AI Dental Receptionist — Never Miss Another Patient Call
AI dental receptionist that answers patient calls in seconds, books appointments automatically, and works nights & weekends — for less than the cost of hiring front-desk staff.
Starts at $399 /month · no per-call fees, unlimited concurrent calls
TL;DR
Sera answers patient calls, books and reschedules appointments, and handles insurance questions 24/7. Dental practices typically recover 15–30 missed appointments per month and cut after-hours voicemail to zero — for less than a part-time front-desk hire.
Why Dental teams use Twig
Sera, Twig's AI dental receptionist, picks up every patient call within two rings — 24 hours a day, seven days a week. She books new-patient appointments, reschedules existing ones, answers insurance and pricing questions, and texts back any caller you miss. Dental practices using Sera recover 15–30 missed-call appointments per month and cut after-hours voicemail to zero.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Answers patient calls in under 2 seconds, even at 7am, lunch, and after hours
- ✓Books and reschedules appointments directly into Dentrix, Open Dental, Eaglesoft, and Curve
- ✓Handles insurance verification questions, pricing ranges, and intake forms
- ✓Texts back every missed caller within 30 seconds with a booking link
- ✓Works nights, weekends, holidays, and lunch breaks — no PTO, no turnover
- ✓Costs less than hiring even a part-time front-desk receptionist
Dental Support Challenges
30–40% of new-patient calls hit voicemail and never call back
Front desk is overwhelmed with insurance, scheduling, and pricing questions
After-hours and weekend callers go to competitors who pick up first
Hiring and training receptionists is expensive — and they leave within 18 months
Existing answering services don't book appointments or handle insurance
How Sera handles a typical patient call
A new patient calls your practice at 6:47pm. Sera picks up on the second ring:
- Greets them with your practice name and asks how she can help
- Identifies it's a new-patient inquiry for a cleaning
- Asks for insurance carrier, pulls available appointment slots from your PMS
- Confirms a 9am Tuesday slot, takes their name + phone + DOB
- Sends a confirmation text with intake form link
- Logs the new patient in your system
The whole call takes 3 minutes. Your office team sees it as a booked new-patient appointment when they arrive Monday morning. No voicemail. No callback. No lost lead.
What Sera covers for dental practices
New patient acquisition — Answers cold inbound calls, qualifies insurance compatibility, books the first appointment, sends intake forms. Recovers 8–15 appointments per month that would have hit voicemail.
Existing patient scheduling — Books cleanings, follow-ups, and procedure appointments. Reschedules and cancels with rebooking offers. Handles "I forgot my appointment time" calls.
Insurance & pricing — Answers "do you take Delta Dental?" and "how much is a crown without insurance?" using your fee schedule and verified insurance list.
After-hours & overflow — Picks up when the front desk is busy or closed. Cuts hold times to zero. Sends missed-call text-backs within 30 seconds.
Why dental practices choose Sera over hiring
A traditional front-desk hire costs $2,200–$3,500/month for part-time, plus benefits, training, and 12–18 month average tenure before turnover. Sera is always on, handles unlimited concurrent calls, never has a bad day, and costs a fraction of a single seat — while booking more appointments because she's available 24/7.
Most practices use Sera to eliminate voicemail entirely — every call answered live, every new patient booked, every missed-call texted back. The recovered appointment revenue typically pays for the system in the first month.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does an AI dental receptionist work?
Sera answers incoming calls using a natural voice agent trained on dental front-desk conversations. She identifies whether the caller is a new patient, existing patient, or insurance/billing inquiry, then books the appointment directly into your practice management system (Dentrix, Open Dental, Eaglesoft, Curve), takes a message, or routes to a human if needed. Setup takes under a day.
Can the AI book appointments into Dentrix or Open Dental?
Yes. Sera reads live availability from Dentrix, Open Dental, Eaglesoft, Curve, and most other dental PMS platforms, books the slot, and sends confirmation texts/emails to the patient — exactly as a human receptionist would.
What happens with after-hours dental calls?
Sera answers every after-hours call live (no voicemail). She books appointments for the next available day, sends confirmation, and notifies your office in the morning. Dental practices typically book 8–12 new-patient appointments per month from after-hours calls alone.
Is this just an answering service?
No. Traditional dental answering services only take messages and forward them — patients still have to call back during business hours. Sera actually books the appointment in real time, handles insurance and pricing questions, and only escalates to a human when the question is outside her scope.
How does this compare to hiring a front-desk receptionist?
A part-time dental receptionist costs $2,200–$3,500/month plus benefits and turnover. Sera costs a fraction of that, never calls in sick, never quits, and handles unlimited concurrent calls. Most practices replace one full receptionist seat or augment a busy front desk to eliminate voicemail.
Can patients tell they're talking to AI?
Sera uses a natural voice and conversational pacing — most patients don't notice. We always disclose AI use if asked. Patients consistently rate the experience as good or better than a typical front-desk call, primarily because there's no hold time and appointments are booked in one conversation.
