Free to be a clinician, not a technician

Operating one dental practice or a group is like assembling the many pieces of a puzzle. All the pieces must fit together in the right order to see the whole picture correctly. The same is true for DSOs. Multiple offices that operate with several types of imaging, specialty focuses, and multiple practitioners struggle to connect their imaging and IOS technology. Is it worth going through another change in your practice to have one system for your diagnostic picture of the patient, case presentation, and unified training for your team? DEXIS thinks so and has developed DTX Studio™ Clinic to act as that unifier — and become a foundation for diagnostics, standardization, and growth across group practices.

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When adding practices, DSO managers are often faced with integrating diverse technologies. DTX Studio Clinic can accomplish that, whether the office uses only 2D imaging or several different types. Brian Gooch, Global Product Management Vice President at DEXIS explains, “DTX Studio Clinic is an open solution. The practice can have different manufacturers or different imaging, but it is all integrated into one place, to be used for diagnostics, team training, or communicating with patients. The system also supports the full suite of the DEXIS portfolio that includes 2D x-ray, CBCT, and intraoral scanning.”

Jordan Reiss, Senior Director, Clinical Strategic Development with DEXIS adds, “This helps DSOs to leverage digital dentistry, centralize everything on a single platform, and from a diagnostic imaging perspective, standardizes and streamlines their day-to-day operations across multiple locations for maximum efficiency. With DTX Studio Clinic, offices can be comfortable to leverage new technologies as they add them, to expand the practice, enhance and share the experience, build stronger patient relationships, and educate patients on the importance of completing treatment.”

Reiss points out that DEXIS is a leader in global imaging, with 60 years in the x-ray business, over 1,000 dedicated employees, and is number one in imaging market share in North America, according to SDM Northcoast data. “More than 200 million images are processed each year on our equipment. And DEXIS brings together the trusted brands of Instrumentarium, i-CAT, Soredex, Gendex, NOMAD, DTX Studio, and the intraoral scanning solutions line from Carestream Dental.” Reiss continues, “Not only do we bring these brands together, but we unite them into one software that allows for them to uniquely be connected in the ecosystem called the DTX Studio Clinic.”

Practice Benefits

DSOs want to attract and retain talented practitioners — whether they are just entering the dental workplace or are ready to retire. Younger doctors often enter the field with a large amount of debt. They want all the newest technology but having it all is too expensive for a start-up budget. If they join a DSO, cutting edge technologies, like IOS, CBCT, navigated surgery, and surgical guides, are often already in use as a part of the practice, and these new dentists will want to take advantage of these innovations. But they want this technology to be integrated and easy to access and use.

For dentists who are considering retirement, from solo practitioners to successful multi-clinician practices, exit strategies are important as well. As a personal example, when I sold my practice, it was comprised of 10 doctors, and 25 team members. At the time, that large practice was a difficult sale, but now, a DSO would be the perfect buyer. Buyers want all the innovations that can better serve patients, but all connected by a streamlined system that makes the whole process easier and “smarter.”

The Power of Choice

Whether the office has one type of imaging or five, the clinician can access the smart, intuitive, and simple AI in the software. DTX Studio Clinic keeps all the patient’s imaging and diagnostic information readily available. Reiss explains, “During the dental visit, there are a lot of unnecessary steps going on, from capturing the original scan, to diagnosing from the scan, to jumping over to the lab to find out the options, then returning to the patient to explain treatment, and then maybe having to jump back to recheck the 2D x-rays. DTX Studio Clinic offers the value proposition of diagnostic confidence, productivity, and smart simplicity.”

With all this information at their fingertips, clinicians can focus on delivering patient care, be a clinician not a technician, access all these images, and navigate tooth-by-tooth to get to the right diagnosis. Reiss says that the system is very simple to use and, “For those who need proactive support, DEXIS has clinical training and education as well as regional support for all our dealers. By offering this, we’re enabling the future of dentistry.”

 
How It Works Clinically

After image capture, all the radiography needs to be organized, which can be time consuming. The AI in DTX Studio Clinic automatically sorts the images according to the clinician’s preferences, even if an image was dragged and dropped in from a referring doctor. The AI separates the teeth, recognizes, numbers, sorts and rotates them, and places them in customizable preferences that the practitioner chooses. For better visualization of individual teeth, the Smart Focus feature offers tooth-by-tooth navigation with one click. The clinician can decide whether to use information from AI for diagnostic findings. The visualization of the teeth creates a more effective conversation with patients. Patients are not just looking at random x-rays that they don’t understand. As the dentist hovers over a tooth, it becomes color-coded and is tagged with a possible diagnosis. The image and AI validate the information that the doctor tells the patient, almost like a spell check. If the doctor disagrees with the AI diagnostic tag, it can be dismissed. Reiss notes, “Whether it’s pan or 3D, the interface is simple. The clinician can click on just the lower first molar or the whole lower mandible or condyles, or the sinus areas in whatever field of view is necessary. It’s an intuitive, clean interface.”

For multi-specialty practices, the software has workspaces for TMJ, endodontics, implant, and airway. If the office doesn’t need a specific type of workspace at the time, it can be hidden in the software and added later, if needed.

In the implant workspace for example, the AI can offer insights for choice of implant planning, free-handed or automated surgical guides, or navigated surgery. To add to the robust array of options, the company also has partnerships with SprintRay and X-Guide as well as an application called Smile, which is focused on patient engagement. Files can be exported to share with colleagues who don’t have DTX Studio Clinic, or it can be shared via the cloud.

For endodontics, the clinician can click on a specific tooth number and mark any landmarks, such as the portal of exit. The doctor can see this tooth from every conceivable angle, rotate around and get great visualization in both the 3D realm and 2D plane very easily.

Once the analyzing, checking, and adapting of the information is completed, the file is saved. After that, it is available at every computer in the practice, so whether the doctor is doing treatment protocols, talking to a lab, or with the patient, the file is ready to be accessed. That optimizes the doctor’s time and maximizes the quality of time spent with the patient.

How It Works for Management

DTX Studio Clinic also has organizational applications for DSO management and office staff. It automatically fills in a label with the PMS ID. In addition, reminders help keep everyone on course — tracking if parts came into the office, if surgical guides were produced, and if the patient appointment was confirmed.

For patient engagement, instead of emailing a CBCT or DICOM that needs a software download or a CD mailed, the clinician can generate a QR code to email or print out for the patient. They can securely access their images on a tablet, mobile phone, or computer.

“DTX Studio Clinic supports DSOs in all phases of their digital journey,” says Gooch. “Whether it is 30 offices looking for growth or 500+ offices looking to standardize, DEXIS and DTX Studio Clinic meets you where you are today. As digital dentistry evolves, DEXIS provides DSOs with a strong foundation to build upon.”

To see how powerful DTX Studio Clinic can be for your DSO, please check out this overview of DTX Studio Clinic done with Dentistry Today. I saw it and realized that my words cannot fully illustrate what this multi-faceted platform can accomplish for the dentist, for the patient, and for the DSO.

You can click here to learn more about DTX Studio Clinic and schedule time to see if it is a good fit for your organization.

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About Lou Shuman, DMD, CAGS

Lou Shuman, DMD, CAGS, the CEO of Cellerant Consulting Group, is known for bringing new technologies into dentistry from all over the world. He is also Co-founder of LightForce Orthodontics, the first company to create a fully customized 3D-printed ceramic orthodontic bracket, and recently launched DSO Technology Solutions providing valuable technologies to DSOs.

Cellerant Consulting Group

Cellerant Consulting is a highly acclaimed full-service boutique consulting firm for dental companies from early stage to well-established companies that seek to accelerate their growth.