Dental clinic management
terms, explained
Short, plain definitions of the terms a dental clinic meets when it organises appointments, records, billing and lab work: what a no-show rate is and how to work it out, what a recall or a try-in means, how FDI tooth numbering works, and what a patient wallet does.
Terms from A to Z
No-show rate
The no-show rate is the share of booked appointments that the patient neither attended nor cancelled in advance.
To work it out, divide the month's no-shows by the appointments booked that month and multiply by 100: 12 no-shows out of 240 appointments is a 5% no-show rate. Late cancellations are usually counted separately. The no-show calculator turns the rate into lost revenue.
Appointment reminder
An appointment reminder is a message sent to the patient before the visit, usually a day ahead, to confirm or cancel.
In Synora, reminders go out on WhatsApp from the clinic's own WhatsApp Business number, using a template Meta has approved (Basic and Pro). See WhatsApp reminders.
Recall
Also called: periodic check-up reminder
A recall is a planned invitation for a patient to come back for a routine visit, such as a six-monthly check-up and cleaning.
Synora keeps recalls and a waiting list on every plan, including Free, as part of appointments.
Waiting list
A waiting list holds patients who want an earlier appointment, so a slot that becomes free can be offered to them.
On Basic and Pro, Synora can message a cancelled slot to the top patients on the list with a link to book it; the first to confirm gets it.
Online booking page
An online booking page is a public web page where patients pick a service and a free time and book without calling the clinic.
Synora's booking page is part of Basic and Pro; a clinic can also add its link to its Google Maps listing (the guide). Asking for a deposit needs the clinic's own Paymob account.
Odontogram
Also called: dental chart
An odontogram is a diagram of all the patient's teeth on which the dentist records each tooth's condition and the work planned or done.
See the dental chart and treatment plans.
FDI tooth numbering
Also called: ISO 3950, two-digit notation
FDI numbering names each tooth with two digits: the first is the quadrant (1–4 for permanent teeth, 5–8 for primary teeth) and the second is the tooth's position from the midline.
Tooth 16, for example, is the upper right first permanent molar. More in the tooth numbering guide.
Treatment plan
A treatment plan is the list of procedures a patient needs, in order, with the price of each, which the patient agrees to before work starts.
In Synora, findings charted on the odontogram become a priced treatment plan.
Patient wallet
Also called: patient credit balance
A patient wallet is money the patient has paid in advance and holds at the clinic, which later invoices can be paid from.
Synora lets a payment be split across cash, card, transfer and the patient wallet. See billing, wallet and installments.
Installment plan
An installment plan splits the cost of a treatment into payments on agreed dates, so the patient does not pay everything at once.
Daily cash close
Also called: end-of-day reconciliation
The daily cash close is the end-of-day check that the money actually in the till and the accounts matches the payments recorded that day.
Dental lab case
A dental lab case is a piece of work a clinic sends to a dental laboratory, such as a crown or a denture, followed from sending through try-in to delivery.
See dental lab cases.
Try-in
A try-in is the visit where the dentist fits work from the lab in the patient's mouth to check fit, bite and shade before it is finished.
Dentist commission
A dentist commission is the share of the clinic's revenue paid to a dentist who is not a salaried employee, usually a percentage of the work they did or the money collected for it.
See dentist commissions.
Insurance pre-approval
Also called: prior authorisation
A pre-approval is the insurer's agreement, before treatment, that it will cover a procedure, usually given as a code to quote on the claim.
In Synora, the pre-approval is a code typed on the claim, not a request sent to the insurer. See insurance claims.
E-receipt (Egypt)
An e-receipt is a receipt the seller issues electronically for a sale to the end consumer and reports to the Egyptian Tax Authority through its system.
What it means for clinics is in the e-receipt guide.
Audit log
An audit log is a record of who opened or changed sensitive data, and when, that cannot be edited afterwards.
Synora writes every view of a patient's chart, medical history or images to an append-only audit log. See security.
Questions about these terms
There is no single official figure; it depends on the clinic and its patients. What matters is measuring it the same way every month — no-shows divided by booked appointments — and checking whether reminders and an easy way to cancel bring it down.
A reminder is about an appointment that is already booked. A recall invites a patient to book a new routine visit, such as a six-monthly check-up.
The FDI two-digit system (ISO 3950) is the international standard and the one Synora's dental chart uses: the first digit is the quadrant and the second is the tooth's position from the midline.
