On any given day, a dental practice can face any number of hardware issues or IT-related problems, ranging from a network connectivity issue to a crypto virus attack. While your local IT company knows computers, they may not know the unique challenges of a dental practice network. When it comes to having a failed network, you don’t want someone who has to “figure it out.” You want someone who knows how each piece of your network interacts with your dental-specific tools, such as your imaging equipment.
Based on my experience with customers at TechCentral by Henry Schein One, here are 5 reasons you should use an IT provider that knows the dental industry, rather than your local computer IT guy:
1. Dental Industry Familiarity
The dental industry faces unique challenges when it comes to technology. A local IT company can offer computer troubleshooting, but they will usually charge you by the hour to “figure out the problem.” In the environment of a busy dental practice, there are going to be unique variables, whether it’s settings within your practice management software, network configurations, firewall protections, or compliance issues. It’s important to have an IT provider that understands how your technology works with the unique tools used within your dental practice.
TechCentral has more than 15 years of experience working exclusively within the dental industry. They process more than 40,000 service requests each year. With that kind of experience, TechCentral is the best provider to help keep your office technology up and running.
2. Practice Management Support
Practice management software is the central brain of your practice and without it, you cannot function. The failure or unavailability of your software can cost you a lot of money. Often times when you are having trouble with your software, it actually turns out to be a hardware-related issue. While your local IT provider knows computers, they may not know the requirements and intricacies of your practice management software. Because TechCentral works closely with many of these software platforms, such as Dentrix, they can often provide a quicker resolution.
3. Protecting Your Data with Backup and Monitoring
Data is important to any company, but to a dental practice, patient data is their lifeblood and without it, they are dead in the water. It’s important to have an IT provider that understands the value of this data and will take proactive steps to protect it. Have you ever imagined how devastating it would be if you lost all of your practice data—patient records, financial and accounting information, payroll, inventory…everything? No one wants to think that disaster could strike their practice, but this nightmare of data loss is a potential reality.
TechCentral support monitors your server and backup to identify any issues that could affect your ability to operate your practice. We monitor issues like voltage spikes, low disk space, overheating, failed backups and other issues that could potentially cause failure or data loss. Should errors be detected, our support team will work with you to help resolve them and assist your practice to address these errors. This level of proactive notification and resolution is a service that many local IT guys simply don’t offer.
4. A Team of Technicians Who Have Your Back
Time is money, so when you’re having technology issues, the last thing you want to do is hope that the already overworked local IT provider can work you into their schedule.
With a TechCentral hardware support plan, you gain access to a full team of remote technicians with various skill sets, including hardware support, server monitoring, and imaging support. With 90% of issues resolved remotely, you can save on the often costly on-site technician fees that are typical for most other IT providers.
However, there are some issues that will require an on-site technician to resolve a problem. In those cases, TechCentral will dispatch one of their many nationwide IT field technicians and the first 4 hours of their service will be no additional cost. For more complicated issues, any additional hour will be billed at a discounted rate.
5. Insurance Policy for Your Hardware
Having a hardware support plan can be a real “life saver.” Just the other day I was talking to a customer who was initially debating if they wanted to pay the extra money for a support plan. They ultimately agreed to the terms and the next day, they experienced an outage at their office that affected their server. Because they had the support plan, the problem was resolved remotely and in only three hours. Let’s just say they were very happy they had signed up for a TechCentral support plan the day before!
By working with a trusted dental IT partner, like TechCentral, you can eliminate your IT support stress,allowing you to focus on what you do best, patient care. To learn more about a TechCentral support plan today, visit HSTechCentral.com/support or call 844.206.1228.
This article is paid for by TechCentral. Certain components of the products or services described above are provided by third parties. Henry Schein One and its affiliates are not responsible for, and expressly disclaim, all liability for damages of any kind arising out of the use of those third-party products or services.
About Casey McKinley
Casey has been in the information technology field for 24 years. His prior experience includes experience in microscopy, positions in the nuclear industry as well as flight and racecar simulation systems support, manufacturing, and sales. Bringing this technical background to Henry Schein in 2013, Casey has become a valuable asset to the technology sales team. He has shown that he is able to offer his customers unique insights into their technological challenges and prepare them for the future of digital dentistry.