Your Best Shot at a First Impression: Creating Long Term Patient Relationships

s many of you may be aware, it’s estimated that 50% of Americans avoid dental care due to fear of pain; most notably, the pain associated with injecting anesthesia.

What’s a bit more surprising is that dentists report that they too experience certain fears and stresses when administering anesthesia. Some dentists will tell you that the training they received in dental school administering injections was simply too brief.

A typical dental school curriculum might focus on injection technique training for just two weeks. Yet, upon

graduating the new dentist recognizes the importance of administering comfortable injections and the role of the injection as it relates to the doctor – patient relationship.

Scott Mahnken

Dentists have been seeking solutions to overcome the challenges encountered when administering anesthesia to patients for years. The fact remains, the traditional syringe used in dentistry today has hardly changed since being developed over 150 years ago. Patients look at the syringe as a threatening instrument as they see the polished metal and long needle appear in their site line.

So how do dentists somehow make a good first impression when the procedure starts with the patient’s least favorite moment?

Some dentists claim they give “per-

Scott Mahnken Practice Builders

fect pain-free injections!” Yet a recent University of Washington study found that the majority of patients will not voice their opinions (to the dentist) regarding any pain they experienced during the procedure. Certainly they’ll tell friends and family about the pain, but the average patient simply won’t complain to the dentist. This is understandable when one considers that many patients look at their dentist as an authority figure and an expert. Two common reactions from patients are “maybe it’s supposed to hurt,” and “how will it affect our doctor

patient relationship if I complain about the pain?”.

Fortunately for patients and dentists alike, manufacturers have been diligently pushing their R&D teams to develop a better solution.

The results of the research combined with today’s technology led to the development of a few new instruments that are empowering dentists to make a positive first impression, even with fearful patients.

In 1997, Milestone Scientific launched The Wand™ to a willing audience. The

Wand uses computer controlled technology to deliver a more comfortable injection. Soon after, DENTSPLY announced the launch of their injection solution— the Comfort Control Syringe™.

Since neither the Wand nor the Comfort Control Syringe achieved a majority market share, other manufacturers continued to conduct research in hopes of finding a more universal solution. Vibraject developed a system which connects to the traditional dental syringe and generates a vibration designed to

Whichever product

suits you best, they’re all designed

to increase patient comfort, reduce your

personal stress and provide a marketing

tool for the practice

improve the comfort of administering the injection. Accupal developed an instrument designed to make the palatal injection more comfortable.

In 2009, Novalar Pharmaceuticals introduced OraVerse™ developed to reverse the effects of anesthesia, enabling patients to return to their normal routines and standard level of comfort faster.

Recently, a dentist from Boca Raton Florida and NYU graduate introduced one of the most interesting new products to come to market in years. Dr. Steven Goldberg recognized that although he has a passion for practicing dentistry, his least favorite work responsibility was injecting his patients.

“I vividly remember giving my first injection while I was in dental school,” said Goldberg. “The patient in the clinic needed to have some endo work done. As my mind was racing with fear and anxiety, I looked around at my fellow students and they all had the same nervous look and unsure body language. At that moment,

I asked one of them, “how do you feel?” And they said, “I hate this part.”

they will tell you they “expect” you to use technology to improve the overall injection experience.

Seven years ago Dr. Goldberg starting experimenting with different injection techniques and solutions. “I tried the Wand, I tried different topicals, and I was willing to try anything,” said Goldberg. “Then one day I was thinking about why some dentists would wiggle a patient’s cheek when administering the injection. Obviously all of them were trying to leverage what we all had learned in dental school about the Gate Pain Control Theory. “

One of the manufacturers mentioned is offering dentists the opportunity to try their instrument for thirty days risk-free. DentalVibe wants every dentist to try their instrument in-office and witness the results of a real-time patient experience. You can find DentalVibe by visiting www. dentalvibe.com.

Remember: your patient’s impression of your injection technique will brand

Remember: your patient’s impression

Armed with the clinical research and university studies about the pain gate and understanding that a patient’s brain can only recognize one sensation at a time, Goldberg set out to invent an instrument that would offer patients an anxiety-free experience. The result was the invention of the DentalVibe™ which uses patented VibraPulse™ technology to send a series of pulsing, micro-oscillating vibrations to the patient’s brain, therefore closing the patient’s pain gate. Dentists using the DentalVibe are finding that patients simply don’t feel the needle penetration or pressure from the anesthesia entering the tissue. It seems that Dr. Goldberg and his development team have identified the perfect marriage of science and technology.

of your injection technique will brand

you one way or

another

you one way or another. I leave you with one of the most interesting statements I’ve heard a dentist make, one that echoes with truth. “If I provide my patient with a pain-free injection experience and the treatment goes as expected, I’m a worldclass dentist. Yet if they experience a painful injection and the treatment process is like a work of art, they leave telling their friends and family that they had a painful experience at the dentist and they’re glad it’s over and they’re dreading the next visit.”

Whichever product suits you best, they’re all designed to increase patient comfort, reduce your personal stress and provide a marketing tool for the practice. So as you build your practice maintain an open mind and consider implementing the injection support instrument that is best for you and your patients. With the proper marketing many of these products can be practice builders.

So true my dear readers, but the good news is that the outcome is up to you. Make a great first impression, it’ll last forever! ■

As you look around your new dental office, you’ll be surrounded by technology, and it’s technology which has forwarded the dentist’s ability to practice dentistry in a far more advanced manner than in the seventies – eighties -nineties or even in the early 2000’s. That syringe you’re using hasn’t changed much in 150 years, yet virtually every other part of the dental office has changed dramatically. The lesson is that it’s not only acceptable to look for better solutions for administering injections, but if you ask your patients,