Emmott On Technology

Early beta tester likes the new Windows!!!!

Hands-On with the Windows 7 Beta: Surprise! It’s Actually Not Terrible

Amazon Daily.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is later this week in Las Vegas. I will be attending as a service to the dental profession. I will sacrifice by reveling in all the newest tech goodies in order to find out what might be coming that could be used effectively and profitably in the dental office.

Have you made any New Year resolutions for 2009? Of course there is the usual lose weight and get in shape. On the other hand this is a good time to make some high tech resolutions to go with the weight loss.

Most people are concerned about the economy and are looking to reduce expenses and increase productivity in the next year. Effective use of technology has always been one of the best ways to accomplish these goals.

1. Use what you have now. Chances are you already have some pretty sophisticated technology and you aren’t using it fully. Make a resolution to get more out of what you have.
2. One of the best ways to accomplish number one is training. Resolve to attend at least two computer or software training courses this year. That is training for the team and the doctor.
3. Complete the system. Resolve to add a computer to every treatment room and to network the entire office.
4. Reduce paper. A completely paperless record by the end of the year would be great. However start with some easier goals. Evaluate every paper you now create. Is it still important? Can it be added to an electronic record? Is there a faster way to do this?

This book has been chosen by several sources as the best business book of 2008. Here is the description from Amazon

Product Description
Corporate executives are struggling with a new trend: people using online social technologies (blogs, social networking sites, YouTube, podcasts) to discuss products and companies, write their own news, and find their own deals. This groundswell is global, it s unstoppable, it affects every industry and it s utterly foreign to the powerful companies running things now.

When consumers you ve never met are rating your company s products in public forums with which you have no experience or influence, your company is vulnerable. In Groundswell, Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff of Forrester, Inc. explain how to turn this threat into an opportunity.

Dental practices have always grown most effectively from word of mouth. Now word of mouth extends to the Internet and a happy (or disgruntled) patient can tell not just one or two friends but thousands of others using social media.

Amazon.com: Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies: Charlene Li, Josh Bernoff: Books.

I just installed Dentrix G4. No problems,

To aid you in your last-minute shopping quest, we’ve gathered a group of products that we think you (and your recipients) will absolutely love. Each one is priced under $100, too, so that you can easily keep within budget. Good luck!

10 Cool Gifts Under $100 - Reviews by PC Magazine.

Is it really possible to go paperless? How can I turn all this junk into a digital record? And why should I even bother?

The fact is that it is possible to create a completely paperless dental record. And going paperless can save you tens of thousands of dollars.

My comprehensive technology guide, “How to go paperless in the dental office” will answer the basic question…Why bother?  It then provides step by step help in setting up a paperless office, including the eight essentials that need to be in place before you get started, four ways to digitize stuff, and front deskless workflow. There is even a budget and financial analysis that shows how your current paper system is costing you over $40,000!

“How to go paperless in the dental office” will answer all your questions, provide a plan and show you how to save money… all delivered in a fun and easy to understand style.

Follow the link to order your copy today.

This is almost too simple but it could save so much time it is worth mentioning. If you want to use stick on labels for letters. charts, files folders or labeling cupboards. You can spend a whole lot of time trying to set up Word to align the print properly or you can just go to Avery and download pre-made templates. Takes seconds and works great.

Spyware is any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge. On the Internet (where it is sometimes called a spybot or tracking software), spyware is programming that is put in someone’s computer to secretly gather information about the user and relay it to advertisers or other interested parties. Spyware can get in a computer as a software virus or as the result of installing a new program. (from whatis.com)

Dentists often take the attitude that paper charts work fine and they don’t cost anything so why invest in an expensive computer system?

The paper folder and all the other papers cost about $2.50 each. If you have 2500 charts they cost you at least $6,250 to create and every time a new patient walks in it’s another two-fifty; cha-ching.

Other chart contents, like x-rays and photographs can be even more costly. A set of bitewings with film, processing and mounts can be a dollar or two. A photo printed from the intraoral camera is $1.50 or more. It is reasonable to add at least another $3.00 to the cost of each chart for these contents adding another $7,500 to the cost.

Storing the records isn’t free either. A typical office with 2500 charts will need three or four full size lateral files to hold them all. Depending on how nice the files are they will cost about $4,000 and could be a lot more. They will take up office space. A 10′x 5′ file room will cost $7,500 to build. That is 50 Sq. Ft at $150 per foot. Not to mention all the “inactive” charts stashed away somewhere else?

So far our inexpensive paper files are costing us $25,250, but that’s not the total cost. There is the human effort to make the chart, type the label, arrange the contents, file new bits when they arrive in the mail, write the notes, pull the charts every day and then re-file them.

What we have is a paper chart system that is really quite expensive costing $25,250 to create and $15,050 per year to maintain for a total of $40,300.

For help on going paperless look here:

Digital information can be many things including words, numbers, photos, sounds, movies or x-rays.  Once an item is digitized there are three significant things you can do with it. You can store transmit and manipulate the information electronically. That’s it, that’s the digital revolution. At first glance it may not seem too important but in action it literally changes everything. The digital exchange of data is what’s behind the PC revolution, its what powers the Internet, it is the essence of the information age.

From Ergotron  this is a nice solution for the pano computer in a hallway

Vertical Lifts • Overview
The Vertical Lift (VL Series) is a low-profile, wall-mounted module that allows quick positioning of a monitor and keyboard. It’s perfect for areas where multiple operators use a single computer workstation.

• Low profile: In storage position, system depth as little as 4″
• Height adjustment of 9″; keyboard and LCD move in tandem
• Two versions: Standard Keyboard Tray model or Slide-Out Keyboard Tray model
• VESA FDMI compliant for easy monitor attachment
• 5-year warranty

Its like Vista but better

So what is Windows 7?
It’s the next version of Windows for PCs,

Welcome to Windows 7.

“Every few hundred years throughout Western history, a sharp transformation has occurred. In a matter of decades, society all together rearranges itself - its worldview, its basic values, its social and political structure, its arts, and its key institutions. Fifty years later a new world exists. And the people born into that world cannot even imagine the world in which their own grandparents were born. Our age is in such a period of transformation. If history is a guide the transformation will be complete in 2010 to 2020.”

Join Dr. Larry Emmott the nation’s top dental technology expert, on this three-day high intensity CE-Vacation program. Each day Dr. Emmott will lead a mountain biking group in the morning and a seminar in the afternoon. For non bikers Sedona offers lots of fabulous options like shopping, golf, jeep rides or a guided tour to an ancient cliff dwelling. He will give you the tools you need to make wise technology choices, saving you time and thousands of dollars. Plus, you’ll learn in one of the West’s most beautiful places-Sedona Arizona. Local bike rental is available.