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The dental nursing recruitment crisis has affected practices nationwide and ours was no exception! I work in a busy three surgery practice in Leeds and it was difficult when some of our nursing staff did not return to work with us after the Covid pandemic lockdown.

Initially, we tried very hard to recruit new dental nurses while the team shared the workload and adapted our diaries whenever necessary. However, it was challenging to sustain this way of working Like so many other practices, we were exhausted with the new adaptions Covid brought and the ever-increasing demand for appointments

I knew this was not how I wanted to practice and began considering other options, such as moving practices. I quickly realised that the grass isn’t always greener and knew in my heart I didn’t really want to leave my team and my patients. However, this difficult time was compounded for me after the sudden loss of my beloved horse – I was distraught! I soon realised that I had reached burnout and fleetingly considered having a complete break from the profession

I subsequently made the difficult decision to give up working at one of my practices and stay closer to home.

Although my commute was much improved, and I was finally enjoying a better work life balance, I found myself stuck with the same problems – the practice was very short staffed and we found it increasingly difficult to source locum dental nurses

A decision was made that we need to really pull together as a team, which took multitasking to a new level! On occasion, my principle dentist provided chairside nursing support for me when not in clinic herself Although it is always slightly daunting to have your ‘boss’ watching you during every appointment, it definitely brought us closer as a team Our new found skills meant we are all once again competent in undertaking tasks we would not normally be responsible for on a daily basis, such as decontamination and sterilisation, chasing referrals and managing the practice diary.

As a team, we are now stronger than ever and very excited to have two new trainee dental nurses, who are an asset. As I was not a dental nurse previously, it is easy to overlook all the day to day tasks they have to complete. Dental nurses have always been integral members of the team, but the last six months have re-affirmed the importance and value of good dental nurses to the team.

Poppy Irvine

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