Making oral healthcare more accessible through digital innovation

Where do you see the role of technology and AI in oral healthcare?

Oral health should be part of the digital-health conversation because it affects far more than a person’s smile. It influences nutrition, speech, confidence, learning, employability and quality of life. Yet dental care is still often sought only when a person is in pain or when a problem has already become visible.

Dr Nguyen Hung Hiep

Technology gives us an opportunity to move towards a more preventive and continuous model of care. Digital dentistry is not limited to installations of advanced equipment in large urban clinics. Its greater value lies in supporting the whole patient journey: helping people develop better daily oral-hygiene habits, supporting preventive education, monitoring treatment progress, and maintaining an appropriate connection between the patient and the clinical team after an appointment.

AI may contribute in several ways. It can support structured patient education, help users understand where their oral-hygiene routines may need improvement, assess whether a submitted image is usable for clinical review, or help dental teams identify which cases may need attention sooner. During orthodontic treatment or after oral surgery, digital tools can also help patients report symptoms and share standardised information between scheduled visits.

The crucial point is that AI should be useful because it improves care, rather than because it is fashionable. The future is not one device or one application. It is a more connected model in which prevention, treatment and follow-up are better linked.

Vietnam has favourable conditions for this transition. Digital tools are already familiar to many people, and the country has an extensive grassroots health network. If we use those strengths well, technology can help professional knowledge reach patients more consistently, including beyond major cities.

How can digital monitoring help patients after treatment while preserving the dentist’s central role?

For many procedures, treatment does not end when a patient leaves the dental chair. This is particularly true after implant placement, oral surgery, complex restorative work and throughout orthodontic treatment.

Between appointments, patients may notice mild swelling, redness, discomfort, poor cleaning around a restoration or implant, or a problem with an orthodontic appliance. They may not know whether these signs are expected, whether they can wait, or whether they require prompt attention. Some may delay seeking advice until pain becomes significant; others may make an unnecessary long journey simply for reassurance.

Digital monitoring can make that interval more meaningful. A patient may be guided to submit a short symptom update or take photographs according to a simple protocol. The technology can help check whether the information is clear enough and flag a case for the clinical team’s attention. The dentist can then review the information in the context of the individual’s medical history and treatment plan, and decide whether the patient needs advice, an earlier appointment, imaging, or an in-person examination.

This is not automated diagnosis. A photograph cannot replace clinical examination, periodontal probing, radiographs or professional judgement. Nor should a patient be led to believe that an app can determine whether an implant, wound or orthodontic treatment is clinically healthy.

The correct model is human-led care supported by technology. AI may help dental teams see concerns earlier and organise follow-up more efficiently, but clinical responsibility and treatment decisions must remain with qualified dentists.

What could be the economic and social value of this approach for Vietnam?

The most important benefit is not automation for its own sake. It is the possibility of making care earlier, more targeted and more accessible. Internationally, this is no longer a marginal field. For example, Align Technology reported $768.9 million in 2024 revenue from imaging systems and CAD/CAM services. That does not predict savings in Vietnam, but it signals the scale of investment in digital dental workflows.

For patients, particularly those who live far from specialist services, the cost of dental care is often not limited to the clinical bill. It can include transport, time away from work or school and the practical difficulty of returning for follow-up. Digital monitoring will not remove the need for face-to-face care, but it can help ensure that a journey is made when it is clinically necessary.

The public-health need is clear. WHO’s 2022 oral-health profile for Vietnam places oral disease within a wider national and global challenge in which prevention, early treatment and access remain central concerns. Recent research also points to persistent inequality. A 2021 study of secondary-school pupils in rural highland Vietnam found a substantial burden of dental caries and highlighted the difficulty of delivering effective oral-health strategies to underserved communities. Such local research is not a national estimate, but it demonstrates why prevention and earlier connection to professional care matter.

Digital tools could help local health facilities become more effective points of connection. A commune health station does not need to become a specialist dental clinic. With appropriate training, secure systems and clear referral pathways, it could help patients collect standardised information, receive basic preventive guidance and connect with a dentist at the right level of care.

For clinics and the health system, technology can help use scarce professional time more efficiently. Patients whose condition appears stable can remain on an appropriate recall schedule, while those with possible warning signs can be prioritised for direct review. If a concern is identified earlier, treatment may be simpler and less disruptive than if it is left to progress. However, the economic case must be demonstrated, not assumed. Pilot programmes should measure patient travel saved, response times, rates of unnecessary visits, referral quality, clinical safety and patient experience.

What should Vietnam prioritise to make digital oral healthcare safe, inclusive and sustainable?

The trajectory should begin with real clinical and public-health problems, not with technology procurement. The first question should be: where can a digital tool genuinely improve prevention, follow-up, access or referral?

Clear clinical boundaries are essential. AI can support education, screening, monitoring and workflow, but it must not independently diagnose disease, prescribe treatment or replace professional accountability. Every system needs a defined protocol: who reviews a flagged case, how quickly the patient receives a response, and when an in-person examination or referral is required.

Patient consent and data protection must also be treated as core clinical requirements. Oral images and treatment histories are health data. Patients should understand why information is collected, who can access it, and how it will be protected.

Finally, solutions must be tested in Vietnamese conditions: with the phones, internet connections, languages and digital skills that people actually have. They must work not only for confident smartphone users in major cities, but also for older adults, people with limited digital literacy and communities where connectivity may be less reliable.

Vietnam’s opportunity is not simply to digitalise the dental and more generally, the health sector. It is to build a more preventive, connected and equitable model of oral healthcare, in which technology helps dentists reach the right patient with the right support at the right time.