Very Dental: The Explicit Truth with Teresa Duncan

Teresa Duncan and Dr. Alan Mead dive into the often-overlooked but critical world of explicit documentation in dentistry, revealing how decades of implicit assumptions—like assuming everyone knows why a radiograph was taken—are now creating legal and financial risks. The episode unpacks the new ADA/FDA radiographic guidelines, emphasizing that radiographs must be prescribed, not assumed, and that every clinical decision must be clearly documented. Teresa argues that AI isn’t just a tool for efficiency—it’s a necessity for compliance, with ambient listening and AI-generated notes transforming how dentists record patient care. She shares her own experience using AI tools like Plaud and Oryx to auto-generate clinical notes, even suggesting that recording your own voice during procedures—awkward as it feels—creates a legally robust, patient-centered audit trail. The conversation also exposes the dark side of insurance: AI is used to flag suspicious claims (like identical x-ray numbers across patients), but human oversight is still required for denials. Teresa warns that while some practices game the system, ethical dentistry demands transparency—especially when insurance companies use AI to scrutinize your work. The episode ends with a playful yet pointed vision of the future: sterilizing robots, AI radiologists, and even robot hygienists—raising the question: how much of dentistry should remain human? The real takeaway?