Patient Value Per Visit: A New Way to Measure What Matters
One of the most talked-about KPIs in orthodontics is "value per visit." It’s often calculated by dividing the total revenue of a case by the number of in-office appointments needed to complete treatment. This metric gives practices insight into efficiency, profitability, and scheduling optimization. And while it's important—it only tells one side of the story.
Because it’s always viewed through the lens of the practice.
What happens when we flip the perspective? What happens when we stop asking how valuable a visit is to us and start asking how valuable it is to the patient?
That’s when everything begins to shift.
The Hidden Cost of Time
There is tremendous, often overlooked value for patients in accomplishing their treatment goals with fewer in-office visits. Less time off work. Fewer school absences. Less rescheduling of sports, activities, and life. These moments add up—and they matter more than we think.
According to data from Gaidge, the average number of appointments per full orthodontic case in 2024 across the U.S. is still hovering around 18 to 22 visits, depending on case type and modality. That means the average family is sacrificing 18+ trips to an office, often on weekdays, during working hours. What would it mean to a family if that number could be reduced by 25%, or even 50%?
Learning from Smile Direct Club
Smile Direct Club is often held up as an example of what not to do in orthodontics. And yes—its execution was flawed. The lack of clinical oversight and poor quality control made it a cautionary tale. But in dismissing it entirely, we risk missing what it actually got right: it uncovered a very real patient desire.
People don’t just want straighter teeth. They want their time back.
SDC’s rapid rise wasn’t fueled by quality—it was fueled by convenience. It showed that millions of patients are willing to try an alternative if it means fewer appointments and more autonomy. And that insight shouldn’t be ignored—it should be integrated, responsibly.
Oversight and Lifestyle
As orthodontists, we are exceptional at delivering great outcomes. We are clinical experts. We care deeply about precision. But traditionally, we haven’t been great at valuing our patients’ time. We ask them to come in often—not always because it's necessary, but because we lack the tools to confidently track progress from a distance.
That’s why technologies like Dental Monitoring matter.
Dental Monitoring gives us the best of both worlds. It allows for clinical oversight with AI-enhanced scan analysis, while also allowing patients to stay on track from wherever they are—school, work, college, vacation. It’s not just a convenience feature—it’s a care delivery model that respects time as a form of currency.
Patient Value Per Visit
When we began applying the concept of Patient Value Per Visit in our own practice, everything changed. We stopped measuring our systems only by profitability or throughput. We started asking:
Was that visit necessary?
Did it move the patient closer to their goal?
Could it have been avoided with remote monitoring?
The result? A care model that’s more aligned with how modern people live. A system that earns trust. A reputation for respect.
Redefining the Win
It’s time to stop measuring success purely by how efficiently we move teeth. Let’s also measure how thoughtfully we move with people.
When we reduce visits without reducing quality, we give our patients more than a great smile—we give them back time, freedom, and ease. And that, in today’s world, is the highest value we can offer.
