Advancements in technology have progressed in leaps and bounds over the past few decades, revolutionising every aspect of our daily lives and indeed our businesses. New technology has had a profound impact on the healthcare field and dentistry is no exception. Dentistry is being fundamentally reshaped by new digital devices, processing software, 3D technology, virtual reality and artificial intelligence. More and more dental clinics and laboratories are embracing new technology. The practices which evolve and change will see substantial benefits in many different ways including enhanced accuracy, streamlining, time saving and communications. While access to finance through traditional banks may be more challenging to obtain, alternative finance providers like GRENKE Leasing take a different and more flexible approach.
Interestingly, technological developments in dentistry have pushed forward even more quickly recently, driven by a combination of pandemic pressures and patient preferences.
Care needed to be delivered in a different way when dental surgeries were closed to the public early in the Covid-19 pandemic. Teledentistry suddenly came to the fore. This means using digital tools like video to do basic examinations or consulting. As with the medical sector, patients changed their attitudes swiftly once lockdown had been imposed and became much more open to the idea. It was particularly useful in determining whether a genuine emergency existed. With the right digital tools in place, tele dentistry could be here to stay in your dental practice.
Virtual reality (VR) might seem an odd option for a dentist to use, but VR is proving a welcome distraction for patients undergoing treatment. Headsets give them something else to focus on and a Cedars-Sanai study in the USA showed that VR had an impact on pain management. Augmented reality (AR) allows patients to see what their new smile will look like before treatment even starts. An additional bonus is that trust in the practitioner increases as the patient perceives them to be more empathetic.
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are now firmly embedded in dental care, especially in the area of orthodontics. It helps in diagnosis and offers previously unavailable precision in tailored treatment plans. The use of AI in dentistry is predicted to increase emphatically over the next few years.
The future is here in the guise of low-cost, high-speed 3D printers which dental practices can use for creating implants for example. A 3D model of a patient’s jaw could be used to plan surgical intervention or evaluate the impact of treatment. 3D printing is a cost-effective way to create dental splints for use in preventing tooth grinding. It’s quick too – a new splint can be created in hours not days, and cost much less than the traditional option.
Digital security is an essential component of adopting new technologies and ideally security should be built in from the very beginning.
Implementing any new technology bears a cost and GRENKE Leasing is well placed to advise on the optimum funding solution for your specific circumstance. Over the years, our slogan – ‘Fast. Forward. Finance.’ – has made us one of the leading providers in the Irish market. It continues to drive us to work tirelessly to devise new solutions to help our customers.
