Patient Experience

Creating a Better Patient Experience backed by Data

Imagine arriving to a dental appointment and upon entering the practice, a friendly greeting by the staff, the warm lighting of the waiting room, personalized music, and comfortable seating relaxes you from the challenges of the day and any anxiety associated with the appointment. More and more dental practices are being designed with the patient experience in mind. But what are the most important elements for designing a dental practice that offers a great patient experience?

To better understand the needs of patients in a dental office setting, the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University (DHBW) undertook a study in the fourth quarter of 2018, supervised by Prof. Dr. Martin Kornmeier on behalf of Dentsply Sirona. The researchers held focus groups in both Germany and Spain, which included an equal number of young adults and middle-aged participants. Simultaneously, the researchers also conducted a survey of 1,534 people from Germany, Spain, and France with a nearly equal distribution across gender and age groups, starting from 18 years old.

What Do Patients Look for at their Dental Practice?

The DHBW study found that hygiene, cleanliness, friendliness of the staff, a pleasant and warm atmosphere, modern equipment, and modern furnishings are the elements most important to the patient experience in dental practices. Philipp Schank, one of the study’s authors, commented on the important role that design can have for a patient-centered experience: “People have this need to be recognized in the dental practice and not just be a product on a conveyor belt. They want to feel safe, secure, and comfortable; taken care of and supported by the dentist and the whole dental practice team. Design is a decisive element that can contribute a lot and can make the whole experience more enjoyable.”

Hélène Hung, another author of the study, noted that, “We can see with the survey that each detail is very important in contributing to the atmosphere. Maybe the patient doesn’t notice all these details at first, but they contribute, and help in their evaluation of the dentist and to whether they will keep seeing the same dentist or make a change.”