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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Serie: How To (Dentistry)
- Sprache: Englisch
This innovative new book offers a user-friendly guide to securing a successful, varied, and fulfilling career in dentistry.
- Includes case studies of career trajectories across the full range of dental professions in the UK
- Advocates a portfolio approach to career development, illustrating the benefits of working in a matrix as opposed to climbing a ladder
- Showcases the opportunities inherent in specific areas of dentistry, what they can offer and what is required to successfully take advantage of them
- Written by one of the UK’s leading dental experts who has over 30 years in the profession, working on the local and national scale
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Seitenzahl: 327
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Foreword
Acknowledgements
List of contributors
Chapter 1: Introduction
The National Health Service
Career
Portfolio career
Working paradigms
Planning your career
Being a dental professional
Workforce and workforce planning
Bibliography
Chapter 2: Demography and society in the United Kingdom
Demography – general
Population size
Population age
General health
Oral health
Health of dentists
Dental care professionals
Working patterns
Impact on dental professionals
Technology rising
Retirement
Bibliography
Chapter 3: Dental opportunities
Is the dental workforce today the workforce we will need in 10–20 years and beyond?
How can I develop a portfolio career?
Dental careers – variety and opportunity
Useful organisations
Bibliography
Chapter 4: Coaching and mentoring
Coaching
Mentoring
Career planning
Personal development
Useful organisations
Bibliography
Chapter 5: Case studies of dental professionals
Mrs Janet Clarke MBE
Miss Bal Chana
Dr Shazad Khan Malik
Dr Emma Worrell
Mrs Sophie Noske
Professor Ros Keeton
Dr Derek Richards
Professor Deborah White
Dr Reena Patel
Mrs Penny McWilliams
Short biographies
Conclusion
Chapter 6: Networking and networks
How do you network?
What networking should not be
Where can you network?
Types of network
Electronic networks
Network map
Curriculum vitae
Chapter 7: Training and qualifications
Credit accumulation transfer schemes
Clinical programmes
Non-clinical programmes
Financial investment
Other sources of information about courses
Useful organisations and networks
Case studies
How to develop experience
Professional associations and other useful addresses
Bibliography
Index
End User License Agreement
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Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Foreword
Begin Reading
List of Illustrations
Chapter 1: Introduction
Figure 1.1 Kom Ombo wall, north of Aswan, showing 2000-year-old surgical instruments. Taken by the author in February 2012.
Figure 1.2 Sources of British pride. Source: Ipsos MORI 2013. Making sense of society, NHS at 65. https://www.ipsos-mori.com/newsevents/blogs/makingsenseofsociety/1553/Maintaining-pride-in-the-NHS-The-challenge-for-the-new-NHS-Chief-Exec.aspx#gallery[m]/0/ (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 1.3 Model illustrating moving between sectors and occupations.
Figure 1.4 Career cycles (adapted from Super
et al.
, 1996).
Figure 1.5 Out with the old…
Figure 1.6 …In with the new.
Figure 1.7 Push factors.
Figure 1.8 Career types and ideal careers (Brousseau and Driver, 1994).
Chapter 2: Demography and society in the United Kingdom
Figure 2.1 Projected change in the age structure of the population in England to 2032. Source: Office for National Statistics (2010). Statistical Bulletin. 2008-based subnational population projections. Reproduced with permission under the Open Government Licence: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/2/ (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.2 Population in England, 1971–2011. Source: ONS mid-year population estimates, NHAIS. Reproduced with permission under the Open Government Licence: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/2/ (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.3 Population in England, indexed, 1971–2011. Source: ONS mid-year population estimates, NHAIS. Reproduced with permission under the Open Government Licence: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/2/ (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.4 Proportion of the population with physical and mental health problems (England) 2012. Source: The King's Fund. Time to Think Differently. http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/time-to-think-differently/audio-video/case-change-slide-pack. Last accessed 18 March 2015. Reproduced with permission of The King's Fund.
Figure 2.5 Proportion of males and females overweight or obese, 2010. Source: The King's Fund. Time to Think Differently. http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/time-to-think-differently/audio-video/case-change-slide-pack. Last accessed 18 March 2015. Reproduced with permission of The King's Fund.
Figure 2.6 Percentage of adults in England with no teeth, 1968–2009. Source: Adult Dental Health Survey.
Figure 2.7 Changes in mean dmft/DMFT for children in the United Kingdom, 1973–2003. Source: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130107105354/http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_4123885.pdf (last accessed 18 March 2015). Reproduced with permission under the Open Government Licence: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130107105354/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/open-government-licence.htm.(last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.8 Proportion of 5-year-old children with no missing, filled or decayed teeth, 1973–2011/12. Source: Data are taken from results of caries surveys of five-year-olds in England from the Children's Dental Health Surveys and NHS Dental Epidemiology surveys, 1973 to 2012. http://www.nwph.net/dentalhealth/Oral%20Health%205yr%20old%20children%202012%20final%20report%20gateway%20approved.pdf (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.9 Variation in proportion of 5-year-old children in England with experience of dental caries, with 95% confidence limits, 2011/12. Source: Data are taken from results of caries surveys of five-year-olds in England from the Children's Dental Health Surveys and NHS Dental Epidemiology surveys, 1973 to 2012. http://www.nwph.net/dentalhealth/Oral%20Health%205yr%20old%20children%202012%20final%20report%20gateway%20approved.pdf (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.10 Periodontal health by age group in the United Kingdom, 2009. Source: Adult Dental Health Survey.
Figure 2.11 Time series and future projection of adult dental health, 1998–2030. ‘Healthier’ is defined as having 18 or more sound, untreated teeth. ‘Less healthy’ is defined as having less than 18 sound, untreated teeth. Source: Improving Dental Care & Oral Health – A call to action evidence resource pack, NHS England, Feb. 14 Gateway ref: 01173. Data taken from the Adult Dental Health Surveys 1998 & 2009, Health and Social Information Centre. http://www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/qual-clin-lead/calltoaction/dental-call-to-action/ http://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/cta-dent-evid-pack.pdf (last accessed 18 March 2015).
Figure 2.12 Self-reported expected age at retirement, Manchester and Dundee dental students (2007).
Chapter 3: Dental opportunities
Figure 3.1 Teule Hospital, Muheza, Tanzania. November 1985.
Chapter 4: Coaching and mentoring
Figure 4.1 The ‘Forton Transformational Coaching 4-Quadrant Diagram’. Reproduced with permission of the Forton Group Ltd. (www.thefortongroup.com).
Figure 4.2 Steps in career planning.
Chapter 5: Case studies of dental professionals
Figure 5.1 Potted curriculum vitae: Janine Brooks MBE.
Figure 5.2 Potted curriculum vitae: Janet Clarke MBE.
Figure 5.3 Potted curriculum vitae: Bal Chana.
Figure 5.4 Potted curriculum vitae: Shazad Khan Malik.
Figure 5.5 Potted curriculum vitae: Emma Worrell.
Figure 5.6 Potted curriculum vitae: Sophie Nosk.
Figure 5.7 Potted curriculum vitae: Ros Keeton.
Figure 5.8 Potted curriculum vitae: Derek Richards.
Figure 5.9 Potted curriculum vitae: Deborah White.
Figure 5.10 Potted curriculum vitae: Reena Patel.
Chapter 6: Networking and networks
Figure 6.1 Network map.
Figure 6.2 Sample curriculum vitae.
Figure 6.3 Functional CV.
List of Tables
Chapter 1: Introduction
Table 1.1 Organisations that impact on dental professions in the United Kingdom, by country
Table 1.2 Moving from old paradigms to new ways of working
Table 1.3 Number of dentist GDC registrants (31.12.13)
Table 1.5 Number of general dental practices (2013)
Table 1.6 Relative numbers of dentists per English practice
Table 1.7 General dental practices (BDA members 2013)
Chapter 2: Demography and society in the United Kingdom
Table 2.1 Age of dentists registered with General Dental Council (31 March 2013)
Table 2.2 DCPs registered with the General Dental Council, by age and professional group (31 March 2013)
Table 2.3 Self-reported expected age at retirement, BDA members (2013)
Chapter 3: Dental opportunities
Table 3.1 Major aspects of dentistry and their subdivisions
Table 3.2 Comparison of job grade categories
Table 3.3 Number of dentists registered by specialty, 31 December 2013
Chapter 4: Coaching and mentoring
Table 4.1 Area for development: record keeping
Table 4.2 Area for development: endodontics
Table 4.3 Nonacademic development activities
Chapter 6: Networking and networks
Table 6.1 Types of network
Table 6.2 Networking Web sites
Chapter 7: Training and qualifications
Table 7.1 Providers of post-registration training
Table 7.2 Royal colleges
Table 7.3 Universities
Table 7.4 Other courses/programme providers
Table 7.5 How to develop nonclinical experience
How to Develop Your Career in Dentistry
Janine Brooks MBE, DMed Eth, MSc, FFGDPUK, MCDH, DDPHRCS, FAcadMed, BDS
Dentalia Coaching & Training Consultancy
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Brooks, Janine, author.
How to develop your career in dentistry / Janine Brooks.
p. ; cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-118-91381-9 (pbk.)
I. Title.
[DNLM: 1. Dentistry–Great Britain. 2. Vocational Guidance–Great Britain. WU 21] RK60
617.6′0232–dc23
2015015317
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books.
Foreword
As someone who many might say reached the top of a dental career pathway, I think it is really interesting to look back and analyse what the principle drivers were in that career.
Developing a successful career involves a range of skills and an ability to be analytical in assessing the needs of the population, ignoring high-profile commercial pressures and learning where to get objective and constructive advice and criticism.
I think it is fundamental to understand that change is a constant and not to see change as a challenge but as an opportunity. An unreasonable commitment to the status quo is unlikely to lead to a successful career.
The significance of change and the need to treat it as an opportunity is true whether we are talking about a purely clinical career, be that in specialties or in general practice (and I think that differentiation will blur more and more in the coming years), the development of services or the area of public health.
The oral health of the nation has improved dramatically during my career, as have patient expectations and clinical techniques.
Ultimately, to feel fulfilled during your career you need to feel you have played your part in improving services to patients and have used your skills to the full.
A quality service, on both macro and micro scales, is one which is safe, clinically effective and makes the patient feel they have been treated with respect.
Key to the delivery of this aim is the development of high-quality clinical and professional leadership, and using your clinical skills and knowledge to improve services and outcomes for patients is one of the most rewarding things you can do. I would urge readers to take note of the advice in this book, which is written by someone who has a good knowledge of education and leadership.
Barry Cockcroft CBEChief Dental Officer for England2006–2015
Acknowledgements
I have been incredibly fortunate to have received contributions from a number of talented dental professionals, who between them demonstrate a huge range of the roles and responsibilities available to us in dentistry. They have generously written their career stories and shared their CVs with me and allowed me to pester them frequently for information. I am very grateful to them all, and I believe their words make careers in dentistry more accessible. As role models, they are second to none.
List of contributors
Jackie Arnold
Geraldine Birks
Malcolm Brady
Steve Boyle
Steve Brookes
Helen Caton-Hughes (for permission to use the ‘Forton Transformational Coaching 4-Quadrant Diagram’)
Bal Chana
Manish Chitnis
Janet Clarke MBE
Jane Dalgarno
Jane Davies-Slowik
Ken Eaton
Sara Holmes MBE
Ros Keaton
Estelle Los
Grainee Lynn (for checking accuracy)
Shazad Malik
Penny McWilliams
Margaret Nash
Sophie Noske
Reena Patel
Claudia Peace
Nichola Peasnell
Keith Percival
Heather Pope
Derek Richards
Ian Taylor
David Thomas (for checking accuracy)
Peter Thornley
Deborah White
Emma Worrell
I am also extremely grateful to a non-dental professional who has also contributed so generously of his time: John Brooks, my husband. He has tirelessly proof read the manuscript and offered a much needed sense check, allowing me to see the wood for the trees.
Chapter 1Introduction
Top Tip: Don't be afraid to tack – take the nonlinear path
Janine Brooks
Welcome to my book on How to Develop your Career in Dentistry. I hope you find it interesting and useful. I hope it makes you think about your career and encourages you to dip your toes into an exciting world of diversity and opportunity.
The approach I want to take is that our careers can be multistranded: I'm calling that having a ‘portfolio career’. In addition, I want to get you to think about the context in which we provide dentistry, our Society. Chapter 2 covers changes happening within society that will impact on dental professionals and the career choices they make. These include changes to retirement and pensions, as well as demographic changes, particularly in health and longevity, both of our patients and of us dental professionals. Chapter 3 discusses dental opportunities; here I will be giving you a taster of the many roles and responsibilities that dental professionals take on. Chapter 4 is about mentoring and coaching, both of which I feel are essential support for dental professionals seeking development and career enhancement. Chapter 5 I have dedicated to case studies. I have been fortunate in persuading a number of dental professionals to share their career stories with me and to allow me to include them in this book. I feel this is the heart of the book, as it showcases the breadth and depth of dental professionals' talents. Chapter 6 covers networking and networks: again, in my opinion, essential to a successful career. Finally, Chapter 7 discusses training and the qualifications you may want to think about when enriching your career and expanding what you do. Throughout the book, I have sprinkled Top Tips – both my own and those of other professionals. Feel free to give them a go. They may not all work for you, but some will. I have also sprinkled Career Highlights from a number of contributors throughout the chapters. To me, they demonstrate that dentistry is very rewarding and that, even if we struggle and find the demands of others a challenge, there is plenty of light and plenty of rewards to keep us going.
The self is not something ready made, but something in continuous formation, through choice of action.
Dewey (1916)
I really like this quote from Dewey. When he wrote it, he was thinking about reflection, but I feel it is very relevant to making choices and building a career. Opportunities may arise unexpectedly and unplanned, and often from the strangest direction, but it is our choice what action we take – no one else's. Take control, be the architect of your career. This may mean taking a few ‘risks’, maybe doing something for free. Make it part of your plan to be more opportunistic. If you learn to translate what you see, hear and do into your career, you might be surprised by the shape it takes on.
Career Highlight: Voluntary work abroad
Reena Patel
Another important aspect of the Dewey quote for me is the word ‘continuous’. Our careers should be continuous, growing, expanding, evolving, not static or stale. In dentistry, we are fortunate in being part of a profession that has a rich diversity of jobs and roles. I'm not saying it's easy, I'm not saying there won't be strong competition for some of the jobs you want, but you worked hard to enter the profession – that you need to work hard to build your career should not be a surprise.
Our career takes up a large proportion of our middle life – that's the life between leaving school (largely childhood) and retiring (largely older age). It obviously varies from person to person, but as a very rough estimate you will spend a minimum of 2775 full days (24 hours of each day – no sleeping) or 66 600 hours working. That will hold if the following are true:
You leave school at 18 years.
You spend 5 years training in your primary qualification.
You retire at 60 years of age.
You work 5 days a week, and take no time off for your family.
You take 6 weeks' annual leave each year.
You are sick for 5 days each year.
As you can see, this is a very rough estimate, based on variables that have considerable range. If you start work earlier, have less training time, retire earlier or later, work part time or take time off to raise your family, have less annual leave and are particularly healthy then you will spend even longer in your career. It's very likely most people reading this book will not retire at 60 years of age.
The real point I'm making here is that you will spend a considerable amount of your life working in your career. I guess that doesn't come as a surprise. What might, though, is exactly how much time it is. Until you really think about it, you probably just consider it ‘a lot’. So, if you are going to spend ‘a lot’ of your life tending to your career then the least you can do for yourself is make choices that you will enjoy and find fulfilling and satisfying. The good news is that the profession of dentistry can offer exactly that, plus a good remuneration – maybe not the best, but good nonetheless. Of course, you may be looking for a career where you do very little, make loads of money and have lots of spare time. If you are, then stop reading this book immediately: dentistry is not for you. Look for something else. Please don't ask my advice on what that something else might be: I hate being bored.
Career Highlight: The launch of the Evidence-Based Dentistry journal
Derek Richards
Just before I get into the meat of careers in dentistry and developing your dental career, I want to take a few words to consider where dentistry has come from and our origins as dental professionals. Don't worry, this is not an essay on history, just some interesting context. I think it can be useful to look back and consider where dentistry and dental professionals have come from before we look forward to the careers of the future. Dentistry has a very long history: the practice of dentistry much more so than the professions. All aspects are fascinating and serve to underline what is an amazing career for those who choose it.
There are a number of books and authors in this field far better equipped than I to paint and illustrate this history. In particular, I would direct you to the excellent articles and publications of Professor Stanley Gelbier, a tireless and exceptionally knowledgeable dental historian. I wish to use our history to put our careers in dentistry into context, so I will only whet your appetite, and signpost your way should you wish to delve more deeply.
A good place to begin would be to define dentistry. Some early cultures mutilated their teeth: whether as decoration or to denote religious status or perhaps to intimidate others is uncertain. Whatever the true purpose, someone will have worked on these teeth: Is that dentistry? We know the Egyptians practised dentistry: the Ptolemic temple at Kom Ombo (north of Aswan), the temple of Sobek and Horus, has a huge wall with wonderful carvings depicting surgical instruments, including forceps (Figure 1.1).
Figure 1.1 Kom Ombo wall, north of Aswan, showing 2000-year-old surgical instruments. Taken by the author in February 2012.
In the British Isles, those who would eventually become the dentists we know today were once part of the Guild of Barber-Surgeons, created in 1540. Most of those who engaged in ‘dentistry’ in the 16th century identified themselves with the barber surgeons rather than the physicians; that is why dentists in the UK have historically referred to themselves as ‘Mister’ or ‘Miss’ rather than as ‘Doctor’. Dentistry did not generally take the same path outside of Britain. The Guild broke apart in 1745, when the Surgeons' Company was formed; that company later dissolved in 1796 and then reformed as the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1800. The barbers, dentists and ‘operators for the teeth’ took a different path, although a few barbers and tooth-drawers went with the Royal College. Eventually, the term ‘dentist’ became the accepted and acceptable term by which to encompass all these previous descriptors.
Moving through the years, we come to the Dentist Act of 1878 and the first UK dental register of 1879. Dentists had previously been included in the medical register: the edition of 1783 included 18 (Bishop, 2014). In 1921, there was another Dentist Act. The Dental Board (UK) of the General Medical Council was established and its first Chairman, Sir Francis Dyke Acland, was appointed by the Privy Council. When the Board was established, there were 5831 names on the register. The first regulation of dentists was by the medical profession. This continued until 1956, when the General Dental Council (GDC) was established as a standalone regulator. The 70th and final session of the Dental Board was held on 9 May 1956 and the first meeting of the GDC took place later in the same year, both under the chairmanship of Sir Wilfred Fish. At that time, in 1956, there were 15 895 names on the dental register, all dentists, and the dental schools had an entry of 650 students each year. I am indebted to a little book I found on a visit to the bookshops of Hay-on-Wye for this fascinating insight into the history of the profession in the United Kingdom (Dental Board of the UK (1957)).
Career Highlight: Undertaking and completing a PhD
Debbie White
In 1858, the Dental Hospital of London opened as the first clinical training school for dentists in the United Kingdom. Dental Schools began to open soon afterwards. Previously, dentists were trained as apprentices by more experienced dentists. In 1860, the first licences of dental surgery were awarded by the Royal College of Surgeons of England. The first dental degree was awarded by the University of Birmingham in 1901. Non-dentist dental professionals, with the exception of dental technicians, joined the ranks of the dental team a little later.
Dental therapists made an appearance in 1917 as ‘dental dressers’ in some English counties. This is probably earlier than you might think. Their role was based on that of American hygienists, although British dressers could also fill teeth that had no pulpal involvement and extract deciduous teeth. They were the early dental therapists. In 1960, New Cross Hospital began training dental auxiliaries (British Association of Dental Therapists).
The British Dental Nurses and Assistants Society was established in 1940 by Madeleine Winter, a dental nurse, and her dentist, Mr P. Grundy. They worked in Leyland, Lancashire. However, formal training for dental nurses did not begin until the 1930s. This organisation has become the British Association of Dental Nurses (BADN).
Dental hygienists emerged in 1943 when the Women's Auxiliary Air Force began to offer training. The first British dental hygienists qualified in 1944.
The history of dental technology and dental technicians is founded in antiquity. Dental appliances belonging to the Etruscans (in Italy) have been found from the middle of the 7th century BC (Becker, 1999). In 1728, one ‘Gamaliel Voice’ of Whalebone Court, Lothby was selling dentures by mail order in England (Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario, 1899). Today, dental technology has a number of branches:
prosthodontic technicians;
conservation technicians;
orthodontic technicians; and
maxillofacial technicians (sometimes also known as maxillofacial prosthetists).
Our newest professional groups are orthodontic therapists and clinical dental technicians. Registration with the GDC for both groups became open from 1999. The first training course for orthodontic therapists started in Leeds in July 2007. The British Orthodontic Society (2011) has published a fascinating history of the events leading up to the establishment of orthodontic therapists in the United Kingdom, beginning in October 1967.
For clinical dental technicians, the story is an interesting evolution from the term ‘denturist’. Laws allowing the supply of dentures to the public without the intervention of a dentist have been passed in 11 countries across the globe, including the United Kingdom in 2007. Clinical dental technicians have now joined the family of dental registrants (International Federation of Denturists, 2013).
Top Tip: Never give up – you will make it to the top
Shazad Malik
The National Health Service
Whether you decide to work directly within the National Health Service (NHS) or not, it will have an impact on your career. Since its creation on 5 July 1948, the NHS has become an essential ingredient of the culture of the United Kingdom. As Figure 1.2 demonstrates, the NHS is one of those aspects of Britishness of which people are most proud.
Figure 1.2 Sources of British pride. Source: Ipsos MORI 2013. Making sense of society, NHS at 65. https://www.ipsos-mori.com/newsevents/blogs/makingsenseofsociety/1553/Maintaining-pride-in-the-NHS-The-challenge-for-the-new-NHS-Chief-Exec.aspx#gallery[m]/0/ (last accessed 18 March 2015).
The founding principle of medical, dental, optical and pharmaceutical care free at the point of access was broken within a few short years of the birth of the NHS, largely by the public need for dentures and spectacles. On 1 June 1952, a flat rate of £1 for ordinary dental care was introduced and charges were made for dentures (House of Commons Health Committee, 2006). Then, as now, there were insufficient resources to meet the health needs of the population. That aside, the majority of dental professionals work in the NHS at some point in their career, and even those who are wholly private will be impacted by NHS principles of governance. The numerous reorganisations of the NHS have shaped the careers of everyone working in or alongside it for over 30 years, and it is likely that they will continue to do so for the next 30 years or more.
Today, every English dental professional will have cause to come into contact with the following four organisations to a greater or lesser extent: NHS England, Public Health England, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) (responsible for the quality of dental practices) and Monitor (responsible for overall market regulation). Between them, these organisations are responsible for the health of the English community, through direct provision and governance. Table 1.1 lists the equivalent organisations for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Table 1.1 Organisations that impact on dental professions in the United Kingdom, by country
England
Northern Ireland
Scotland
Wales
NHS England
Health & Social Care BoardDept. of Health, Social Services & Public SafetyBusiness Services Organisation
NHS Scotland
Local Health Boards as part of NHS Wales
Public Health England
Public Health Agency
NHS National Service, Scotland
Public Health Wales
Care Quality Commission
Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority(private dentists)
Healthcare Improvement Scotland
Healthcare Inspectorate Wales
Monitor
Top Tip: Be flexible
Debbie White
Career Highlight: Receiving, when I was leaving Worcestershire, very many cards, letters and e-mails from colleagues, staff, patients and carers thanking me for what I had done. A highly affirming experience
Ros Keeton
Career
So, having set a little of the scene in which our profession has been founded and in which it operates today, I want to begin to turn to the meat of the book: developing your career in dentistry. What is a career? The word has a Latin origin: it means, ‘to go around the ancient Roman racetrack at top speed in a precipitous headlong rush’. Somehow I don't find that particularly helpful for the modern day, although it may be for some people that their career does seem akin to a precipitous headlong rush. Other definitions are available.
The Oxford English Reference Dictionary (Oxford University Press, 1996) describes ‘career’ as ‘One's advancement through life, especially in a profession’. In this definition, ‘career’ is understood to relate to a range of aspects of an individual's life, learning and work. ‘Career’ is also frequently understood to relate to the working aspects of an individual's life, as in ‘career woman’, for example.
Another way in which the term ‘career’ is used is to ‘describe an occupation or a profession that usually involves special training or formal education, and is considered to be a person's lifework’ (Oxford University Press, 1996). In this case a ‘career’ is seen as a sequence of related jobs usually pursued within a single industry or sector; for example, ‘a career in law’ or ‘a career in the building trade’, or, in our case, ‘a career in dentistry’.
The second definition seems to fit with a dental career. Interestingly, it refers to a sequence of related jobs rather than to one specific job for the lifetime of the career. This seems to represent a linear progression. However, I do like the idea of a career being about progress through life and relating to a range of aspects of life. For me, that seems to fit nicely with a portfolio: a more diverse way of looking at our work. It also fits with sometimes stepping outside a specific industry, so dental professionals stepping out of dentistry or indeed stepping out of the health sector would be accommodated in this definition.
Top Tip: Make yourself visible – speak up
Reena Patel
In this book, I intend to consider what a career in dentistry might mean in the widest and deepest possible way. I will cover the more well known aspects of clinical dentistry in general practice, salaried services and secondary care, as well as the less well known roles dental professional undertake. These will include both clinical and nonclinical work. I also intend to be inclusive of all dental registrants, and not just dentists. This book will be of interest and, I hope, use to all those registered with the GDC, those who are training to become a dental professional and maybe even those who are still to make up their mind about whether dentistry is the profession for them. Finally, overseas dental professionals might find the information helpful if they are thinking about working in the United Kingdom.
If we define a career as an occupation or profession with a sequence of related jobs, usually pursued within a single industry or sector, we can think of dentistry as the profession and health services as the sector. That can be interesting when we are thinking about developing our career over a lifetime of work. Figure 1.3 illustrates movement between occupations and sectors. It would work equally well should we want to step out of dentistry into a completely new occupation. An example might be dental professionals who have become trust chief executives or who have moved into law. As with most models, it can be adapted to help you think about your specific environment and your specific choices.
Top Tip: You've one life, so enjoy every day
Emma Worrell
Figure 1.3 Model illustrating moving between sectors and occupations.
Figure 1.4 Career cycles (adapted from Super et al., 1996).
It seems that people in work today are more likely to experience a number of career changes during their lives than we once were. That might be complete retraining (e.g. a dental professional retraining to become a lawyer) or a change of direction within dentistry (e.g. becoming a tutor). The actual number of career changes an individual will make can vary: it might be three, it might be six or even more. On the whole, Baby Boomers are happiest with stability, while members of Generation Y are more likely to be job jumpers. Whatever the number, what is more relevant is the concept of job jumping. I suspect, as people start to work longer before retirement, we are likely to see more career changes in the future. Let me clarify what I mean by ‘career changes’: I mean broadening what you do, so taking on more part-time responsibilities could be just as much a career change as taking on a completely new job. If you think of dentistry as a pie, and general practice as apple pie, then why have apple pie for the whole of your life? Why not have some plum pie or rhubarb pie or beef and ale pie? Why not enliven your career with lots of different flavours? We don't eat exactly the same food for our whole life, so why would we keep exactly the same job?
Top Tip: Find out how things work
Debbie White
Mark Savickas (Savickas et al., 2009) talks of ‘life trajectories’. He suggests that people actively design and build their lives progressively, including their working careers. This makes perfect sense to me: people should use their skills and experience to take the next step in their career. This could include practical skills and experience, as well as learnt or taught skills. A mixing of experience with new knowledge. I think that's what experienced dental professionals do as they build a portfolio career. Sometimes you might acquire a new skill or knowledge that doesn't seem to be immediately useful in your life trajectory. You might be surprised to find that as you move a little further into the matrix of your career that that skill is just what you need to take on something you really want to do. I found this to be true when I took on being Data Protection Manager for my Trust, then local Caldicott Guardian, and later found it prepared me for becoming the NHS Information Authority Caldicott Guardian. That was my first national job and it prepared me for other national jobs and taking my career into unexpected but exciting waters. When it comes to acquiring experience and skills, most can be recycled and not much is wasted if you are prepared to be creative and imaginative, or maybe just to take a few calculated risks.
Savickas teamed up with Donald and Charles Super (Super et al., 1996) to introduce his approach of life span, life space to career choice and development. Savickas, Super and Super suggest that:
The new job market in our unsettled economy calls for viewing career not as a lifetime commitment to one employer but as selling services and skills to a series of employers who need projects completed. In negotiating each new project, the prospective employee usually concentrates on salary yet also seeks to make the work meaningful, control the work environment, balance work-family responsibilities, and train for the next job.
