When my orthodontic practice was at its peak, we were 10 doctors and 25 team members strong. Everyone was constantly taking continuing education courses. As a result, tracking CEs for the whole team became an organizational nightmare. Even for myself, at the end of every year when I realized that I was behind in CEs, I would have to hustle to figure out what I still needed and document enough credits to maintain my license. That memory still haunts me, and that is why I'm so excited to share a solution, called Dental CE Manager. I interviewed Vanessa Newton, DMD, and Shayda Cullen, RDH, who shared their thoughts on the creation of this much needed concept.
Lou Shuman, DMD, CAGS (LS): What is your background?
Vanessa Newton, DMD (VN): I have been a general dentist since 2004 and in private practice in Massachusetts since 2005. I have been a practice owner since 2019. I had also been a clinical instructor at Tufts University from 2005 to 2012. I am passionate about dentistry, and am a CE enthusiast.
Shayda Cullen, RDH (SC): I am a problem solver. I initially got a degree in Mathematics. I started as a dental assistant in 2002, and then I went to Northeastern University for my Biology degree, intending to go to Dental School. I ultimately ended up going to hygiene school and have been a hygienist for 20 years. I am also an inventor. I have 12 patents for various products that solve problems in dentistry. I wanted to provide a very necessary service, and the idea of CE Manager was always on my agenda.
LS: How did the concept of CE Manager come about?
SC: I lived in Florida for several years, and living there you are required to submit your CEU’s through a specific company. I was frustrated because you couldn’t save courses that were taken outside of that platform. It made no sense to me why things had to be done on different platforms. Because of that, I needed to keep certain CEs in a separate file on my computer. When I moved to Massachusetts, CE requirements were different. Florida allowed all CEs to be taken online, but in Massachusetts it is required that you take at least 50% of your courses in person, so I ended up looking for courses that fit my categories. Tracking and maintaining courses in either state wasn’t a user-friendly process, and very clunky. I got extremely frustrated when I took some CEs from a dental convention but couldn’t upload them to the website. I had to keep it in a separate folder, and then, even worse, I lost some in the process. I went to Miami and took an implant course—paid thousands for the CE—and I lost it! I remember thinking that these documentation websites were not written for the CE consumer. That is why I designed Dental CE Manager. When I started working with Vanessa, I asked if she would be a partner in this endeavor, and because she had similar frustrating experiences, she said, “I’m in!”
VN: I have always been frustrated by the CE tracking process. I take an abundance of courses—way over the required amount—from many different vendors and locations. You don’t always receive the certificates the day that you take the course. They often come to your email months later from a completely different company than you are expecting, and you have to remember to deal with them as soon as you see them; otherwise they are lost. I know that I have always taken more than I end up tracking. About 18 months ago, I built and moved to a new office. When I was packing up and moving my office to a new space, I lost a folder with about 10 years of CE. From personal experience, I knew that this new concept was sorely needed, and I was excited to partner with Shayda in this venture.
LS: What differentiates Dental CE manager from other CE documentation companies?
SC: Every year, as I approached my license renewal date, I was always horrified when I didn’t take enough CEs. I had to go back through my folder and manually count how many I took and then write that down and figure how many more credits I needed and check if I missed any specific ones like CPR. I wanted to develop an all-in-one system that is focused on capturing important details. I wanted an app that works like a wallet. You have all your cards in it—your driver’s license, health insurance cards, credit cards—all that you need together in one place. That is what I imagined to ease my frustration. I think of how the tech giant, Apple, achieved its popularity. My household is filled with Apple products because they are intuitive and user-friendly. I wanted the Dental CE Manager app to be simple enough for even non-tech people. CE Manager is available on web, iOS, and Android platforms.
LS: How do you enter all that info?
SC: How the information is entered is another very big differentiator. Because I am not a good typer, I wanted a ‘no touch’ product. I wanted to not have to type in anything. So I asked our amazing IT team for an extraction process instead.
VN: We integrated OpenAI to extract data. All you have to do is take a photograph of your document. It doesn’t matter if it came in an email or text, or if you took a picture of it on your phone; you snap a picture, and it extracts the data. You don’t have to type in anything. And you don’t have to wade through complicated regulations of the 50 states. All 50 states’ rules and regulations are integrated into the app not just for dentists, but for hygienists and assistants as well. The app will calculate what you need in the categories, and document the CEs already taken, so you have all the information that you need in one easy-to-access space stored safely in the cloud.
LS: Is the app secure?
SC: Yes, I have always been concerned when I am traveling and want to take an online course in a public space due to using an unsecured public WiFi. Once, I was in a Starbucks taking a CE. I didn’t want to log into their WiFi because I would be endangering the security of my other information stored on my laptop, considering the platform was not app based, but I was forced to log-in because I had already paid for the webinar. I was very uncomfortable with that.
VN: WiFi open networks are not secure, but your cell data is secure. You can use cellular data on our app, so you don’t have to log into non-secure WiFi. You can watch the webinar, take the quiz and the evaluation survey knowing that the process is secure within your phone. Webinars are now being incorporated into the app so if you take a webinar through the app, it is automatically added to your CE. If you lose any information, just log in again, and all the details will be there. You no longer have to worry about losing a folder full of CEs.
LS: How does the app keep you up-to-date?
SC: Subscribers receive text alerts at 3 months, one month, and 2 weeks before license renewal deadlines with an updated picture of what you have and what you need for your renewal. We also will send updates when there are new features so that the app can be updated.
LS: How much does it cost?
VN: There is one price for the doctor, with full-office pricing and multiple-location pricing available depending on the number of offices. All software changes and updates are included in the individual dentist’s fee. Hygienists and assistants can also join. The fee is reduced if we are managing multiple practices. Our goal is to make this accessible to everyone.
LS: What is the future? Is this available for hygiene and assistants?
VN: We will continue to update and improve our services and make meaningful changes that help with other regulations as well. Right now, [at the time of this interview] we are adding a valuable feature that should go live by early July. Owner Dentists are required to stay aware of their office team’s progress in CE compliance. If the employee is not in compliance, then your office is not in compliance. Very soon, the owner doctor will be able to see all of their team members CE progress from their own app.
LS: The simple graphic utilization interface of this software is so easy that users would never know that sophisticated technology is running behind the scenes. The open system works with AGD/PACE or any other CE-certifying system. Don’t let CEs test your patience as well as your knowledge. The founders of Dental CE Manager used their own experience and did their due diligence to bring an easy solution to CE information maintenance and documentation, so you can focus on your patients, not the paperwork. For more information visit dentalcemanager.com.
Figures and Images
Dental CE Manager home screen
Dental CE Manager individual dashboard
Dental CE Manager team management
A webinar through Dental CE Manager
