April 27, 2009
DentalProductsReport.com Exclusive
Five ‘must-have’
interactive products
Products to help you work better and to keep your patients informed and ready to accept the necessary treatments.
by Stan Goff, Executive Editor
When it comes to delivering great care, most dentists will tell you their practices try hard to interact well with their patients.
When it comes to delivering the best, most efficient care in today’s practices, most will tell you that products and technology that interact also are critical. Some products allow the dental staff and patient to interact closely, while some allow the patient to interact with the treatment/education process on their owm, such as interactive patient education systems that can allow the patient to learn without the need of the dentist or assistant at their side the entire time.
Here’s a quick look at five of the top interactive products designed to help you work better and to keep your patients informed and ready to accept the necessary treatments. This is just a small sampling. Click here to find many more interactive dental products.
Patient education
Educating your patient has always been a priority in terms of helping them with their own oral care as well as letting them know what they need in terms of treatment—as well as the possible recupercussions from not following through with the recommended care. Today’s patient education systems feature an array of topics and multimedia presentations.
According to Kansas City general practitioner Dr. Bill Busch, interactive patient education is a great addition to today’s practices. Dr. Busch has smiled on occasion after walking down the halls of his practice and noticing patients who are using the touchscreen systems to educate themselves about veneers, brushing or flossing.
“Patient education makes it more of a memorable event rather than just a diagnosis event,” said Dr. Busch, who noted that treatment acceptance tends to improve for those using more advanced patient education programs. “It’s kind of like a stage. (Related products: Guru by Henry Schein Dental and Caesy Enterprise 7.0 by Patterson Dental Supply)
Operatory computers/touchscreens
You can’t get more interactive than having the patient sit in the chair and control which patient education materials to view. The patient gets a consistent message from the practice and is in control, with the opportunity to watch or listen to something a second time or skip over something that may not apply to their needs. These touchscreens chairside also allow the staff to interact closely with the patient.
“You’re right there with the patient, drawing, touching on the screen,” Dr. Busch said.
“The touchscreen keeps you focused with patients. They can watch you mark their x-ray in the screen with the rubber pen. They can actually use their finger when you’re off somewhere else, and if you have patient education, they can activate it themselves.”
Intraoral cameras
Intraoral cameras may not be the most glamorous or most talked about in terms of dental technologies, but these devices give patients an instant look at the inside of their mouths and allow the doctor and patient to discuss treatment options and they also can be used to simulate smiles.
The patient can play a role in choosing possible outcomes for his or her new smile.
“What makes a difference to me is an intraoral camera, along with my bruxism photo books, Consult-Pro (patient education) and any thing that helps me support the patient’s need to understand what ever,” California GP Dr. Joe Whitehouse said when asked about his favorite interactive products.
Internet communication
With people always on the go, it’s more important than ever to be able to reach patients quickly and easily, even when they’re outside of the home or workplace. It’s also important that patients be able to get information on your practice whenever they want it and to be able to do things like fill out registration forms and pay bills online.
That’s why you need to have practice management software with the capability of sending out e-mail reminders and text message reminders and it’s also why you should have a Web site that will allow existing and potential new patients to learn about your services, submit questions via e-mail and/or handle duties such as paying bills online, and submitting questions to your practice.
Some products, such as those offered by Smile Reminder, will even help get this communication out to the Internet in the form of videos on popular sites like YouTube, Google Videos and Yahoo!
Voice charting
Early on this technology had to overcome obstacles in terms of accuracy, but that is no longer the case.
Now, with programs available from a number of practice management manufacturers, clinicians can use voice-activated programs to eliminate the need to write down notes and to manually handle tasks such as perio charting. While interacting with these programs, dentists and staff members can concentrate on delivering the best possible care.
“Voice charting today is very predictable,’ Dr. Busch said. “It’s 96% accurate according to studies, which is better than the human ear.”
These product categories are just a few of the many available to help patients and dentists interact with one another and interact with the task at hand.
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