You Should Know:
Smile Assist
by Benjamin Lund, Editor, Orthotown Magazine
Orthotown Magazine sat down with Dan Knoch, CEO and founder of Motion View Software, LLC, to discuss what the company does for orthodontists and why you should know about it.
Tell us about Smile Assist.
Colville: Smile Assist is an online digital treatment
planning service that utilizes recognized experts
in their respective fields to develop online treatment
solutions for doctors who want to take advantage of
the latest technology in the orthodontic world and
who also want to provide their own patients the same
quality results produced by the experts.
Increasingly, orthodontists are being exposed to
new digital technology that offers exciting possibilities
for improving patient treatment quality and
efficiency. These technologies generally involve scanning,
or precise impressions that are digitized, then
forwarded to a manufacturer, which then become the
basis for appliance fabrication - Invisalign, Insignia
and Incognito to name a few. Each of these products
relies heavily on the doctor to interact with a software
technician using proprietary software to develop a
proposed treatment plan. Like all new technology,
there is a significant learning curve involved in developing
these digital treatment plans. That's where
Smile Assist comes into the picture.
Many doctors are excited about offering these
new technologies to their patients, but are often
reluctant to adopt this new technology due to the
lack of time or commitment required to become proficient
in learning how to use the software. With
Smile Assist, the treating doctor can submit the case
online and have one of our expert consultants complete
a virtual treatment set up for their review and
final acceptance.
How did Smile Assist come about?
Colville: Smile Assist came about as a result of
hundreds upon hundreds of e-mails asking Dr.
Paquette and me for advice or help in developing
ClinCheck treatment plans after speaking engagements.
It seemed that no matter how much online
information was provided most doctors wanted specific
advice related to their own patient's treatment. The
experts do a great job of showing how well they can
treat their own patients, but what about the doctors' patients back home? This exact scenario was echoed to
both of us over the past 12-15 years from many other
experts, including those using Incognito, Insignia,
SureSmile and others. In 2011, Dr. Paquette and I
decided to develop an online platform to assist these
doctors. SmileAssist.com was launched in November 2012.
What is your philosophy? What is your goal?
Paquette: The goal of Smile Assist is to enable our
client doctors to provide the best possible treatment outcomes
for their patients by utilizing the experience and
knowledge of the world's leading experts in their respective
disciplines.
Why should a doctor have to struggle for years to
develop the skills required to treat their patients with these
new and exciting products when we can provide that for
them, in a simple and interactive online format? We
believe patients deserve the best quality care that can be
given to them. We want Smile Assist to be available to all
doctors to make that happen.
What would you consider the best kept secret
about the service?
Colville: Doctors have the capability to dialogue back
and forth with the consultant who has been assigned to
the case through the development process until completion
of the online treatment plan.
How can an ortho practice begin working
with you?
Paquette: From the website, www.smileassist.com, client
doctors will do a one-time registration. They will then use
their given username and password to access the secure
portion of the website. Once logged in they can follow the
five-step process to submit a case for review. The fee is
$200 per case, and is usually ready for review in two to
three days.
What kind of service can orthos expect when
they submit a case?
Colville: Client doctors can expect several things from
Smile Assist. First, they can be assured that only recognized
experts will work with them on their submitted
cases. A list of consultants is provided on the website,
along with each consultant's professional qualifications.
They can also expect a prompt reply to any questions they
may have during the treatment plan development. Our
experts not only have the knowledge and experience,
but they also have the ability to
communicate effectively as demonstrated
by their extensive resumes
of teaching, writing and lecturing.
They will stay up-to-date on the
latest improvements and changes in
the technology. Smile Assist is committed
to helping doctors become
proficient in the use of these new
digital products. Whether doctors
want help on just one case, or the
first 10 cases, Smile Assist is ready to
make that happen.
For further information, e-mail
info@smileassist.com or visit www.smileassist.com.
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