Have You Thought About How Dental IT Services Can Improve Patient Care and Business Practices?
Dental practices across the nation are awakening to the fact that patients expect and demand a high level of technological competency from the companies – and now the healthcare providers – with whom they do business. These expectations are the natural overflow from the public’s interaction with online retailers and tech-savvy brick and mortar companies.
But what does that mean for dental practices?
It means that there is now a great deal of pressure for you to have and utilize the latest in CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software that integrates with the way your client base communicates on a daily basis. In addition to modern communication and relationship management tools, there is a call by patients for transparency and instant, secure access to their records. All of this can be accomplished, but it’s not s simple undertaking.
Unfortunately, the expectations of tech-savvy consumers don’t end there. Although they may not know what technology you need or how it should be integrated and automated into your systems, they know inefficiency when they see it. Demonstrating the use of technology to gain efficiency and – from the patient’s perspective – lower their costs is attractive.
Is Dental IT Services A Real Thing?
This is an important question. It all boils down to the answer to another question.
“Are the IT support needs of a dental office different than the IT support of business technology in other industries?”
You see, if dental technology support is substantially different than manufacturing technology support – and it is – then there is a need for technicians that specialize in each industry.
As you are aware, dental technology is part of the wider healthcare technology field. As such, it requires more than a run-of-the-mill IT support company that does computer fixes and network setups.
Why?
- You need someone that has pre-existing, trusted relationships with your hardware and software vendors.
- You need someone that works on a daily basis with the integration and automation of the disparate functions of a dental office – communications, billing, imaging, diagnostics.
- You need someone that understands where medical technology – and dental technology in particular – is headed.
- You need someone that has built a reputation of helping healthcare professionals meet HIPAA compliance requirements.
- You need someone that knows dental practices and their IT systems well enough to “get” what your staff is asking about when they call with an issue.
How Do IT Services Benefit San Jose Dental Practices?
We have already touched on meeting the expectations of an increasingly technologically savvy patient base, and we’ve made reference to the fact that IT services help with gaining and maintaining efficiencies within the practice. But what else is important for the administrator or owner of a dental practice to know about the advantages of working with an IT support company that specializes in dental technology?
- Predictable, Budgeted IT Support Expense – IT services – as you already may know – are different than a break/fix agreement with your local computer-fix-it shop. Instead of waiting for a computer or software to break and experiencing the pain of downtime and patient-care delays, IT services are delivered in a proactive maintenance package called Managed Services. This monthly subscription IT support model provides of optimal operation of your technology with near-zero downtime. Fixing small issues before they become big problems just makes sense.
- Better Doctor/Patient Relationship – When automated and integrated IT systems increase the efficiency of patient care and provide patients with simple access to the information that they want, you are able to form a relationship with your patients that has a higher level of trust – resulting in loyalty to your practice and good word-of-mouth advertising.
- Dependable Security – Almost nothing will negatively impact your practice more than a breach of your security and a loss of patient data. Besides the legal ramifications, the impact on your relationship with your patients could be extremely detrimental. Part of dental IT services is the ongoing monitoring of a practices IT systems for the purpose of spotting and stopping hackers, malware, ransomware, and other nefarious activities before they negatively impact your practice.
- Reliable Support – Finding a computer repair guy to “come right away and help us” can sometimes be very difficult. Even if you have a retainer agreement with a local San Jose company, your problem or questions may not be a priority – especially during a busy season or during summer vacation time. Why? They know that your systems aren’t working, they know that you need them more than they need you, and they know that they will make the same amount of money whether they show up now or three days from now. By entering into a Managed IT Services agreement with a dental IT support company, you get a team of technicians that are financially motivated to keep your systems running optimally – no matter the season.
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