with you how Rachel went from being a dental nurse with extended skills to becoming the training manager in her practice:

In 2010 during my annual appraisal my manager we outlined the vision we had for the practice in terms of how I wanted to use my extended skills to increase my job satisfaction and quite frankly curb my frustrations. After 14 years working chair side I was getting bored! I had soooo much more to give. Statutory registration for DCPs had been implemented two years previously and now we had the CQC registration looming.

I like many nurses out there was overseeing the implementation of HTM01:05 in the practice, ensuring members of the team were up to date and trained in all the relevant aspects, finding CPD sources and generally being treated like the oracle the “go to girl” for the many questions everyone seemed to have (as well as working chair side and attempting to launch a new and dynamic role in our the practice that would utilise all my years of experience and extended skills training).

And so it was decided I would be the Training Manager. A role specifically to meet the needs of all the dental team. I had after all a burning passion to teach for as long as I could remember.

So immediately I got myself enrolled at a local college to do the City & Guild 7303 qualification otherwise known as PTLLS – Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector. If I was doing this I was going to do it right! I wanted to ensure I knew about different learning styles and how to create lesson plans to deliver quality teaching with clear aims and outcomes.

I held my first training session for all 20 members of our team in 2011 – the CQC ‘What is it how does it effect us’. I was petrified! But 3 years later the role is well and truly cemented into the practice, I have designated time with the team every week!

A role Introduced to met the needs of the CQC we ensured all staff were trained in all aspects of the essential outcomes. Now every year I have a clearly laid out schedule, I use elements from the essential outcomes and the new GDC standards to structure the training schedule for example this month we focused on principle 5 “Have a clear and effective complaints system”  all members have now been trained on the practice complaints policy, how to deal with complaints and record them but also most importantly the types of language we use when faced with a complaint.

Now get me wrong it’s not all CQC and standards, I know my girls and how they learn best so we mix things up, sometimes we embrace the inner child and the training is delivered in the form of a game I have carte Blanche to get the message across and it’s fun being creative with the training. I also invite outside speakers into this slot throughout the year to vary the types of training the team gets and cover those aspects I simply can’t do.

So, did the training system pass the test when the CQC visited – Hell yeah!! We could demonstrate that every single team member had been trained. It also brings the whole team together on a regular basis so those little issues within a team don’t fester and become big issues there’s a platform for open communication.

The latest benefit of having a training manager comes with the new changes in HR and team members demonstrating competency. Quite frankly we wouldn’t be without a training manager and neither should you.

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