5 key trends from the Chicago Dental Society Midwinter Meeting

At the Chicago Dental Society Midwinter Meeting Feb. 22-24 in Chicago, dental professionals, distributors and suppliers gathered to discuss innovation, operations and the future.

Trends are based on feedback from Henry Schein, Premier Dental, Banker's Healthcare, 3M Oral and NEA. If you have any feedback on the meeting or want to provide insight, please email Mackenzie Garrity at mgarrity@beckershealthcare.com.

Here are five key trends from the meeting:

1. Small group practice is the next wave of practice management. While dental service organizations are booming, private practices will soon come together to form groups. These groups will take over the market, allowing dentists to operate their own practice in a smaller scope while receiving staffing and administration services.

2. Dentists are looking for more coding and billing resources. Coming out of dental school, many dentists are not trained on coding and billing and there are few companies that provide these services. Dental service organizations provide coding and billing assistance; however, these topics are new areas of education for dentists.

3. On the clinical side, dentists are now researching the links between oral health and overall health. In recent studies, dentists and researchers found various oral health issues cause other health complications. In the coming years, total health, which is the link between oral health and overall health, will be a hot study topic.

4. Along with looking to form small group practices, dentists are looking for resources to grow their teams. Staffing is important to dentists, from front desk managers to hygienists. The ability to staff allows dentists to grow into leaders and build stronger relationships with other experts. Dentists cannot only cleanings and root canals, they must also have a strong team of support staff.

5. Preventative dentistry is a major focus area in 2018 and will lead to the development and recognition opportunities for dental hygienists. Dental companies are looking for feedback from hygienists about what products work best to provide superior preventative care.

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