As a dentist we have seen screens are becoming the new “chair side assistant”.Whenever a child walks in crying ,cartoon starts playing,silence fills the operatory.
While audiovisual distraction can help reduce anxiety in short time, overdependence may limit a child’s ability to build emotional resilience and trust in clinical environment.
Because behavior management in pedodontics was never just about compliance.True coping skills are built through guided exposure and not complete distraction.
Techniques like tell-show-do, voice modulation, and positive reinforcement are gradually being replaced with passive distraction.Our goal should be to build confidence for future visit and never just cooperation for single visit.
My takeaways:
Screen can distract a child , but can never replace courage, trust build through connection.
Share your thoughts!
MBH/AB
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I think this is a really bad practice. We used ro go to the dentist as kids and sit there without a screen. I still remember my childhood dentist because he made an effort to make the scary machienes fun for me.
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A screen might provide silence in the operatory, but communication helps to build the trust among patients.
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Everything has its own benifits and shortcomings and i think before selecting any technique we should consider whats best
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Absolutely, screens can be an effective distraction tool during a child’s dental visit and may make the procedure easier in certain situations. However, I still strongly believe in traditional behavior management techniques such as Tell-Show-Do, voice modulation, positive reinforcement, and building rapport with the child through meaningful interaction. Rather than relying solely on screens, I think it is important to make the dental visit feel like an adventure or a fun playdate. Using child-friendly euphemisms, storytelling, and age-appropriate explanations can transform an unfamiliar and potentially frightening experience into an engaging one. Encouraging children to be curious and ask questions about the procedure helps them feel involved and gives them a sense of control.
When we explain procedures in a simple, non-threatening, and fun manner, children are often much more relaxed and cooperative. Beyond completing the treatment, this approach can help build trust, reduce dental anxiety, and create positive attitudes toward dental care that may last a lifetime.
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Depends on the type of patient, firstly building a connection with the child is more important rather relying on the distraction method. And yes if you think through communication child is not going to calm during the procedure and distraction would be better then yes, go through this.
In this situation your first outcome should be a child leaving your clinic with a happy face, he/she would always remember a painless treatment and may be in further visit you would has a bond more easily!!
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Maybe when other techniques won’t work to calm down a child, this is one of the best alternative. As getting the patient to comfort zone and treating is the primary motto.
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Not all the kids are attracted to screen. First greet them with surprises. Then have a smooth interaction with them. All of them gets panic to sit in the clinical chair.
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