Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center: Redefining a Second-Generation Dental Practice with SaaS and AI

The Challenge

Redefining a Second-Generation Dental Practice Without Losing What Made It Great

Dr. Christopher Filler got an early start in the dental field: high school. His mother was one of Windham, NH’s most respected dentists, operating Windham Family Dentistry, a private practice that grew to several locations, for many years. As a teenager, Dr. Filler got his first taste of dentistry by filing charts, developing X-rays, and sterilizing equipment.

After exploring a Ph.D. in biochemistry as a potential path, Dr. Filler realized that he wanted a career doing something with science but that was more hands-on with people. He pursued his DMD and ultimately joined the U.S. Army as a military dentist, serving for five years. It was there that Dr. Filler uncovered a deep interest in oral surgery, prosthodontics, and implant dentistry and developed his skills further.

When he returned home to Windham, NH, he worked alongside his mother as an associate before acquiring her practice in 2023.

As second-generation owner, Dr. Filler had a unique challenge: to keep all the “old school”, practical dentistry insights that made the location successful while also incorporating his own dental specialties and interests, including digital dentistry. And part of that transition included a shift from legacy, on-prem dental practice management software (DPMS) to a modern, cloud-native platform.

Selecting and Migrating from Dentrix to Oryx

Dr. Filler did two things right away when he acquired his mother’s dental practice: he switched the name to Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center to reflect his expertise in surgery, and changed the DPMS platform from Dentrix to Oryx.

“Any time there’s change, there will be challenges. I could not understand how the existing Dentrix software worked. I would try to pull reports and was so confused. It felt like I was running the practice blindly. If you can’t look up statistics easily, how do you know how the practice is really doing?”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Dr. Filler began looking for a DPMS that could address several core needs:

• Easily find and pull business reporting metrics: Without the ability to easily find or generate reports on his practice, Dr. Filler felt a step behind on managing his practice both clinically and as a business. Any new DPMS would need to make pulling standard business reports, such as AR, easy and simple.
• Run custom reports: Dr. Filler also wanted the ability to run custom reports, such as unscheduled procedures. A new DPMS would need a large level of flexibility.
• Mitigate IT and cybersecurity concerns: With the growth of cyberattacks against medical offices and the increasing complexity of IT and security, Dr. Filler was wary of the liability and cost of maintaining on-premise servers. He wanted a rigorous, HIPAA-compliant DPMS that would ensure his practice’s information was backed up and protected by the latest in cybersecurity best practices.

While he did assess Dentrix Ascend and Curve, he was immediately taken by Oryx Dental’s all-in-one, cloud-based, and AI-powered DPMS.

“I didn’t feel like I could customize the old, on-prem software very well, especially for highly-specific criteria. I don’t know how to do any sort of coding or software development, but Oryx makes it very easy for me to prompt the system and get exactly the report I need.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Dr. Filler migrated his office’s files over to Oryx in 2023, and he hasn’t looked back. And so, with a new name and a new DPMS, his second-generation dental practice was off to the races.

Improved Billing Efficiency and Insurance Reimbursements with Automation

As with many dental offices, the front desk team spends significant time on billing: communicating with insurance companies, communicating with patients, and tracking down late or missing payments.

With Oryx, Dr. Filler’s office has been able to reduce billing errors, improve recare rates, and cut down on outstanding AR balances. With Oryx’s automated billing features, his team can create a template, incorporate a payment service, text patients, and post the payment when it’s received. Because of the ease of receiving reminders and paying, patients are more likely to close out their balances.

“There were a lot of patients who wanted to pay their bills. They just weren’t aware they had open invoices, because we were sending them out manually. Some people were even 9 or 10 months behind, and they didn’t know. Now, we can go into their chart and follow up on it right then and there.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Because bills are now sent, chased, and posted automatically once paid, the practice has also seen fewer billing errors. Patients who would have mailed in checks now have an easy online payment option, with the payment posting automatically in Oryx.

Increased Clinical Efficiency with AI

More recently, Dr. Filler has adopted Oryx’s new suite of AI tools and features.

Integration with Pearl AI's Second Opinion

In 2023, Oryx integrated natively with Pearl AI’s proprietary, FDA-cleared AI annotation system for radiographs. Users of Oryx and Pearl can access images and AI annotations directly from within Oryx, without logging into a separate website or window. That ease of use has led to rapid adoption at Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center.

“The AI-annotated radiographs are great in terms of trying to explain to patients. When it’s highlighted, they suddenly understand. The integration directly within Oryx is a great feature that really pushes me to use it on a routine basis.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Oryx's Native AI Voice Perio Charting and AI Transcribe and Summarize

Although Oryx’s AI Voice Perio Charting tool is a recent addition to Dr. Filler’s practice, it’s been a hit.

“My hygienists are thrilled about the AI dictation for perio charting. They love it. We’re more efficient in exams, and my team can focus on what matters.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Like many dentists, Dr. Filler conducts his exams with patients over an hour and then cleans up the appointment notes afterwards.

“Because my assistants would be the ones writing the notes, I’d often go back and fix or add to them. Now, when I dictate it to the software, it’s narrated the way I want. It saves a ton of time on writing notes.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Peace of Mind for Security Concerns

When Dr. Filler sought a new DPMS for his practice, cybersecurity was one of his top qualifications.

“I’ve worked with other medical providers who endured multiple instances of their on-prem servers being hacked with ransomware. It was such a debilitating situation. I’m thankful our data is backed up in the cloud with Oryx, which uses secure data centers and helps to reduce our exposure in this area.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Data security has been a priority for Oryx since the company’s founding. Our HIPAA-compliant platform is designed to:

• Encrypt data in transit and at rest using the same standards as online banking
• Conduct automated, daily backups on your practice’s data
• Enable two-factor authentication
• Maintain full audit trails, monitoring, and flags for every chart opened, treatment plan edited, and billing entry
• And more

Learn more about our security posture in Oryx’s dental data security center.

Bringing a Second-Generation Practice Into a New Era of Dental Software

Today, Dr. Filler has grown his second-generation dental office into a thriving business with 6 chairs, 3 hygienists, and 2 people on the front desk team. In fact, when one front desk member retired, Dr. Filler didn’t need to hire a replacement. Oryx’s features added so much efficiency that the other two front desk admins were able to reduce redundancies and take over the work easily. Next door, his wife treats pediatric patients, expanding the family business to a new generation of even younger patients.

“Before Oryx, it was a headache remoting into our on-prem DPMS to complete notes and review radiographs, if it even worked. Now I can pull up information, run reports, finish notes, and review X-rays whenever and wherever I need to. Access isn’t something I even need to think about. It is all I need to quantify the usefulness of the software.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Using Oryx, Dr. Filler has been able to:

• Reduce billing errors as well as delinquent bills and payments
• Shorten the time between conducting a dental procedure and the bill going out to insurers or patients
• Increase clinician efficiency in appointments and notetaking

“With Oryx, I offer a more well-rounded experience for my patients. The software allows me to be more efficient and comprehensive in my approach.”

Christopher Filler, DMDOwner, Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center

Dr. Filler’s practice is thriving on a second generation of family ownership, and is poised for a bright future ahead.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Oryx help with billing?

Our native billing features are built right into our DPMS, so the front office team can send bills out directly from a patient’s chart. And with different payment options, including online payments with multiple vendors, bills are closed automatically once the patient remits their invoice.

Can Oryx help me track and understand how my practice is actually performing?

Yes. Oryx makes it simple to pull standard business reports, like AR and production, as well as build custom reports around your specific needs, such as unscheduled treatment. For practices transitioning from legacy, on-prem software that made reporting feel like a black box, Oryx gives owners a clear, real-time view into how the business is running, without needing any coding or technical background.

Is Oryx secure, and what happens to my data if I move from an on-prem system?

Oryx is a cloud-based, HIPAA-compliant platform, which means your practice’s data is backed up and protected using modern cybersecurity best practices, removing the burden and liability of maintaining your own on-premise servers. This is especially valuable for practices concerned about the rising rate of cyberattacks targeting medical and dental offices.

See What Built-in AI Could Do for Your Practice

Oryx was founded by dentists, for the future of dentistry. We’ve been chairside ourselves, and we know the challenges and joys of operating a dental practice. Explore Oryx’s AI features to see what powered Windham Cosmetic Dentistry & Implant Center’s results, or book your AI demo to watch the all-in-one platform in action.