As we in the dental world gear up for the Chicago Midwinter Dental Meeting, it’s time for another installment of 5 Questions With… This time we’ll check in with Dr. Bryan Laskin of OperaDDS and learn a little about his mission to revolutionize communication in the dental practice.
Michael Dunn: Tell us about OperaDDS. What products and services do you offer?
Bryan Laskin: OperaDDS is a revolutionary concept in dental practice communication. There has never been anything like it before. OperaDDS transforms the technology we’re all integrating into our lives and practices – even your tablets – into dentistry’s one and only complete communication dashboard.
OperaDDS allows users to communicate instantly and securely with anyone, anywhere, at any time, from any and all of the devices we all already use.
OperaDDS is a currently a 3 part system:
1) PAGER – the most sophisticated and intuitive intra-office messaging system. PAGER covers all staff communications – in or out of the office – from single touch paging to messaging individuals or teams to our customizable Checklists messages. In my office, our Checklist – which gets sent to all my devices (including my phone) lets me know the patient’s name, chief complaint, periodontal and restorative status, and any radiographs taken before I enter the room. I’ll even get the message when I’m out to lunch or skiing in Utah.
2) SEND – a simple to use HIPAA compliant email solution. Most dentists are not even aware that using traditional services, like Gmail, Dropbox and Yahoo! mail are not compliant with current regulations when sending patients’ Protected Health Information. So we developed SEND to look and feel like any traditional email service. In fact, OperaDDS SEND can be used with any traditional email address. Just type the message, attach whichever documents you want (even CT scans), and the recipient will get an email with an easy link to log in to view your HIPAA compliant message. If they don’t yet have an OperaDDS.com account, they just create one in a few easy steps – for free!
3) CHORUS – a simple and secure online collaboration tool that allows you and all your partner labs and specialists to work together in one location. CHORUS includes digital lab and referral prescriptions, attachments with photo previewing, and it even tracks everyone’s comments, so we never have to read each other’s “chicken scratch” again.
There are several more features coming, including many that may be out by the time this interview is posted, like pharmacologic prescriptions, and a sophisticated and secure patient communication portal. We never stop solving problems and elevating our features and capabilities. That’s why OperaDDS is a rapidly growing and changing community – we like it that way!
MD: How did you start OperaDDS? What was your “a-ha” moment?
BL: I built a new office in 2011 and was frustrated with the available intra-office communication systems, especially after finding out it was going to cost us $16,000 for 1950’s style light boxes! I’ve tried 3 systems and despised them all. I refused to wear walkie-talkies, because I didn’t want my office to look like Old Navy, and I didn’t want our patients to think our focus was on our own “chatter” and not on them.
I was complaining to a good friend of mine saying, “why hasn’t someone developed a system so I can just slap an iPad on the wall to communicate with everyone?” He said, “why not go ahead and do it?” OperaDDS was born.
MD: What makes OperaDDS unique compared to similar service providers?
BL: There frankly aren’t any similar providers. There are other communication services that provide one of our features or another, and each for a fee, but no other system does everything OperaDDS does, or offers a free option. Being a dentist in a very busy practice has given me a unique prospective. As I’ve integrated new technologies and expanded my practice, I wanted to have all my communication coming through one intuitive system that allows me to “check in” with anyone, anywhere, at any time, using what I already have available. OperaDDS is the only system that allows this.
Add to that the fact that we offer a free option, and no other service comes close to OperaDDS. I feel that we’ve all paid too much for too little – meanwhile our needs aren’t being met because the people attempting to solve problems don’t actually deal with them every day, like we all do. I want to do my part to correct this. So we made it possible for offices to use OperaDDS for free with up to 4 user logins. This means that 4 individual users can login to infinite computers, phones, and tablets while working with as many dentists, MD’s and labs that they want to. For more than 4 users, our options are shockingly affordable.
MD: What trends to you think will have the biggest impact on the dental industry in the next 5 – 10 years?
BL: The rapid development of technology is going to impact everything we do, as well as the ongoing regulations and policies that govern and exploit these technologies. At Prehensile Software, the parent company of OperaDDS, we are focused on turning these burdensome regulations, like HIPAA and HITECH, into opportunities that enhance our practices.
For example, figuring out exactly how to protect your patients’ electronic Personal Health Information (ePHI) can seem daunting. But by using a tool, like OperaDDS, we can all not only comply with securing ePHI, but actually elevate our patient care, and have our offices run much more efficiently than the old way.
MD: What’s next for you and OperaDDS? What can we look forward to?
BL: OperaDDS is going to continue to expand our options of effective communication while keeping everything integrated in one convenient, intuitive, and secure location. We will also continue to turn obstacles into opportunities by tackling new industry-changing regulations before they rear their ugly heads, protecting the majority of dental professionals from noncompliance. Problem solved.
Thank you, Bryan, for sharing the OperaDDS story and vision through these 5 questions. If you’d like to ask Bryan some questions of your own, please contact OperaDDS directly. If you’ll be in Chicago later this month for the Midwinter Meeting, you can stop by booth #2617 in the exhibit hall, sign up for your free subscription to OperaDDS, and receive a welcome gift. What is the special welcome gift? Well, you’ll just have to stop by their booth to find out!
Thank you for reading. Have a suggestion for future article topics or “5 Questions With…” features? Please let me know.
The Dunn Show 