Ready to upgrade your dental practice and earn more money?
The demand for dental implants is booming right now. With over 150 million Americans missing teeth and the market for dental implants in the U.S. alone set to balloon from $1.4 billion in 2023 to an astonishing $3.7 billion by 2032, now is the time to learn and start placing implants.
Problem:
Most general dentists are missing out on this opportunity. Despite 80-90% of general dentists worldwide placing implants, only 10-15% in North America are doing so surgically.
So why the huge disparity?
The answer is one word: proper training.
Without the right skills and confidence to place implants, you are leaving money on the table and watching specialists steal cases that you are just as capable of doing. The good news is…
With the right continuing education and comprehensive structured implant courses for general dentist, you can quickly learn the basics of implant dentistry and change both your practice and your patients lives.
In this article, we are going to cover
- Why Implant Continuing Education Is Mandatory
- Making the Business Case for Learning Implant Skills
- The Training Essentials Every General Dentist Needs
- How Technology is Shaping the Future of Implant Education
- Building Patient Confidence by Becoming an Expert
Why is Implant Continuing Education Mandatory?
Implant dentistry technology is rapidly evolving.
- Patient expectations are higher than ever
- Competition among dentists for implant cases is fierce
- The dental implant marketplace is highly saturated
The fact is, if you’re not on top of these trends and new information, you’re practicing yesterday’s implant dentistry in tomorrow’s marketplace.
The most successful and highest-earning implant dentists view education as a continuous and necessary investment.
- Dentists that are committed to continuing education regarding implants see more success in their implant cases than those that do not.
- Higher case acceptance
- Higher revenue per patient
- Better clinical outcomes
- Improved patient satisfaction
Making the Business Case for Learning Implant Skills
Let’s talk dollars and cents for a moment.
The average dental implant procedure can cost between $2,000 to $4,500 per tooth. Compared to a filling or a routine cleaning, it’s no wonder why learning how to place dental implants can make a world of difference for your practice’s bottom line.
The bottom line is, that when you can offer comprehensive and in-house implant solutions, you have a “total care advantage”.
- Instead of referring to a specialist, you become that patient’s primary dentist for all needs including consultation, treatment planning, and final restorations.
- This drastically increases patient retention as patients are not having to leave your practice for major procedures
- Treatment planning becomes more robust and complete
- You are able to see the big picture and present a full solution
- Referral patterns improve in your favor as other dentists begin to refer their implant cases to you
Keep this in mind:
The dental implant market is set to grow at 11.4% a year through 2032. This market growth is being driven by both an aging population and technological advancements.
Jumpstarting the learning process now, places your practice in a position of decades of growth and expansion.
The Training Essentials Every General Dentist Needs
Not all implant education is equal.
The difference between world-class training and a sub-par training course is two-fold: programs that provide theoretical knowledge, with hands-on surgical experience.
You need to understand both the “why” and “how” of successful implant dentistry.
1. Surgical Fundamentals
The first essential component to understanding implant surgery is the surgical principles and information.
Some of the topics covered are
- Site assessment and treatment planning
- Bone grafting materials and techniques
- Soft tissue management protocols
- Immediate vs. delayed placement
2. Prosthetic Integration
Implant dentistry surgery is only part of the overall treatment process. To provide complete care and integrated solutions, the dentist also needs to know how to seamlessly incorporate the prosthetic aspect into treatment plans.
- Abutment selection and customization
- Impression techniques and strategies specific to implants
- Working with the lab and all laboratory communication
- Occlusion and prosthesis considerations
3. Emergency Management
Another area that is often overlooked in implant training is what to do when things don’t go according to plan.
- What are the complication prevention strategies?
- How do you manage a surgical emergency?
- How do you post-operatively care for a patient?
- When and how do you appropriately refer a difficult case?
4. Business Integration
The final component that makes up world-class training is how you run your practice.
What do you need to know in terms of:
- Case presentation for high value treatments?
- Integrating software for treatment planning?
- Insurance and financing options for dental implants
- Assembling the right team members around you to build an implant practice
How Technology Is Shaping the Future of Implant Education?
The way that dentists are learning implant dentistry has completely changed over the years.
- Surgical trainees have access to live surgical demonstrations
- Virtual reality training programs have become the norm
- Cadaver training is now a widely available option for dentists looking to get hands-on experience prior to ever treating a live patient
- This has made it easier to place implants quicker than traditional learning methods
It’s not just live surgical continuing education courses either.
Recent surveys indicate that dentists that have participated in live surgery CE courses report not only higher satisfaction with the course but an increase in clinical confidence and skills. The success rates for procedures like All-on-4 implants have reached an impressive 98.8% prosthetic survival rate.
The best education programs now incorporate:
- Digital workflow integrations with tools like CBCT and other treatment planning software
- Material science integrations with the latest implant surfaces and bone grafting materials
- Multi-disciplinary collaborative efforts
The Virtual Learning Advantage
Online components, in conjunction with hands-on training, are becoming the gold standard for education.
- Flexible scheduling for working dentists
- The ability to access complex procedures repeatedly
- Interactive case study review and engagement
Building Patient Confidence Through Expertise
I have long noticed something with patients.
They know when you really know what you are talking about or if you are just going through the motions.
When you are up to date on implant continuing education and comfortable in your training, it comes through to your patients in every interaction. Your case presentations are more confident, your treatment planning is more accurate, and your surgery is more predictable.
Patients can pick up on this sense of expertise and will be more likely to
- Accept treatment plans
- Refer family and friends
- Trust you with more complex dental conditions
- Invest in more premium treatment options
The “Expert Advantage”
Continuous implant education also helps you to build “expert authority” in the minds of your patients.
What this means is you
- Speak with more confidence
- Explain treatment options in terms that patients can understand
- Deliver consistent and predictable outcomes
Wrapping Things Up
Learning the fundamentals of implant dentistry through continuous education is not just about acquiring new skills, it’s about changing your whole practice.
With the marketplace for dental implants more active than it has ever been and with patient demand continuing to reach new all-time highs, the dentists who are investing in education today will be the market leaders of the future.
The key is to pick the right pathway for learning.
Look for comprehensive programs that integrate all of the following:
- Strong surgical foundations
- Hands-on training options
- Integration of these skills with the business side of your practice
Remember, every successful implant that you place in a mouth not only helps to grow your practice, it helps to build your confidence and reputation as a masterful implant dentist.
The question is no longer can you afford to invest in implant education…
But instead, can you really afford not to?
