The future of technology integration includes potential opportunities and challenges. The team of technology experts from Cellerant Consulting Group weighed in on what they see for the future. (as published in Dental Learning’s Dentrix Connected Supplement).
Dr. John Flucke:
I envision the total digital patient. When a patient comes into my office, rather than taking a pano, PAs, and bitewings, we would take a cone beam scan, which gives me a 3D rendering of the patient that I can update as I do restorative dentistry. For example, if I do a crown on December 19, the software can take the digital impression data and incorporate into the 3D data, and literally update itself on the fly. Now the 3D image represents what the patient looks like today without additional X-ray exposure. The challenge will be training and expense. It needs to be affordable for most dentists and easy to use.
Dr. Lou Shuman:
Paul Feuerstein, DMD, Lou Shuman, DDS, John Flucke, DDS, and Marty Jablow, DMD from the Cellerant group discuss how digital integration within the dentist office will affect the future of dentistry.
I think that the definition of digital workflow is going to continue to become more seamless and have more impact. We’re going to be moving from mills and grinders to 3D printing. That’s going to have a huge impact on quality and what we provide. Dentistry is going to go in-house even more, and I see the possibility of optical coherence tomography (OCT), which is currently used in ophthalmology, being our next generation 3D imaging.
Dr. Marty Jablow:
When we look at technology, we’re only talking about what we know right now. What about the technology that’s still not available? Regrowing teeth, for example. It’s going to take all of the diagnostics, treatment planning, and treatment to get us to a point where we can better treat our patients across the board. Right now, there’s not a lot of consistency.
Dr. Paul Feuerstein:
I predict a more open exchange of information between the office and the patients. I think that there’s going to be a gigantic push towards having all things open, including records and charts. Patients will be able to open their smartphones and check their balances and their latest treatments. They’ll even be able to view their own X-rays. I think that kind of openness is going to be demanded by patients.
Dr. Lou Shuman:
In the end, it’s open architecture that will make the difference, and Dentrix is leading the way. With so many different types of technology, open architecture is what will give the practice management software companies a tremendous advantage and opportunity to really open the door to a full horizontal approach, instead of running into some of the problems that already exist around proprietary hardware or software that won’t allow us to have full open access. At the end of the day, we as practitioners should have the opportunity to pick whatever we want based on providing what we would consider the best treatment and best outcomes for our patients, because that’s what this is all about.
The Cellerant Consulting Group’s vision of the future is bright, with technology that improves the patient’s experience as well as the dentist’s. Dentrix, with its open architecture, history of innovation, and focus on patient care and dental practice efficiency, is positioned to help usher in that bright future.
Visit www.Dentrix.com to learn more!