Description
This informative and practical online course will provide the necessary knowledge and tools for dental hygiene entrepreneurs to move forward with their dream of establishing and operating their own business. It will help you focus and determine if now is the right time to start your business. You will be guided along the way to apply your learning in the creation of a business plan. By the end of the course, you will have a tangible product with which to realize your dream! For those who have already decided to start their own business, this course may serve to reinforce your decision and suggest areas for improvement.
Regulation and licensure of health care professionals falls under the jurisdiction of the provinces and territories in Canada. The laws and regulations define the scope of practice for dental hygienists in the specified province/territory. As a result, there are variations in legal scopes of practice and autonomy across Canada. You are required to use the information presented in this course according to the regulations and guidelines affecting independent practice and business ownership in your province/territory. Please consult your regulatory college for more information.
The Business Fundamentals: Ready, Set, Launch online course consists of five modules. It is recommended to take the modules in sequence.
Module 1: Business Model
This introductory module will assess your entrepreneurial strengths and weaknesses, assist you in determining if you are ready to open a dental hygiene practice before investing money into a new venture, and get you started on a business plan.
Module 2: Feasibility
You will need to determine the feasibility and market potential of your business. This module will assist you with selecting a business location and assessing if your business idea is attainable.
Module 3: Marketing
This module will assist you in the development of a marketing and communications strategy for your business. You will utilize the research gathered in the previous module regarding feasibility of your business plan.
Module 4: Operations
Practice management includes understanding your role as manager and leader, how to manage business-related information, how to coordinate and manage purchasing, how to recruit and hire staff, how to develop a human resources manual, and the importance of setting and enforcing quality standards in all aspects of the business. This module will assist you with day-to-day operations required to run your business.
Module 5: Finances
This module will assist you with organizing your business-related finances and understanding financial concepts and financial statements.
More Course Information
Course Information
Registration for the course is done online and all the modules are taken online in the comfort of your home, at your convenience and your pace. You may pause and restart at any time and will want to break up your learning into several shorter sessions. The learning is self-directed. It is estimated that the entire course will take about 25 hours to complete, or about 5-6 hours for each module; however, you can take as much time as you need. Although the course is set up in a linear fashion, the development of a business plan and the learning that accompanies its development does not happen linearly. Expect to go back to previous modules following their completion to reconfirm your understanding or to revise aspects of your business plan.
The module handouts can be downloaded and printed as a complement to the textbook. It is a valuable learning tool with the learning outcomes, journal entries, learning activities, and resources such as links to websites, etc. It is important that your participation includes these learning activities because they have been designed to contribute to the knowledge required to develop your business plan. You will require basic study supplies including pens and pencils, a notebook, calculator, and paper to complete the course. Expect to do additional research beyond the suggestions offered in the course and network with other business owners to learn what has contributed to their success.
The required textbook for this course is the following:
Skinner JR, Champion T. Business Plan, Business Reality: Starting and Managing Your Own Business in Canada [eBook, 5th ed]. Toronto (ON): Pearson; 2021.
The fifth edition is available electronically and may be ordered online from Pearson or Vital Source. There is also a list of resources and reference materials in your handouts. Please note that the use of earlier editions is not advised to ensure relevancy with most current business-related concepts in Canada. References cited throughout the handouts in this course direct you to sections in the fifth edition.
A short quiz accompanies each module. This formative assessment will support retention of business concepts along the way and offer you opportunity to apply your learning. There is no final summative examination. The summative learning you achieve from the course will be the anticipated final product: your business plan! A certificate of completion issued by CDHA may be printed from your computer upon completion of the module 5 quiz.
Relevance to Practice
Entrepreneurs generally have strong beliefs about the services they will offer and are willing to accept a level of personal and professional risk to bring their dream to reality. Entrepreneurship is often difficult and tricky, as many new ventures fail. This online course will provide the resources and skills needed to meet these challenges and allow dental hygienists to prosper as business owners and practitioners working independently.
Course Developers
Melissa Chaulk, MEd, BSc, RDH
Melissa completed a Bachelor of Science specializing in biomedical biology in 2008 at Laurentian University prior to receiving her diploma in Dental Hygiene from Cambrian College in 2010. She most recently completed a Master of Education in teaching and learning in 2020 at the University of Ottawa. Her synthesis research paper focused on dental hygiene leadership development and the role of emotional intelligence and transformative learning theory. She also holds a Certificate in Adult Education from the Canadian College of Educators and is passionate about teaching adult learners.
Her passion for education led her to CDHA where she manages learning opportunities for Canadian dental hygienists as manager of professional development. Over the past decade, she has worked primarily in general clinical practice and education as clinical coordinator and faculty member at the Canadian National Institute of Health prior to her joining CDHA in 2018.
Donna Wells, RDH, BA
Donna is a graduate of the dental hygiene program at the Canadian National Institute of Health and holds a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Carleton University. After working several years in both general and periodontal practice, Donna became a faculty member, and most recently held the position of preclinical coordinator at the Canadian National Institute of Health. She holds a certificate in Teaching and Training Adults from Algonquin College. Donna is the manager of professional practice at the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association and is passionate about her role of providing guidance to members of the Independent Practice Network and to CDHA members on healthy and respectful workplace concerns.
CDHA would also like to recognize the following dental hygienists who assisted with course development:
- Roma Czech
- Paulette Dahlseide
- Wanda Fedora
- Sophie Freeman
- Tammy Gulevich
- Wendy Jobs
- Shelly Lambe
- Leona Le Lievre
- Marcy Skribe
- Gerrard Weinberger
Special thanks are extended to CDHA Writer/Editor, Megan Sproule-Jones and Dental Hygiene Practice Director, Sylvie Martel, for their assistance with content review.