Most dental professionals remember 2020 as a stressful time to be practicing (or not practicing) dentistry, but for Dr. Paul Trotter, the plot was thickened by a plan to gradually take over his father’s 40-year-old orthodontic practice in Augusta, GA. After diving into the practice numbers, he decided it was time to make some changes.
“I needed to get way more efficient, but I didn’t want to sacrifice the quality of care that we had been delivering, and I also didn’t really want to hire an associate,” he said.
Like most orthodontists in his position, he tried digital Indirect Digital Bonding (IDB), which offers a modern approach to bracket placement. Combining digital planning with a custom tray and traditional bonding methods, digital IDB offers custom tip and better placement. But it’s far from a custom solution, since everything else in the treatment plan is based on a stock prescription.
Time to Rewire Orthodontics
While digital IDB was shaving off about 20 minutes from bracket placement, Dr. Trotter wondered how it was really playing out by the numbers. “I needed a treatment modality that would allow me to see patients in fewer appointments, but still deliver quality treatment with control and have satisfied patients so that I could be profitable,” he noted.
That led to KLOwen, a fully customized digital orthodontic solution that helps doctors create custom prescriptions for every tooth and every patient. Powered by KLOwen Software and a full portfolio— including metal and clear twin, and award-winning custom metal self-litigating—it provides a near-endless combination of prescription possibilities.
Appointments Down, Revenue Up
In his first 100 KLOwen consecutive debonds, Dr. Trotter saw some incredibly encouraging data. When comparing digital IDB and a stock prescription with the KLOwen Custom Digital Solution, he saw treatment time decrease by 4 months, office visits shrink from 18 to 11, and revenue per appointment using custom increased 98% over his revenue per appointment using conventional treatment.”
“Those are really important appointments to save, because typically, the doctor is the bottleneck,” added Dr. Trotter. “So, if you can cut out a lot of the appointments where you are the bottleneck, it makes for a much smoother day with your team.”
While Dr. Trotter has done several more case studies to compare KLOwen custom brackets with both traditional bonding methods and digital IDB, the numbers continue to speak volumes. “Custom beats digital IDB every single time no matter how you slice the data,” he concluded.
