A dental clinic phone serves the same purpose as any telephone for any business, however, the dental clinic phone is the primary means of communication for most patients looking to book appointments and those cancelling or confirming appointments, alongside getting updates on treatments and discussing payments. It is also used in reporting emergencies and in figuring out issues with clients that cannot be resolved through the clinic’s website.
What Does a Good Phone System Do For a Dental Clinic?
The right dental clinic phone system gives the practice the ability to manage more calls, alleviates some of the burden on the receptionist and creates a better experience for patients, while enabling the staff to keep a close eye on what is happening on the phone lines. For a dental practice, this can mean much more than simply having a handset on the reception desk.
A Missed Call is a Missed Appointment
Dental practices live and die by the appointment book. A parent calling about a chipped tooth, a nervous patient trying to reschedule, an insurer chasing a claim and if any of those calls go unanswered, they usually don’t call back, they call the practice down the road instead. Analogue phone lines are also being switched off nationally, so most practices need a plan regardless of whether they were looking to change supplier.
What is a Dental Practice Phone System?
A dental practice phone system is the technology a practice uses to handle phone calls. Modern phone systems use VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and are typically cloud based. They let users manage calls using an internet connection rather than using the traditional phone infrastructure.
A modern system usually has features such as:
- Call queuing
- Automated call routing
- Call menus
- Call transfer
- Call forwarding
- Voicemail
- Call recording
- Call activity reporting
- Call notifications for missed messages
- Hold music or announcements and/or messages
- Staff call extensions
- Mobile and desktop applications
- Business hours routing and after hours messages
- Services for call-backs and/or communication with staff at several practice locations.
Not all features are included in every package and each VoIP provider will offer different levels of packages.
The Best Phone System Providers to Shortlist
All of these operate in the UK and are commonly used by small healthcare and dental practices. Most will run alongside your existing handsets during migration, so reception isn’t without a phone at any point.
Onecom
A UK telecoms provider with sector-specific account management, frequently used by healthcare and dental groups that want phones, mobiles and connectivity bundled with a dedicated point of contact.
Best for: Multi-site dental groups
Gamma
One of the UK’s largest wholesale and business VoIP providers, typically supplied to practices via an IT or telecoms reseller rather than sold direct. Strong network reliability and broad reseller availability.
Best for: Groups with an existing IT reseller
RingCentral (UK)
An international cloud communications platform with UK coverage, combining phone, video consultations and messaging in one app which is useful for practices offering video triage or remote consultations.
Best for: Practices doing video triage.
bOnline
bOnline is a UK-based provider of business VoIP, broadband and mobile plans aimed at small and medium organisations, including single-site and small-group dental practices. One supplier for phones, internet and mobiles, with UK-based support which is handy for a practice manager who doesn’t want three different companies to call when the phones misbehave.
Best for: Single-site or small groups
8×8
8×8 is a global cloud communications provider with UK business coverage, offering phone, video and call analytics which is well suited to a group that wants detailed reporting on missed calls and busiest periods across sites.
Best for: Groups wanting detailed reporting
Voipfone
Voipfone are an independent UK VoIP provider known for straightforward pricing and a simple self-service portal, popular with single-surgery practices that want to keep things simple and controllable in-house.
Best for: Single surgeries on a budget
BT Business (Cloud Voice)
BT’s own cloud phone service, often chosen by practices already using BT for broadband, on the basis of consolidating with a familiar, established national supplier.
Best for: Practices already on BT connectivity
This list isn’t exhaustive and isn’t a ranking and the right choice depends on how many surgeries you run, whether you already use a practice management system with calling features and how your broadband is currently supplied. Ask for a reference from another practice before signing and get a written answer on out-of-hours failover specifically.
What Practice Managers Usually Ask Before Switching
Straight answers to the questions that tend to come up when a practice manager, principal dentist or practice group is weighing up a switch.
Can I Keep My Existing Dental Practice Telephone Number?
In many cases, yes. You may be able to transfer, or port, your existing telephone number to your new provider. This is particularly important for dental practices because patients may have had the same number saved for years. Changing the number can create unnecessary confusion and could mean missed calls from existing patients.
During the implementation process, your provider should explain:
- Whether your existing number can be ported
- How long the process is expected to take
- Whether there will be any downtime
- What happens to your existing telephone service during the transition
- Whether temporary numbers are required
A properly planned migration should minimise disruption to your practice.
What Features Should a Dental Practice Phone System Have?
The features you need will depend on your practice, but there are several that are particularly useful.
Call Queues: Call queues allow multiple callers to wait for an available member of your reception team. Rather than receiving an engaged tone, patients can remain in the queue until somebody becomes available. This can be particularly useful during busy periods.
Call-back: A call-back feature allows patients to request a return call instead of waiting on hold. This can improve the patient experience while also helping your reception team manage demand. Call-back functionality is one of the features NHS England identifies as useful for improving telephone journeys in primary care.
Interactive Voice Response: Interactive voice response, often called IVR, allows callers to select options using their keypad or voice.
Call routing: Call routing determines where calls go. You might route calls based on:
- Time of day
- Department
- Practice location
- Staff availability
- Caller selection
- Whether the call is answered
- Whether the practice is open
For a multi-site dental group, this can be particularly useful.
Call transfer: Reception staff can transfer callers to another member of the team or another location.
For example, a payment enquiry could be transferred to your accounts team rather than occupying a receptionist’s time.
Voicemail: Voicemail allows patients to leave a message when nobody is available.
However, voicemail should be configured carefully. For many practices, a well-designed call queue and call-back system can be more useful than simply sending patients to voicemail
