Shelley Clegg talks to Catherine McCanny, director of St Michael's Orthodontics in Wakefield, about the high demand for aligner treatment since practices reopened.
There have not been many positive stories over the last year – but one to come out of dentistry has been the increase in patient enquiries for aligner treatment and the subsequent uptake of this treatment.
While some practices have struggled under the pressures and demands of the pandemic, there are others who have had a different experience. We are hearing from lots of orthodontists who were surprised during lockdown about the number of enquiries they received about treatments such as Invisalign. Practices were even more surprised by how many of those enquiries became patients and took up treatment once the doors reopened. This upturn in specific treatment has offered a real boost to practices in terms of cash flow as they returned to work.
I spoke to Catherine McCanny about her experience so far and her thoughts on the future.
SC: How did you find returning to the practice?
CM: I have been amazed at how busy we have been. Since we reopened, I have never had so many new patient enquiries, the vast majority of which are for Invisalign, and there continues to be demand even now, months later.
SC: What were you doing for patients during the lockdown?
CM: I had already been using Dental Monitoring for about a year, but it really became invaluable during lockdown to remotely supervise and guide patients without being able to see them face to face.
Patients who already had aligners could carry on with their treatment as they could send in scans via the platform. And those who were just about to start were still able to go ahead as well.
We also used SmileMate, which is a great tool for all the new patient enquiries we were receiving. The first thing we ask new patients to do now is to download their photos onto SmileMate, which gives us a good starting point for a virtual consultation. We can then arrange a clinical appointment for those patients who are ready and wanting to start treatment.
We did do some low-cost marketing during lockdown but mainly focused on the fact that even though the practice was shut, our team were still available to answer any queries and support patients through their treatment. I did virtual consultations during lockdown which meant I had a cohort of patients ready to start treatment as soon as we opened our doors
SC: Where do you think this demand is coming from?
CM: People have been looking at themselves on video calls and things that did not bother them about their appearance before are now starting to bother them.
Plus, while some people have been hit hard financially by lockdown, others are finding they actually have more disposable income due to being furloughed and not going out as much or commuting, or because the money they had saved for a holiday can’t be spent on that any more.
SC: Will you be continuing with some of the changes made in the practice during lockdown?
CM: We want to minimise the amount of time patients are in the practice and the number who are in the building at any one time, plus keep the clinical teams separate, so I will be continuing to do virtual consultations from home.
One of the surprising things I have found during this experience is how easy it feels to build relationships and rapport in a virtual consultation. Patients seem to be more relaxed, and I am too, as there is no pressure of having another patient in the waiting room.
SC: Fantastic! And finally, how are you feeling about the future?
CM: I feel very optimistic that there is still a big demand for aligners and teeth straightening. And I’d question why any orthodontist wouldn’t be offering Invisalign and using Dental Monitoring right now.
I will keep doing as much as I can digitally because I think it will be a long time before we can go back to seeing normal levels of patients and I think patients really like how convenient it is.