Every member of a practice has one role. The role decides which screens they see, which actions they can take and which workspace they land in. Roles are set under Settings → Team & access.
Before you start
- Only owners, practice managers and administrators can change roles.
- Nobody can give another person a role higher than their own.
Steps
- Understand the nine roles. They are Owner, Practice manager, Administrator, Dentist, Hygienist, Therapist, Nurse, Receptionist and Limited user.
- Owner can do everything, including clinical work.
- Practice manager runs the practice: staff, settings, Concierge, the Ledger, refunds, Performance and the accountant export. They do not write clinical notes.
- Administrator manages staff, settings and Concierge and can book appointments, but does not see Performance and does not take payments.
- Dentist writes and signs clinical notes, charts, plans treatment, sends referrals, uploads and deletes images, and can take payments.
- Hygienist and Therapist write and sign clinical notes, chart and plan treatment, and can view balances but not take payments.
- Nurse writes clinical notes and charts but cannot sign them, and can view balances.
- Receptionist manages patients and the diary, takes payments, sends messages and drafts referrals.
- Limited user can view patients and clinical records only.
- Know where each role lands. Owners, practice managers and administrators open in the Practice workspace. Dentists, hygienists, therapists and nurses open in Clinical. Receptionists and limited users open in Reception.
- Know the money rules. Performance and practice-wide revenue are for owners and practice managers only. Recording payments needs Owner, Practice manager, Dentist or Receptionist. Refunds and deleting a payment need Owner or Practice manager.
- Know the record rules. Exporting a whole patient record needs Owner, Practice manager or Dentist. Reading the Audit log needs Owner, Practice manager or Administrator.
- To change someone's role, open Settings → Team & access and pick a new role from the dropdown beside their name. The change is recorded in the audit log.
What happens next
The change takes effect on the person's next page load. Their side menu, quick actions and workspace switcher update to match. Screens they cannot use are simply not shown; typing an address does not get round a role.
Common problems
- A colleague cannot see Performance — only owners and practice managers can. Administrators cannot, even though they manage settings.
- A nurse cannot sign a note — signing needs Dentist, Hygienist, Therapist or Owner.
- I cannot choose Owner in the dropdown — you can only assign roles at or below your own.
- Settings look read-only — Receptionists, clinicians and limited users can open Settings for their own details, but practice configuration needs Owner, Practice manager or Administrator.