Right now everyone is looking for remote methods for meetings and other services. Warr Pediatric Dental Associates is happy to announce that we can now address questions about your child’s dental needs remotely! We want to support you and your family throughout the quarantine.
What is Teledentistry and how does it work?
Teledentistry is a method for delivering care and not a formal branch of dentistry in itself (such as oral surgery).
It’s typically similar in concept to a video call where you can ask the dentist questions and describe any pain or discomfort your child may be feeling. This can work in a few different ways depending on your needs:
- Live video between Dr. Warr and you the parent. She will be able to see your child live with the secure connection.
- Store-and-forward, where the parent will send health information (such as radiographs, photographs, video, etc.) securely to Dr. Warr ahead of time. She can then reply with impressions and suggestions via secure messaging or a phone call. This method is ideal for those with difficult schedules.
- Mobile health (mHealth) where public health best practices and education is provided by the dentist via mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets for users.
With the Revenue Well software we can send you a link for these sessions. We’ll review your child’s chart and observe the issue via video to the best of our ability. If your child is experiencing pain we can also write prescriptions as needed.
Note that because of the nature of a teledentistry appointment all the typical patient forms are still needed. If you’re a new patient you’ll need to complete the new patient forms prior to receiving teledentistry care. We are required to have this information before advising patients. It’s also helpful for us to review your child’s health prior to the appointment so we can give the best assessment.
** Note that because we aren’t able to physically examine our patients with this type of session, everything we discuss is meant as advice for what the parent should do next and is not an official diagnosis.
Advantages of Teledentistry & Remote Appointments
Our foremost concern right now is safety. Being able to communicate from a distance keeps both parties safe from any potential transmission of COVID-19 or other pathogens.
It is also very helpful because of the challenges to obtain gloves, masks, and other equipment used in each and every visit. With Teledentistry, we can help your child with far less of a draw on these resources.
For parents this means greater flexibility in your day while managing work and your kids while they’re home — and less commute time!
We are also accepting calls that may not seem like emergencies. Does your child have a suspicious bump or sore? Maybe you have always been meaning to ask Dr. Joye about an area on your child’s tooth or a stain that you can’t get off. Even if you see a suspicious black spot, give Dr. Joye a call and let’s look at the area so that you won’t be worried.
Other things to know about remote dentistry:
Here are some important quick notes for patients considering a Teledentistry visit:
- We must charge for this visit. We will file the visit with your insurance since there is provision for Teledentistry in many plans. We can’t guarantee when they will reimburse for the visit. You are responsible for paying for the visit if your insurance plan doesn’t cover teledentistry.
- We must have a signed consent form from the parent before conducting a Teledentistry appointment.
Advice given by Dr. Joye in these appointments is meant as a suggestion only. We can’t give an official diagnosis without seeing your child in person. - As mentioned above, new patients for whom we don’t have a chart history will need to fill out new patient forms prior to the Teledentistry appointment.