AI is already entering dental practices through imaging, documentation, insurance workflows, patient communication, analytics, and administrative tools. But before connecting a new AI platform to your practice, you should understand what information it accesses, where that data goes, how it is protected, and whether your existing technology can support it.
For dental practices, the goal shouldn't be to adopt AI simply because it's new.
The goal should be to use AI where it can save time, improve workflows, or provide useful insights without creating unnecessary security, privacy, or operational risk.
Before adopting an AI tool, ask these seven questions.
1. What Problem Are We Trying to Solve?
Start with the business problem—not the AI product.
Possible goals include:
- Reducing administrative work
- Simplifying documentation
- Improving insurance workflows
- Analyzing practice data
- Improving patient communication
- Assisting with imaging workflows
Ask:
What measurable improvement do we expect from this tool?
If nobody can answer that question, the practice may be buying technology without a clear business case.
2. Will the AI Tool Access Patient Information?
This is one of the most important questions.
Determine whether the AI system will access, process, transmit, or store information associated with patients.
If protected health information is involved, the practice needs to evaluate the appropriate privacy, security, HIPAA, contractual, and vendor considerations before implementation.
Don't assume an AI product is appropriate for patient information simply because it is available online.
3. Where Does the Data Go?
Your practice should understand what happens after information is entered into an AI system.
Ask the vendor:
- Where is our data stored?
- How long is it retained?
- Who can access it?
- Is our information used to train AI models?
- Can information be deleted?
- What security protections are provided?
- What happens if the vendor experiences a breach?
If the answers aren't clear, investigate before connecting the platform to sensitive information.
4. Does It Integrate With Our Dental Technology?
Dental practices already operate complicated technology environments.
An AI tool may need to interact with systems such as:
- Dentrix
- Dexis
- Open Dental
- Eaglesoft
- Dental imaging
- Microsoft 365
- Patient communication platforms
Before implementation, determine whether the integration is officially supported and what access the AI platform requires.
A productivity tool shouldn't create a new reliability or cybersecurity problem.
5. Who Will Have Access?
AI tools should follow the same basic access-control principles as other business technology.
Ask:
- Which employees need access?
- Does every employee have a unique account?
- Does the platform support MFA?
- Are administrative permissions limited?
- How is access removed when an employee leaves?
Avoid creating another collection of shared passwords and unmanaged accounts.
6. How Will We Verify AI-Generated Information?
AI can make mistakes.
Employees should understand that AI-generated content will need human review before it is used for business, patient communication, documentation, or clinical purposes.
Define:
Who reviews the output, and what requires professional judgment before it is used?
AI should support appropriate decision-making—not silently replace it.
7. What Happens If the AI Tool Stops Working?
Any technology that becomes important to daily operations eventually becomes part of your business-continuity planning.
Ask:
What happens if this service is unavailable tomorrow?
Your practice should understand whether employees can continue working without the platform and whether important information remains accessible.
Avoid creating unnecessary dependence on a new system without considering failure scenarios.
The 7-Question Dental AI Readiness Check
Before approving an AI tool, answer:
- What specific problem does it solve?
- Will it access patient information?
- Where does our data go?
- How does it integrate with our dental systems?
- Who gets access?
- Who verifies its output?
- What happens if it becomes unavailable?
If you cannot answer these questions, pause before implementation.
Why Dental Practices Choose IT Services of Utah
IT Services of Utah has been helping businesses for more than 30 years and supports dental practices throughout St. George and Washington County, Utah.
Our role isn't to tell dentists how to practice dentistry.
We can help evaluate the technology environment surrounding new tools, including:
- Network readiness
- Cybersecurity
- User access
- Microsoft 365
- Data protection
- Vendor integrations
- Backup and recovery
- HIPAA-focused IT considerations
We also understand dental environments using Dentrix, Dexis, Open Dental, Eaglesoft, imaging systems, and other connected technologies.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can dental practices use AI?
Yes, AI is already being incorporated into many dental and business applications. The important question is whether a particular tool is appropriate for the intended workflow and whether its privacy, security, integration, and compliance implications have been evaluated.
Can employees put patient information into ChatGPT or other public AI tools?
Employees should not assume patient information can be entered into any public AI service. The practice should establish an approved AI-use policy and evaluate privacy, security, contractual, and HIPAA considerations before sensitive information is provided to an AI platform.
Should dental practices have an AI policy?
As employees gain access to more AI tools, a basic policy can establish which tools are approved, what information may be entered, who is responsible for reviewing outputs, and how new tools are evaluated.
Is Your Dental Practice Ready for AI?
AI may create meaningful opportunities to improve dental workflows, but adoption should be intentional.
Start with:
Business Value + Data Privacy + Cybersecurity + Integration + Human Oversight
For dental practices in St. George and Washington County, Utah, IT Services of Utah can help evaluate whether your existing technology and security environment are prepared for new AI-powered tools.
Schedule a Dental AI Readiness Assessment with IT Services of Utah before connecting another AI platform to your practice's systems or data.
