An AI receptionist for dental practices that answers every call, even at 8am on a Monday
New patient enquiries, emergency toothache and hygienist bookings all ring the same front desk. OptiFlow answers every call to your practice, books appointments into your diary, captures every new patient and never leaves anyone on hold, from £49 a month.
The dental front desk problem
A dental reception has two jobs that fight each other. The person at the desk is checking patients in, taking payments and answering questions from the people in front of them. At the same time the phone is ringing with new patients, emergencies and people wanting to move an appointment. Something has to give, and it is usually the phone. Monday mornings and lunchtimes are the worst, with calls going to voicemail or ringing out while the team deals with the waiting room.
Every missed call matters more in dentistry than in most businesses. A new private patient enquiry is worth a great deal over the years they stay with the practice, and someone with toothache who cannot get through rings the next practice on the list. An AI receptionist answers every call in your practice’s name, finds out what the caller needs, books them into the diary or takes a message for the clinical team, and does it the same way at 8am on a Monday as it does at 3pm on a Wednesday.
OptiFlow Lite starts at £49 a month with unlimited calls answered around the clock. It is built for independent practices and small groups. Larger groups with a central contact team can step up to the OptiFlow Voice Agent, which handles more complex conversations and takes payment on the call.
What it handles for a dental practice
New patient enquiries
It explains whether you are taking on new patients, your private and plan options as you have set them out, and books the first appointment or a call back from the practice manager.
Emergency and pain calls
It asks the questions you specify about pain, swelling and trauma, and follows your rules for offering an emergency slot or flagging the call to the clinical team.
Hygienist and routine bookings
Check ups, hygiene visits and recalls get booked into the right clinician’s diary with the right appointment length.
Rescheduling and cancellations
Patients ring to move appointments more than anything else. It updates the booking and offers the next available slot, which reduces gaps in the day.
Treatment and price questions
It answers questions about treatments and fees using only the information you have approved, and books a consultation for anything clinical.
Overflow for your reception team
When the desk is busy it takes the calls your team cannot, so no patient hears an engaged tone or voicemail.
Set up around your diary and your practice
We start with a short set up call to understand your clinicians, your appointment types and lengths, your opening hours and the rules you follow for emergencies and new patients. The receptionist is then set up to book into your diary and to say only what you have approved about treatments and fees. Anything clinical is passed to your team.
Patient information is handled securely and the practice stays in control of what is said and booked. Every call ends with a message to your team containing the caller’s name, number, what they needed and what was agreed, so the front desk can pick things up without ringing anyone back.
Most practices use it as overflow at first, taking the calls the desk cannot reach, then extend it to evenings and weekends when they see how many new patients were ringing out of hours.
Calls it answers in a dental practice
The 8am Monday rush
Fourteen calls in the first half hour, mostly weekend toothache. The receptionist answers every one, applies your emergency rules and books the urgent ones into the slots you keep for them.
The new private patient
Someone who has just moved to the area wants a check up and a hygienist visit. It explains your new patient process, books both appointments and captures their details for the practice manager.
The patient who needs to move an appointment
A patient cannot make Thursday. It finds the next available slot with the same clinician, moves the booking and confirms it, with nobody on hold.
A dental answering service that fills the diary
A dental answering service catches the calls your front desk cannot reach: lunchtimes, evenings and the morning rush. An AI receptionist answers in your practice’s name, books, moves and cancels appointments, and flags dental emergencies using the rules you set, so reception starts each day with a full picture.
Questions people ask
Can it book into our practice diary?
It books into the diary you use and we discuss during set up how it fits with your practice management system.
Is patient information handled securely?
Yes. Patient details are handled securely and the practice controls what is recorded and who it goes to.
Will it give clinical advice?
No. It uses only the approved information you give it about treatments and fees and passes anything clinical to your team.
What does it cost?
OptiFlow Lite starts at £49 a month with unlimited calls answered. The Voice Agent for larger groups starts at £1,500 a month. See the pricing page for the full detail.
What is a dental answering service?
A service that answers your practice’s calls when reception is busy or closed. An AI receptionist books appointments as well as taking messages.
Hear it answer for your practice
Book a ten minute demo and we will ring your phone with the receptionist live so you can hear how it handles a new patient, an emergency and a reschedule.
Related reading: AI receptionist UK, AI receptionist for chiropractors, AI receptionist for physios, AI receptionist use cases by industry.