FOCUS ON MODERN DENTISTRY

Dr. Coburn's patients also appreciate that he uses the latest technologies in a modern, comfortable office. He recently acquired the practice of a retiring dentist, and as those patients have visited Dr. Coburn’s office, “Their reaction to a modern dental experience has been, ‘Wow, this is unbelievable,’” says Office Manager Debbie Quinn. “We've had 100 percent positive feedback from these incoming patients. They never realized there was this much advancement in dentistry.”

Birmingham Dental Center uses state–of–the–art equipment — digital X–rays that use 60 percent less radiation, intraoral cameras and other modern technology for an excellent patient experience. But technology, as Dr Coburn and Debbie note, also has its challenges.

They recently upgraded their X–ray sensors and intraoral cameras which introduced trouble with the information technology (IT) infrastructure that enabled their digital practice to run smoothly. “We had this great new equipment,” Debbie says, “but it was causing nightmares with the old computers.”

CREATING THE BEST PATIENT EXPERIENCE

“We have a great team in place,” Debbie says, “but we needed our technology to perform well and simplify everyone's life so we could offer the best patient experience.”

“Our office technology and this modern dental experience helps to differentiate us from a lot of other practices,” Debbie explains, continuing, “Patients love that we use digital technology like an intraoral camera. They are so amazed when they can actually see what their teeth look like.” Along with that, “The X–ray sensors we use are much more comfortable than the traditional bitewings.” The office technology also supports the patient experience as it “enables the back and front to communicate really well, which is so important.”

However, with all this technology, Dr. Coburn did not have a dedicated IT person, and it was taking away his focus from patients since he was often troubleshooting office IT issues himself. He hoped he could smooth out the technology challenges and upgrade the computer systems and server later on, but it was taking up too much of his attention and slowing down his staff.

With the computers crashing regularly, he finally said, “Forget it; we've got to replace our network and our old computers.”

THE OMNICORE SOLUTION

They talked to a representative from TechCentral (part of the Henry Schein One family), and she told them about the Omnicore all–in–one network. “When we heard about Omnicore, we were excited. It was such a great deal,” says Debbie. “And having all the hardware we needed in one product was one less thing for us to worry about.”

Dr. Coburn's office staff contacted TechCentral by Henry Schein One for a free technology assessment, where Dr. Coburn and Debbie gained a clear understanding of the state of their hardware. “Our firewall was not very good,” admits Debbie. “We saw that the server was really inadequate. And the patients used the same Wi–Fi network we were using for the business. We didn't have that secured Wi–Fi that we should have had.”

Seeing the situation clearly, they knew that “we absolutely had to upgrade,” says Debbie. “We saw that with everything that came with the Omnicore, this was the perfect solution for our practice. And it was all for an extremely reasonable fee per month.”

BALANCING TECHNOLOGY WITH DENTISTRY

“Dr. Coburn is an unbelievable businessman,” says Debbie. “But he doesn't want to spend all his time managing the business and technology aspects of the practice. He wants things to run smoothly so he can focus on giving patients just what they need and deserve as soon as they walk through the door”. she says.

“The dentist needed IT things taken off his plate. Omnicore has done that for us.”

DEBBIE QUINN
Birmingham Dental Center

“Omnicore is what we should have had all along, back when we started as a digital practice,” Debbie comments. “We didn’t have a good setup. Our network had all these different confusing components and switches. We were actually using our server as a workstation as well. It was set up that way when I started, and I didn’t even know I was working on the server CPU.”

THE DANGERS OF DIY IT

Dr. Coburn and Debbie also were unaware of the danger of using a single Wi–Fi network for both patient and business traffic. This opened them up to a possible data breach and exposed the practice to increased risk of dangerous or inappropriate guest traffic. Computer hackers routinely scan for open networks where they can easily upload viruses or ransomware. If the practice had suffered a data breach, it would have resulted in patients' confidential information being exposed — leading to serious consequences, from significant government fines to loss of reputation and patient attrition.

“Thank goodness it never happened,” Debbie says with relief. “We didn't know at the time how dangerous the situation was with our Wi–Fi and firewall. It's so much better that we have the guest Wi–Fi network now. With Omnicore,” she claims, “we finally have what we need to have to run a secure business and keep our patients' information protected like we should.”

Debbie also appreciates having an automatic cloud backup with Omnicore in the event they lose their data. “It's state of the art compared to the way we were doing things. Omnicore has integrated really well with all our technology.”

PEACE OF MIND

Debbie has been glad they made the switch to Omnicore. “I'm so happy that we heard about TechCentral,” she says.

“I've gotten calls almost every week asking how things are going and if we are having any problems with Omnicore.” She continues, “The support has been really, really, great, and that gives us a lot of peace of mind.”

“We feel a lot of security because we know we've got a team of specialists keeping an eye on our system.”

DEBBIE QUINN
Birmingham Dental Center

Along with replacing their network with Omnicore, Birmingham Dental Center replaced old workstations with computers from TechCentral. Debbie was pleased with the implementation process. “The installation went as well as possible. We had a lot that needed to be done, but we have had literally no problems with the Omnicore installation.”

Going with TechCentral equipment “was a no-brainer to us,” Debbie notes. “We know we have to replace computers every three to five years, and it's always a lot to take on. Just knowing that TechCentral is taking care of things so we don't have to try to figure it out every few years makes so much sense. TechCentral keeps the equipment updated and is looking out for us.”

She sums up, “Our experience with Henry Schein One has been wonderful. We liked that the hardware works with our existing practice management software. Everyone we've worked with was great. We are super happy with TechCentral and everything they’ve done.”

ONE STOP SUPPORT

“Omnicore is a super convenient network in a box. It's great hardware,” Debbie declares. “It's like having different IT people taking care of us all in one service. Management, maintenance, support, monitoring — it's all included. I don't have all these different IT things to worry about anymore.”

Debbie also appreciates the ease of having her network managed and maintained by one company. “I have one place to go for IT questions. It's one phone number if I have a problem. And I know TechCentral is always monitoring things. If they see a problem, I'm confident I'll get a call. I don't have to worry about it.”

“Upgrading our computer technology has really enhanced our patient experience,” says Debbie. “I would definitely recommend Omnicore. We're 100 percent happy with it. Everything is included in one simple box that's a nice size.” She sums up her Omnicore experience, “It's very, very affordable. It totally makes sense.”

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