Innovation Never Ends

May 10, 2024
3 min read
Resources

Innovation Born

Originally, TopsOrtho™ launched in 1992. It’s hard to believe it’s been 25 years! But it has. And the inexorable march of technology has brought us amazing advances in every area of our lives.

When we began, our efforts went into creating a system that was easy to use. We wanted it to be intuitive and predictive, so focused on having a logical layout with simple tasks to better manage your practice processes. We did this by organizing them around real people.

Of course, at the time there was no internet unless you were a serious nerd—yes, we were serious nerds already thinking ahead. As the rest of the world gradually became more connected, we saw the rise of social media and a complete change in how we view the world. Best of all, we also witnessed the introduction of digitally-assisted orthodontics!

For Tops, innovation really took off in 2001 when Apple changed their OS to the very modern, UNIX- based Mac OS X. Calling it a game changer would be cliché. It was an enormous leap forward, as UNIX was designed around multi-user, internet-connected, secure computing.

We then had the great fortune to kidnap Apple expert Aaron Hillegass from Cupertino when he relocated to Atlanta—home to team Tops. With Aaron as chief architect, we were able to restructure and design our software around speed, ease-of-use and reliability.

The entire patient journey in one place

The technology inside your orthodontics practice should work hard for you. Tops’ complete ecosystem gives you the power, speed, and agility to move on to what’s next.

A Leap Forward

That innovation alone catapulted our capabilities ahead of everyone and revolved around a—then-unusual—private-cloud architecture. This new Tops generation required no updates by the user. It offered new features such as built-in letter writing and imaging and ran at super high speeds.

We began to expand our development team, bringing in highly-sought talent from companies like NeXT, Apple, and Rosetta Stone.

With a crack development team, we added new, highly useful features, like Door-to-Door™, which maps travel from a new patient’s home to your practice door and is sent to the patient via email.

We publish an average of 4 updates per year. Each update brings something new.

Over time, there have been some enhancements that have earned the title of coveted favorites. One was the 3D interactive tooth chart, which improved patient elastic compliance. The D7 Matrix™ is our advanced control panel for your Treatment Coordinator. It gives your practice a laser-vision, detailed view into the efficiency and profitability of your clinical team, enabling you to increase your bottom line.

Our unique Off-the-Charts™ enhancement brings chair-side digital orthodontics into a single point of access within the Tops patient chart. It includes Patient Rewards Hub™, Invisalign® ClinCheck®, and suresmile®. You have full functionality of each of these services within Tops.

What’s Next?

So what’s next? Tops version 8.0 with our integrated digital communications suite! This suite contains sophisticated, built-in SMS Appointment Reminders and secure, encrypted email (both HIPAA compliant). It incorporates direct, one-to-one SMS messaging that originates from your primary practice telephone number, not from your staff’s personal cells.

Plus, Tops version 8 includes Patient Education with a trackable viewing history within the patient chart. This ensures you’ll know which patients are doing their “homework.”

While Tops is known for being smooth, it’s our service we are most known for. When you’re busy running from chair to chair, you don’t want to stop to deal with problems. You want to know that not only are we one call away, but that we are constantly monitoring and updating your Tops system behind the scenes.

Tops continues to evolve at a fast pace. Innovation and creativity never end at team Tops. We’re already working on new features based on customer input and research. Team Tops looks forward to announcing those when they’re ready!

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