Innovation in the dental sector is generally associated with new technology and products that are aimed at providing high-quality care.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, 3D printing, smart toothbrushes, and teledentistry are just some of the technologies that are emerging in this sector.

As with other medical fields, these disruptive innovations will have a huge impact on how dental products will be manufactured and how patients will take care of themselves in the future if barriers to their adoption can be overcome.

Innovation vs. Regulation

Historically, regulation has rarely sat so comfortably alongside innovation.

While most dental organizations respect their industry regulators for the vital functions they perform – not least, squeezing out ‘cowboy’ competitors and sub-standard products – they also tend to regard them as a drag on innovation.

That’s because regulators limit manufacturers to doing only what they have approved. 

Regulators favor narrow, restricted, or ‘regulated’ behaviors and products. As a result, while there will invariably be trusted because they have been tried and tested, they also tend to evolve slowly. The regulators’ goal has been to keep things safe, often by keeping them the same.

Conversely, by definition, innovation means finding new ways to operate or solve problems, often by moving first and acting fast. Innovations won’t have been extensively tried, tested, and approved. It adds up to an inevitable tension with regulation.

To address so many challenges, dental businesses, such as manufacturers of dental products, need flexible distribution arrangements.

Traditionally, they have faced regulatory hurdles, such as only being able to use existing distribution partners that have been tried, tested, audited, and approved. Now, through digital collaboration – the sharing of real-time data to demonstrate safe, high-quality distribution – these manufacturers can be freed to react effectively to the needs of the marketplace.

The Key Dentistry Standards that Support Product Innovation

Dentistry standards can provide knowledge to dental innovation.

They underpin dentistry best practices that allow innovators to accelerate the time-to-market of new products and services, whilst holding them to account for the rules and agreed guidelines that serve the public interest. Innovation standards bring together dental professions with industry and the public to create the potential for improved patient outcomes.

They are also critical in the commercialization of new dental technologies, building trust and supporting the creation of new markets at home and internationally.

The BS EN ISO 56000 series helps organizations introduce an innovation management system to identify the most important challenges, capture the right ideas, seize the best opportunities and properly manage emerging trends and risks.

Companies need to consider not only the benefits of their innovations, but also any possible adverse impacts, including through unintended use, misuse or other unforeseen consequences; and to plan accordingly. Whilst society has never been hungrier for innovation, it has also never been less tolerant of innovation which fails.

To help companies innovate responsibly, PAS 440:2020 provides overarching guidance on how to structure innovative thinking and processes responsibly, irrespective of domain.

It helps dental companies to think through the wider implications of their innovation, capture the outcomes of their reflection and communicate this to stakeholders and wider society.

PAS 440 is particularly relevant in the area of early-stage new dental technologies but can be applied anywhere. Its use helps to identify and mitigate risks – before they become an issue.

And it can help organizations to reassure investors, customers, and other stakeholders that the benefits of any innovation can be achieved, with appropriate mitigation of any potential downside risk, wherever that might otherwise accrue.

As technology continues to advance rapidly in the dentistry sector, accessing the standards your business needs to adapt to these innovations does not have to be complicated and time-consuming. Our tailored BSI Knowledge subscription service provides flexibility, access, visibility, and control over the standards and insights your team needs to adopt emerging processes. Request to learn more.

Ensure your dental business is innovating to best practices by adding these key standards to your collection today.