Like most modern digital technology, digital dental X-ray equipment has vastly improved the dental industry and increased the level of patient care. While most dental practices have adopted some digital tools to improve patient care and efficiency, every day we talk with practices that haven’t yet upgraded their conventional film X-ray units to digital dental X-ray technology.
Why is Digital Dentistry Important?
Digital options offer practice management tools plus a variety of other dental imaging advantages. The right digital tools can help with radiography (X-rays), scanning (intraoral cameras), and manufacture (CAD/CAM) as well as diagnosis and treatment planning. This is important because it allows your practice to share information instantly among several team members. Images and files can also be shared with patients, laboratories, referrals, and others for enhanced and more efficient patient care. That's essential if you want to keep patients happy and avoid losing them to the competition.
Why is the Adoption of Digital Dental X-Ray Technology Slow?
In general, new technology is often approached with great trepidation. Practitioners usually have two main worries about the technology:
- The Expense - Luckily, you don’t have to worry about price as much anymore. Traditionally, digital dental X-ray equipment has been extremely expensive. The growing market is helping to drop prices on digital dental X-ray equipment and now, you can also buy certified pre-owned equipment from resellers such as Renew Digital.
- The Learning Curve - The image management software for most digital dental X-ray equipment is designed to be intuitive and easy to use.
Benefits of Digital Dental X-Rays Over Conventional Film
By now, most practices should recognize the benefits of digital dental X-rays over film, but we’ll list them here again just in case you’re one of the few practices that haven’t quite upgraded yet.
- The digital dental X-ray is immediately processed and available to view, eliminating the step to develop and process the film.
- Up to 70% less radiation is required to produce the same image quality as film.
- You can enhance the digital dental X-ray images using enhancement tools and features.
- You can store images digitally on a computer, reducing the storage space for paper files and films.
- Digital radiography produces larger images with zoom capabilities for faster and more accurate diagnoses, as well as enhanced patient communication and treatment acceptance.
- Although more expensive to buy initially, digital dental X-ray is cheaper and more environmentally-friendly in the long run.
- Digital images are easy to share with patients, referrals, laboratories, insurance companies and others for streamlined patient care, faster payments and better communication.
Integrating New Technology with the Waterfall Plan
To stay current with evolving technologies from digital dental X-ray equipment to other digital dental devices such as intraoral cameras and CAD/CAM, consider implementing the digital waterfall concept in your practice. This idea can help you turn your clinic into a digital utopia without breaking your budget. Essentially, you create a plan that identifies which tools and equipment need to go digital and in which order. As you develop your strategy, think about how different tools are going to work together and map out what you want to accomplish.
By planning ahead, you help to ensure that the investments you make are perfectly customized to your long term needs and goals. Also, consider creating an equipment and technology investment account. Set aside a certain percentage of profits every year, so you're ready to make these important investments.
When you join the digital revolution by investing in digital dental X-ray equipment, your business becomes better positioned to enjoy success in the new age of digital dentistry. If you want top notch equipment without breaking the budget, take a look at our options and contact us today. At Renew Digital, we offer a variety of digital dental X-ray equipment designed to help you move your practice forward.
