Alan reflects on the importance of maintenance, both in car care and dental practices. He discusses the parallels between regular car maintenance and consistent dental care, emphasizing the benefits of methodical upkeep to avoid surprises and extend longevity. Dr. Mead proposes using AI to create comprehensive dental maintenance reports for patients, akin to car service records, to improve recall practices and patient engagement. The point is that car owners and patients can actually take pride in being responsible for themselves. Key takeaways: Embrace the "Adulting" Mindset: Just as regular car maintenance is a sign of responsible adulthood, so is consistent dental care. Patients who come in for regular recalls are already in a mindset to take care of their health, making them more receptive to your recommendations. Improve Your Communication: Car dealerships often provide a detailed report of what was checked, what was done, and what might need attention in the future. Dentists can adopt a similar strategy by providing patients with a clear, concise summary of their visit, including visual aids like intraoral photos, to reinforce the value of the appointment. Plant Seeds for Future Treatment: Use the recall appointment to educate patients about potential future needs. Mentioning a tooth that might need a crown down the line plants a seed, so when the time comes for treatment, the patient is already prepared and understands the necessity. Some links from the show: Plaud.ai Voices of Dentistry 2025 (August 1-2, 2025 in Gilbert Arizona! Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Join the Very Dental Facebook group using the password "Timmerman," Hornbrook," "Gary," "McWethy," "Papa Randy" or "Lipscomb!" The Very Dental Podcast network is and will remain free to download. If you’d like to support the shows you love at Very Dental then show a little love to the people that support us! -- Crazy Dental has everything you need from cotton rolls to equipment and everything in between and the best prices you’ll find anywhere! If you head over to verydentalpodcast.com/crazy and use coupon code “VERYDENTAL10” you’ll get another 10% off your order! Go save yourself some money and support the show all at the same time! -- The Wonderist Agency is basically a one stop shop for marketing your practice and your brand. From logo redesign to a full service marketing plan, the folks at Wonderist have you covered! Go check them out at verydentalpodcast.com/wonderist! -- Enova Illumination makes the very best in loupes and headlights, including their new ergonomic angled prism loupes! They also distribute loupe mounted cameras and even the amazing line of Zumax microscopes! If you want to help out the podcast while upping your magnification and headlight game, you need to head over to verydentalpodcast.com/enova to see their whole line of products! -- CAD-Ray offers the best service on a wide variety of digital scanners, printers, mills and even their very own browser based design software, Clinux! CAD-Ray has been a huge supporter of the Very Dental Podcast Network and I can tell you that you’ll get no better service on everything digital dentistry than the folks from CAD-Ray. Go check them out at verydentalpodcast.com/CADRay!

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

Transcript

Related