Sandy Pardue, Consultant/Classic Practice Resources

Sandy Pardue of Classic Practice Resources & Dana Pardue discuss issues facing the dental practice owner of today.

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Sandy Pardue

Hear the latest Dental Drill Bits episode: 

?? https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dental-drills-bits/id1193269670

AI is starting to show up everywhere in practices—especially at the front desk. Answering phones, scheduling, handling overflow, after-hours calls, etc.

On paper, it sounds like a no-brainer:
?? Fewer missed calls
?? More efficiency
?? Less pressure on the team

But after digging into it (and hearing from a lot of practices), I think there’s a bigger conversation that’s not getting enough attention…

What happens to the patient experience?

We all know the phone isn’t just administrative—it’s where:

    
• First impressions are made
    
• Trust starts to build
    
• Patients decide if they’re coming in or not

And in dentistry especially, patients are often calling with:

    
• Fear
    
• Confusion
    
• Financial concerns
    
• Urgency

That’s where it gets tricky.

AI can absolutely process requests…
But can it guide, reassure, and connect the way a strong team member can?

That said, I don’t think it’s all or nothing. I’m seeing some practices use it really well for:

    
• After-hours calls
    
• Overflow when the front is tied up
    
• Basic scheduling for existing patients
    
• Simple FAQs

But not as a full replacement for the front desk.

We actually just did a full episode on this on Dental Drill Bits—breaking down where AI fits, where it doesn’t, and how to think about it from both a patient experience and business standpoint.

?? https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dental-drills-bits/id1193269670

Would love to hear from others:

    
• Are you using an AI receptionist right now?
    
• If so, what’s working… and what’s not?
    
• Have you seen any impact on case acceptance or new patient conversion?

Feels like we’re at the very beginning of this shift, so curious what real-world experiences look like.