Digital signature in the dental clinic: consents and quotes on a tablet
· 4 min read
A dental clinic signs far more than an ordinary medical practice: the consent for each surgery, the one for a child's orthodontics, the one for whitening and, almost always, a quote with its payment plan. On paper that means folders, a scanner and the question that comes with every complaint: “where is the one they signed?”. This guide covers what is specific to dental clinics; the general part —what the law says and what has to be recorded for a tablet signature to hold up— is in informed consent in clinics.
Which treatments need written consent
Spain's Law 41/2002 requires written consent for surgical procedures, for invasive diagnostic and therapeutic procedures and for those with risks of a notable negative impact (art. 8.2). In a dental clinic, that covers a good part of the diary:
- Surgery: extractions —especially wisdom teeth—, implants, sinus lifts, bone grafts and periodontal surgery.
- Invasive treatments: root canals, preparation for crowns and veneers.
- Sedation, when it is used.
- Cosmetic treatments: whitening, veneers, clear aligners. Here it pays to be even more careful with the information: since the patient does not need them for health reasons, in a complaint there is close scrutiny of whether the risks and the expected result were properly explained.
If your professional association provides consent templates, the text that is signed can be that same one: what changes is where it is signed and what is recorded.
One consent per treatment, not one for everything
The most expensive mistake in dentistry is the “general consent” signed on the first day. The information has to be that of the specific procedure: its consequences, its risks and its contraindications (art. 10.1). The practical approach is to have one template per treatment —implant, wisdom tooth extraction, root canal, whitening, orthodontics— and for reception to choose the right one.
And if the plan changes —the implant needs a graft that was not planned, the root canal ends in an extraction—, another one is signed. The earlier one does not cover what it did not say.
The quote, signed at the same visit
In dentistry the quote matters as much as the consent: treatments costing several thousand euros, paid in instalments and lasting months. Having it signed on the tablet at the same visit records what was quoted, at what price and when the patient accepted it.
The most convenient way is a “Quote acceptance” page with three questions —treatment, total amount and payment method— that reception fills in when preparing the signature. The patient checks them, reads the terms (“I accept the quote with the treatment, amount and payment method indicated”) and signs. The receipt records those figures exactly as accepted. If you would rather the patient signed the detailed PDF produced by your practice management software, it is uploaded as the document of a page for that patient.
These are two separate signatures, the consent and the quote, each with its own receipt.
Orthodontics and minors
In children's orthodontics, the person who consents is usually not the patient. The law sets out who decides at each age (art. 9), and the form has to collect the details of whoever signs: name and ID number of the legal representative, as well as those of the minor. When preparing the signature, the mobile entered is that of the father, mother or guardian, who is the one signing: the SMS code and the receipt go to that mobile.
In a two-year treatment, the receipt is also a reminder of what was agreed: how many check-ups, what happens with the retainers, what is included in the price.
Where it is signed: reception, surgery or home
- At reception, with the paired tablet: reception prepares the signature and it appears on the tablet by itself. This is the usual option for the first visit and for quotes.
- In the surgery, with a second tablet: for the consent that is explained in the chair, right before starting. Better before seating the patient with the bib on and the anaesthetic ready: a consent signed in a hurry and under pressure is exactly the one that gets disputed later.
- At home, by SMS: for scheduled surgery, the consent is sent a few days in advance so the patient can read it calmly and sign from their mobile. On the day of the surgery it is already signed and in the record.
In all three cases, when finished the tablet stays on “Signed”, with no data, no downloads and no going back, and the next patient sees nothing of the previous one.
What it costs in a dental clinic
No monthly fee, no licence per tablet and no charge per user: each signature is €0.10 and each SMS to a Spanish mobile is €0.039 (before VAT). If the patient does not sign, the signature is not charged.
A clinic that has 150 documents signed a month —consents and quotes— pays €15.00 for signatures, plus €5.85 if each patient receives the SMS with their receipt.
And the same panel sends the appointment reminders, which in a dental clinic are the other half of reception.
Legal validity, health data protection and the price compared with other solutions are on informed consent signing for clinics (in Spanish), and the step-by-step setup for a dental clinic, option by option, in document signing on a tablet.