It is crucial to consistently deliver an excellent dental patient experience. Not only does this influence patient satisfaction with the care and treatment they receive, but it also impacts the business – happier patients lead to an improved reputation, increased loyalty, and accelerated growth. There are many aspects to how the patient will perceive their interactions with the practice, and each step of their journey should be carefully considered and optimised for the best results. The technology you implement will be integral to delivering an impressive experience.
A quality indicator
The standard patient experience achieved has become an indicator for the quality of care provided overall. It is positively linked with both patient safety and clinical effectiveness, and improvements have been shown to enhance public accountability and promote patient choice.[i]
Among the aspects most commonly associated with patient satisfaction are waiting times, quality of the physical facilities, accessibility of care, overview perceived hygiene and cleanliness of the practice, and the educational background of the professional team.[ii] Some of these are easier to change than others and some may be assessed subjectively by patients, with their personal expectations playing a role in how happy they are with the service they receive. However, there are ways to measure patient experience and, therefore, identify any areas that are currently lacking.
Assessment and monitoring
The patient journey can and should be monitored closely over time. Useful data can be collected in a number of ways, including via patient surveys and questionnaires, a Net Promoter Score (NPS),[iii] or Customer Effort Score (CES).[iv]
The latter two options are a great place to start if you have little time or just need to establish a baseline. An NPS offers a quick and straightforward overall of patient satisfaction with their overall experience at the practice. It very simply asks individuals to rate the service they received out of 10. Those who give a score between 0 and 6 are known as detractors – they are unlikely to recommend your practice to others, and may harbour negative emotions towards the business. Scores of 7 or 8 represent passive people, who are not unhappy but still less likely to actively promote the practice. Patients who report a score of 9 or 10 are your promoters: they are very satisfied and highly likely to refer family and friends. As would be expected, the more promoters you have, the better. However, this system does have its limitations in that it’s impossible to gain further information about why individuals chose their scores, as well as any specifically positive or negative aspects of their experience.
A CES works in exactly the same way, asking patients to score how they feel about the service received numerically. It offers similar ease of implementation and a great overall impression of patient satisfaction, but it once again lacks depth or meaningful insights to inform change.
More comprehensive patient satisfaction or experience surveys are necessary to really understand what people like about your practice, what the major pain points are, and where the practice could make genuine improvements. It’s important to repeat them over time, allowing you to monitor progress, compare against your starting point, and give patients a constant opportunity to share their views.[v] This is the bedrock of effective communication and shows patients that you are going the extra mile to optimise their time in your practice.
Taking action
When you are aware of any areas that could be enhanced to produce a better patient experience, it’s important to take action. This begins with a review of your current processes and technologies. Do you have protocols in place to encourage a standardised approach to care across the dental team so every patient is greeted and treated in the same way? Have you designed the surgeries to ensure patient comfort and create a calming or welcoming atmosphere? Are you using dental products and technologies that streamline treatment procedures, elevate outcomes, and enhance patient communication?
An excellent place to start, before you even get into the surgery and the clinical equipment available, is to consider your practice management software. When you implement Sensei Cloud, the cloud-based practice management solution from Carestream Dental, you gain access to simpler, more convenient, and more seamless workflows. The Patient Bridge feature delivers highly efficient patient communication and engagement every step of the way, helping them feel more cared for and keeping you in control of their entire experience.
Ultimately, modern dental practices offer so much more than dental treatment. They are a source of support and advice, a place that patients can come to enhance their health and wellbeing. Understanding the experience you are providing patients, monitoring it, and making positive changes is integral to the long-term success of your business.
To learn more about how Sensei Cloud can help your practice thrive, visit gosensei.co.uk.
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Claire McCarthy – Senior Director of Program & Process Excellence
[i] Bastemeijer CM, Boosman H, van Ewijk H, Verweij LM, Voogt L, Hazelzet JA. Patient experiences: a systematic review of quality improvement interventions in a hospital setting. Patient Relat Outcome Meas. 2019 May 21;10:157-169. doi: 10.2147/PROM.S201737. PMID: 31191062; PMCID: PMC6535098.
[ii] Sh, Ali & Ahmad, Mansoor. (2025). Systematic analysis of the factors associated with dental care patient satisfaction -A literature review. International Dental Journal of Students’ Research. 13. 3-13. 10.18231/j.idjsr.2025.002.
[iii] DataKindUK. Net Promoter Score: what is it, and how can you use it? https://www.datakind.org.uk/resources/net-promoter-score [Accessed February 2026]
[iv] SmartSurvey. Customer Effort Score Explained. Oct 205 https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/blog/customer-effort-score-explained [Accessed February 2026]
[v] Reeves R, Seccombe I. Do patient surveys work? The influence of a national survey programme on local quality-improvement initiatives. Qual Saf Health Care. 2008 Dec;17(6):437-41. doi: 10.1136/qshc.2007.022749. PMID: 19064659; PMCID: PMC2602592.
