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According to “Dr. Wo” Wm. Randol Womack, DDS, Board Certified Orthodontist Editorial Director, Orthotown Magazine

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Adopting New Technology
by Wm. Randol Womack, DDS, Board Certified Orthodontist
Editorial Director, Orthotown Magazine

Mark Twain said, “The only person who likes change is a wet baby.” Changes are impossible to avoid and most of us just do not like change. We get comfortable with what we do and how we do it, but circumstances come about where changing is the only thing that will enable us to survive and thrive.

The first issue of Orthotown Magazine featured a story about my leaving orthodontics in 1997 and then “flunking retirement.” I was fortunate to return to orthodontics in 1999 and since then I have seen the greatest change – almost a revolution – in the field. All the transforming technology that has emerged since 1999 has totally changed the way orthodontic treatment is done and taught.

Have all of us changed? Have all of us adopted the new technology into our practices? Not by any means… but gradually the adoption of technology is permeating the orthodontic profession. Super elastic archwires, self-ligating bracket systems, TADs, non-compliant Class II correctors, variable torque bracket systems, digital photography, paperless charting systems, cone beam radiography and most recently… intra-oral scanners. This list is getting longer.

There is a valid argument that the cost of adopting new technology is a major roadblock to implementation of technology into our practices. Managing to afford new technology has to be weighed against the opportunity for better diagnosis and treatment of our patients. But, perhaps the most difficult change that is needed is how we manage our practices. The “bagel run” marketing of the past just doesn’t work in today’s economy. The January/February issue of Orthotown Magazine featured great advice from many of the practice management consultants who speak at meetings today. Dr. Roncone, a contributor to our last issue, speaks and teaches around the world and has the unique opportunity to observe what orthodontic practice changes are happening as our global economy changes. Since we are not “wet babies,” we often resist these changes.

Why do people resist change? According to the experts, “fear of the unknown” is the most common reason! Most people like to stick with what they know, even if it isn’t in their best interest. They feel like what they have known, they understand, and can trust to remain a certain way. It becomes kind of a “false security.” They become attached to it, and would rather suffer through something not in their best interest, something that they can count on, than take a chance with the unknown.

The cold hard facts of the orthodontic profession are that the “golden years” of orthodontics are not ahead, but are in the past, and becoming smaller in our rear-view mirror as we move further into this 21st century. This makes the change to the newest SLB system, or the most “invisible” bracket, or the change to CBCT or intra-oral scanning even more of a stretch in our sense of value versus expenditure.

This year will usher in many changes, and we all hope that the changes going forward will be positive and rewarding. I hope we will be seeing you at the AAO meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. Look for the Orthotown crew at booth #550. Aloha!
Orthotown Magazine
September 2025
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