LOCUM: A DAILY ROUTINE OR A PRACTICE BUILDER? THE CHOICE IS YOURS!

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Earn some money; gain some experience, a side-gig during entrance preparation so that you don’t lose the “touch” of treating patients or simply a means to buy some time till you decide what you want to do in the future. These are some of the common reasons why most dental students join a LOCUM after graduation.

LOCUM, a temporary routine of 6-12 months meant to learn the basics of clinic and patient management, the quintessential skills necessary to establish a practice. 

The question is, are these skills enough to establish a SUCCESSFUL practice?

While it is true without a doubt that running a successful practice demands that you learn ON THE JOB and OVER THE YEARS rather than gain all the skills necessary and then look to start fresh, it is also true that it won’t hurt your chances if you start developing a few skills early on especially during the often overlooked LOCUM PERIOD.

After all, a LOCUM is in reality an INVESTMENT, most importantly an investment of TIME. So, it goes without saying that like with any other investment, your goal here too should be to ensure that you get the best possible returns. Returns in the form of trade skills in addition to the basic management skills that will serve to give you a head start when establishing a practice of your own in the future.

How do you do that? Well, it can be narrowed down to just 2 steps;

STEP 1: “OBSERVE YOUR DENTIST”

While OBSERVATION generally involves watching your dentist work on a patient with the aim of understanding the basics of going about any procedure, it is also important that you understand WHY your dentist is treating the patient he/she is treating.

In order to do so, you will have to OBSERVE how your dentist operates.

This includes observing everything; from the way they present themselves to the patients, to the way they converse with the patients be it the treatment needed, the treatment plan recommended, the pros and cons of different procedures, explaining the procedure best suited for the patients, to finally convincing the patients to undergo a desired procedure.

Basically, observe the way your dentist presents and converses.

This minute yet important detail is what determines the success of any practice. Start observing your dentist even when he/she is not in the operator chair (without being creepy of course!) and start applying those skills to your practice when the time arrives.

STEP 2: CHOOSE A LOCUM BASED ON THE PRACTICE YOU WANT

Quick question: You plan on buying a SEDAN in the near future but don’t know how to drive, would you start training in an SUV or on a BIKE?

Neither right? You’d train in a SEDAN!

Yet, many dental graduates will spend months of their LOCUM PERIOD practicing at a trust or a chain just for the money even though their future goal is to set up a private practice or spend entire evenings at their local dentist "observing" when they really want to climb up the career ladder at a dental clinic chain.

If you are clear about the kind of practice that you want to establish and grow in the future, it makes sense to seek out a LOCUM that closely mimics your desired practice!

It doesn’t matter if you have to strike out a few options or have to travel a bit. If you train in a set up where the patient set you encounter (e.g. a highly affluent neighbourhood) is the polar opposite of the one you EXPECT to encounter at your own set up (e.g. a working class neighbourhood), you will have to dramatically alter the planning, management and marketing skills to suit your target population.

End result? Even though you would have gained all the skills necessary to grow a profitable practice during your locum period, you will still have to spend some time tweaking their application to suit your own practice.

Choose a locum based on the practice you want and have imagined for yourself and you will know your way around half of the obstacles that will arise when you establish your own practice.

To conclude, for a dental graduate, the LOCUM PERIOD can serve to be the blueprint of his/hers professional future rather than just a temporary stint learning the basics provided that they focus on acquiring and applying the skills beyond the dental chair.

LOCUM: A DAILY ROUTINE OR A PRACTICE BUILDER? 

The choice...is yours to make!

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