It's very difficult, if not impossible, to provide the best dental care without the use of imaging technology. Luckily, there have been numerous developments in dental imaging tech over the past few decades. Even older forms of radiological imaging, like x-rays, can be augmented and improved with modern computing. Let's take a look at some of the technology currently available for dentists and consider the best ways to take advantage of them.
Modern Imaging Tech
According to a 2014 article in the World Journal of Radiology, "advanced imaging techniques like computed tomography, cone beam computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound have... found [a] place in modern dentistry." The article goes on to describe the numerous advantages to using digital imaging technology over analogue technology. Digital images are quicker to produce and easier to store. Professionals can generate a digital image almost instantly and keep it safely as an electronic file on a local server or in the cloud. Compare that to the time it takes to develop an x-ray image on film, never mind creating a reliable infrastructure to keep all of those physical images safe. Moreover, the article claims that digital imaging, especially the sort that can generate 3D images, leads to more thorough and accurate diagnoses. All in all, the modern dentist has a variety of valuable tools available to help care for patients.
Making the Best of Dental Tech
Still, just because the technology is available doesn't mean that it's easy to implement. As we discussed last week, one of the most important aspects of an effective dental management platform is centralization. A dental professional should be able to manage clinical operations and business operations in the same place. Two of the most popular dental management platforms, Dentrix and Eaglesoft, support integrations with a variety of imaging technologies across brands. As such, users of these products don't have to worry about juggling multiple programs as a customer enters the office, gets checked in, receives clinical services, schedules follow ups, and settles their bill.
Even with centralization, however, there are still things to consider. For one thing, office staff will need to be trained on the platform. Thus, it's important that any office have infrastructure in place to ensure good training measures, whether that's directly from the software provider or a dedicated managed IT team, like Titan Tech, that has the resources to handle the job. Thankfully, many software providers offer at least an initial training session when on-boarding new clients. Some providers even offer continuing education credits through their training programs.
Whatever product you choose to invest in, it's important to think of modern imaging tech as not only a clinical tool but also, well, an investment. Better technology means better patient treatment plans and better care, which leads to a more prosperous business over time. In fact, dental practices who dispense with obsolete administrative methods; like using paper for filing, billing, and scheduling; will be ahead of the curve when it comes to efficiency and profitability.
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