What does digital dentistry mean to YOU?

An age old question, or rather, “new age” question – what in the world does digital dentistry mean?

Having worked with so many dentists and labs in the industry, we like to ask them what they think digital dentistry means. We often get a range of different answers. So we realized it would be wiser to ask, what does digital dentistry mean to YOU?

For most, it falls under 3 categories:

1. Digital means the type of equipment one uses: Intraoral Scanners, CBCT and Pan X-rays, Cameras, Mills, 3D Printers

2. Digital means the products one sells: milled zirconia or lithium disilicate, 3D printed Kois deprogrammers, mouth guards, surgical guides

3. Digital means software one uses: CAD Design software, Practice Management Software, Lab Management Software.

If we take a step back and look at the definition of the word digital: “relating to, using, or storing data or information in the form of digital signals.” To us, going digital means turning patient case information into digital signals (bits and bytes) so that it can be stored, communicated, analyzed, designed and shared. It’s about digitizing a case file or patient file and everything around it.

So why go digital?

Push yourself

If you love learning and challenging yourself to push the skills and knowledge needed for the evolution of dentistry, going digital is right for you. This keeps you on your toes and keeps the profession exciting helping you stay in the loop of what is trending.

Level up your business

Going digital is a great way to streamline your business and make your business more profitable and more efficient. You can get more done with the same labor costs and allows you to organize your files so you can access them efficiently.

Impress your patients and customers

First impressions are everything. By going digital, you stand out from your peers and being digital gives you the marketing opportunities you need to tell the world you are going above and beyond. By digitizing your client’s information and making their experience welcoming and comfortable, you provide effective emotional presentations.

The key to success when going digital (in digitizing a case or patient file) is to be clear on what your primary reason is for making the leap! Once that is set, the equipment, materials, marketing and software are all just components that you need to connect everything together. Not one piece can function at its best without the others and by adding digital into your business, it all becomes a seamless package. It’s like a car. You need the tires, engine, lights, dashboard, transmission, but adding the chassis and electronics is needed connect it all together and make it run.

Let us know what digital dentistry means to you. We’d love to hear your thoughts.