Don't torture yourself
Today and yesterday I've been dealing with various government departments trying to register on a website. Because I'm stubborn I did not give up and so far have spent 4-5 hours on the phone trying unsuccessfully to achieve something that should take 2 minutes.
With respect to the nine government employees I've spoken with so far they've all been very polite, even chatty. But, the moment they realise the problem is not simple they immediately do two things:
Explain why it has nothing to do with their department.
Fob me off to someone else.
The government employees are following a process, not chasing an outcome. As long as they are polite and then pass you on to someone else they feel they have done their job. My wants as the "customer" are completely irrelevant. I feel like a tennis ball that has been hit back and forward across a net all day.
Reflecting back across my time as a practice owner I can broadly identify two types of staff members.
The first were like the public servants. Any task would get half done or ¾ done but difficult tasks got handed on or forgotten. These staff members focussed on the process.
The second kept their eyes on the goal and did whatever it took to get the result. They focussed on the outcome and the process was whatever it took to get there. They did not give up until they satisfied their customer.
You could call these two types of staff members "passengers" or "performers". A government department can be chock full of passengers because they have a captive audience. But your dental practice needs performers because if patients don't get what they want they can go elsewhere.
How is your staff? Who are the "passengers" and who are the "performers"? I reckon that I could get more done with 4 performers than 10 passengers.