Dental scribes and AI charting: what practices found
Ambient scribes, voice notes and charting that writes itself. 2 case studies so far, each with what it cost, what worked and what didn't.
Short answer
No case here crowns a best dental scribe. The most specific praise came from commenters whose AI scribe fills in their own note templates, while one who tried a tool that writes the note retyped half of it. In voice perio charting, Bola reports hygienists saved about 18.5 minutes a day in a pilot across 27 Heartland Dental-supported offices.
The problems commenters describe are practical: operatory microphones in open bays picking up the next chair, a tool that keeps making the same mistake, and record-upload-paste workflows that don't get used every day. For voice perio, a Bola user on r/DentalHygiene says it works only about half the time, and a hygienist ties accuracy to microphone quality and operatory noise. A King's College London study of 10 speech-recognition systems on spoken orthodontic records found the most advanced ones were faster than typing, saving up to 60% of the time. Clinically significant errors, such as misidentifying teeth, still occurred.
Read vendor numbers as claims. Bola ran and published its own study on 2022 data, and by our reading the 18.5 minutes is partly an estimate. Bola's own documents also disagree on cost: $2,268 a year in the case study summary versus $2,500 a month in its press release. Rollout speed mattered. According to Bola, every office installed, trained and equipped in under 10 days completed more than 100 voice perio charts, while only 5-10% of the slower offices passed 50.
Published list prices for dental scribes run roughly $39 to $120 a month per clinician. Most tools offer 7- to 14-day free trials, and Overjet doesn't publish a price for Overjet Voice. Before any patient audio goes in, the case recommends three things: a signed BAA for the exact product and plan, written audio-retention terms, and patient consent that meets your state's rules.
Key numbers
- 18.5 min/day Time Bola reports each hygienist saved with voice perio charting in its pilot across 27 Heartland Dental-supported offices (September to November 2022). The figure is vendor-reported, and the study says it assumes an even mix of new and re-care patients. Case
- 47% to 16% Share of hygienists in Bola's survey who said they usually or always relied on a second hygienist or assistant to record probe results, before the pilot vs. with Bola. These are self-reported survey answers. Case
- Under 10 days According to Bola, every office installed, trained and equipped in under 10 days (9.83 on average) completed more than 100 voice perio charts. Only 5-10% of the slower offices (31.8 days on average) passed 50. Case
- $2,268/yr vs. $2,500/mo Bola's case study summary and its September 2023 press release give conflicting cost figures. Current pricing is not published, and the product page directs visitors to book a demo. Case
- About 50% How often a Bola user on r/DentalHygiene (January 2026) says the tool works. Case
- Half How much of the note one r/Dentistry commenter ended up retyping after trying an AI tool that writes the note. Having the AI fill in template blanks worked better for them. Case
- Up to 60% Time saved vs. typing by the most advanced of the 10 speech-recognition systems in a King's College London study of spoken orthodontic records. Clinically significant errors still occurred, so the researchers recommend checking and editing every transcript. Case
- $39-$120/mo Published list prices per clinician, checked 2026-10-20: from Freed's $39 (entry plan capped at 40 notes a month) up to DigitalTCO's $120 in the US. Overjet Voice pricing is not published. Case
- 7-14 days Free trial lengths: Freed offers 7 days; Kiroku, Dentistry Dashboard and DigitalTCO offer 14. Case
- Under 1 minute How long one dentist says a templated note already takes them. Commenters keep routine procedures on plain templates and use AI where the conversation runs long. Case
Compare the cases
| Practice | Tool | Size | Cost | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DSO-supported offices | Bola AI Voice Perio | 27-office pilot | Conflicting figures | Mixed |
| Several dentists + 1 named | Overjet, Kiroku, Freed, others | Not stated | Not disclosed (lists vary) | Practitioner report |
All case studies in this category
Voice perio charting at Heartland Dental: what a 27-office Bola AI pilot reported
Bola AI ran a three-month pilot of its voice perio charting in 27 Heartland Dental-supported offices and reports that hygienists saved about 18.5 minutes a day and needed much less help from assistants. Offices that got set up quickly used it far more, and hygienists online describe reliability as mixed.
AI scribes for dental chart notes: dentists say templates first
On r/Dentistry, the most specific praise for AI scribes came from people whose scribe fills in their own note templates, and a Tennessee dentist told a dental podcast the same tool cut his note time. The trouble came from open-bay microphones, record-upload-paste workflows, tools that degraded, and AI-drafted notes that had to be retyped. A King's College London study adds that clinicians should check every transcript.
Questions dental offices ask
What is the best AI scribe for dentists?
None of our cases names a winner. The most specific praise came from commenters whose scribe fills in their own templates (AI scribes for dental chart notes). One commenter's office uses Overjet with its own templates for limited exams, new patients and consults, and they said the notes usually need only minor tweaks. A Kiroku user set it to their own template. A commenter who tried a tool that writes the note retyped half of it, so make your templates good before you compare products.
How much time does an AI dental scribe or voice perio charting save?
Bola reports that hygienists in its pilot across 27 Heartland Dental-supported offices saved about 18.5 minutes a day. Its study says the figure assumes an even mix of new and re-care patients (voice perio pilot). For notes, one commenter said Dentistry Dashboard probably saves them about 30 minutes a day, though a self-described co-creator of the tool later promoted it on Reddit. A King's College London study found the most advanced speech-recognition systems saved up to 60% of the time vs. typing (AI scribes case). Some have less to gain: one dentist says a templated note already takes them under a minute.
How accurate are AI dental scribes and voice perio charting?
A King's College London study of 10 speech-recognition systems on spoken orthodontic records found that clinically significant errors, such as misidentifying teeth or treatment plans, still occurred. The researchers recommend that clinicians check and edit every transcript (AI scribes case). For voice perio, a Bola user says it works only about half the time, and a hygienist says accuracy depends on microphone quality and operatory noise (voice perio pilot). One commenter says operatory mics in open bays pick up the next chair. Overjet's Voice page recommends two microphones per operatory but doesn't address open bays.
What do dentists complain about with AI scribes?
Complaints in r/Dentistry threads (AI scribes case): - An AI-written note that had to be half retyped. - Overjet making the same mistake over and over. - A DigitalTCO setup in a UK thread that started writing nonsense, so the team cancelled. - A Plaud recorder workflow (record, upload, run the template, paste into the PMS). Its summaries were remarkably accurate, but the commenter doesn't use it all the time. At one practice that rolled out Avora, a clinical staff member wrote that it costs them time, including its perio charting, and that nobody but the owner has bought into it (voice perio pilot).
Can I use ChatGPT for dental notes?
Not with patient information unless your plan is covered by a signed BAA. Under HIPAA, a practice may disclose patient information to a vendor only with assurances documented in a written agreement, usually a BAA (AI scribes case). The case found that Claude Team and ChatGPT's consumer and Team plans are not on their vendors' BAA lists. Anthropic's BAA covers HIPAA-ready Claude Enterprise and API organizations and Claude in Microsoft Foundry. A third-party guide (Medcurity) says OpenAI offers BAAs only for zero-data-retention API setups and sales-managed ChatGPT Enterprise/Edu, so confirm with OpenAI. Without any patient data, you can use a chatbot and the prompt in that case to turn your own note template into scribe instructions.
How should a dental office pilot an AI scribe or voice perio tool?
Measure your baseline first. Time a few full-mouth perio charts and count how often a hygienist pulls in an assistant (voice perio pilot). Then use the free trial: Freed offers 7 days, and Kiroku, Dentistry Dashboard and DigitalTCO offer 14 (AI scribes case). Start on consults and new-patient exams, where notes run longest, and test the microphones in your real operatories. For voice perio, plan to be live within 10 days of signing. In Bola's pilot, offices that rolled out slowly used the tool far less. Each case page includes a ready-made prompt: a 2-week voice perio trial plan, and a prompt that turns a template into scribe instructions.
Before you buy: a checklist
- Before you buy, time a few full-mouth perio charts and count how often a hygienist pulls in an assistant to type.
- Make your own note templates good first, and have the scribe fill them in rather than letting it write notes freely.
- Try the scribe on consults, new-patient exams and limited exams with a pain history first. Keep routine procedures on plain templates.
- Test microphones in your real operatories, including open bays where the next chair's conversation can end up in the note.
- Count the clicks. Ask exactly how notes reach your PMS (written back directly, or copied and pasted). A record-upload-paste workflow may not get used every day.
- Before any patient audio goes in, get a signed BAA for the specific product and plan, written audio-retention terms, and patient consent that meets your state's rules.
- Get in writing the price per clinician or hygienist, microphone costs, contract length and cancellation terms. Bola's own documents disagree on cost.
- For voice perio, order microphones, book the install and schedule training so every hygienist is charting within 10 days of signing.
- Train for known failure modes: use good microphones, keep the operatory quiet, pause the tool during small talk, and watch the screen before saving.
- Read, edit and sign every note, checking tooth numbers and treatment plans first.
- Discount forum praise from vendor-linked accounts and podcast recommendations that come with promo codes.
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