High Tech In A Non-technical Industry

By Anthony Hatch



Let's face it - technology is everywhere. There is really not a place where we can get away from it, between cell phones, portable computers, PDAs and so on. Even when you go on vacation and try to get away from it all, you can still stay connected. In fact, it is hard to think of many places where technology has not encroached. That is, until you step into your dentist's office. Think about it. The last time you went to a dental office, you walked up to check-in and behind the receptionist was a wall of charts. Once you were settled in the dental chair, the doctor reviewed your paper chart and took x-rays on the same small film that we have seen for years. To remind you of your next appointment, you received a card in the mail and, when you called to schedule, they wrote you into the big book of appointment times.

This is not to say there is no technology in the dental industry. There are two parts to a dental office, the clinical side and the business side. Clinically, the industry has made huge advances and continues to every day. It wasn't too long ago that tooth whitening was not a household phrase and now you can get it done in the chair within an hour. Just think about that, changing your entire facial image in an hour by lightening the color of your teeth. Other technologies offered in the dental office are digital x-rays, intraoral cameras, lasers, etc.

Even on the business side of the dental office there are many great technical solutions for dentists. There is software out there that can manage schedules, call patients to confirm appointments, design treatment plans and many other activities completed daily in a dental office.

So, why has technology not taken over the dental office as it has in so many different industries? There are a few reasons why this has not happened fully in the field and why some dentists are still kicking and screaming as this industry moves forward.

First and foremost comes lack of integration of dental systems. Until recently, there has been very little integration of different software and hardware solutions in the dental field. A dentist might purchase charting software to help him computerize his charts and files, only to discover that this software does not integrate well with any digital radiograph systems. Utilizing two different systems becomes awkward and cumbersome. The last thing a dentist wants is to have a patient sitting in a chair while the dentist or assistant fumbles back and forth between multiple applications to get all the information needed to diagnose and treat this patient. More recently, dental supply companies have recognized this problem and are starting to handle it by purchasing, integrating or bridging the various applications, but that limits a dentist to staying within that family of applications to ensure that compatibility will happen. The dentist needs to either become well-versed in technology or have a trusted adviser to ensure that everything will work smoothly when integrating technology.

Introducing technology into the dental office is costly. For many existing dental offices, computerizing means replacing old dental equipment, which is expensive. Even for a new dental office, deciding to incorporate technology into the office can increase the cost by a minimum of $80,000. Since most dentists are either solo practitioners or in a small group practice, cost can prohibit the introduction of a lot of the new technology offered.

With all that being said, there are still increasing numbers of dentists who are integrating computers into their offices, though on a gradual basis. For various reasons - productivity, HIPPA, OSHA, patient expectations, marketing, etc. - dentists recognize the need to enter the 21st century, but they are making the move gradually. Many patients will begin seeing the shift during their next few visits, with new technologies such as web sites for their dental office, computer scheduling, intraoral cameras in the operatories, digital x-rays and some other more proven technologies in the industry.

There will come a day when all dental offices will integrate technology into their practices. In the meantime, the most important thing as this field moves into the "high tech" is that the dentists excel in what they do best - quality dental care.



Dr. Anthony Hatch and his wife, Laura, recently opened The Hatch Dental Group in Columbia. They can be reached at 410-465-8480 or to get more information at www.hatchdentalgroup.com.