The Carbon Benefits of Remote Dental Treatments

The Carbon Benefits of Remote Dental Treatments

As the dental industry embraces digital transformation, one of the most overlooked yet significant advantages of virtual care is its positive impact on the environment. By reducing the need for in-person appointments, remote consultations can meaningfully lower carbon emissions—contributing to both sustainability and patient convenience.

Why Carbon Savings Matter in Healthcare

Healthcare accounts for an estimated 4–5% of global carbon emissions (Health Care Without Harm, 2019), making it one of the largest contributors to climate change. While dentistry is a smaller part of this figure, every step towards reducing unnecessary travel and resource use helps lower the industry’s overall footprint.

For dental practices, remote assessments and virtual follow-ups provide an opportunity to make a real difference without compromising care quality.

How Remote Treatments Reduce Emissions

The most significant carbon savings from remote treatments come from one simple factor: eliminating travel. A single round trip to the dental practice typically involves:

• Patient travel: Driving to and from the clinic.

• Practice resources: Heating, lighting, and sterilization for every visit.

When you multiply this by thousands of appointments per year, the environmental impact becomes clear.

At Virtual Consultant Online, we’ve measured an average carbon saving of 1.37 kg CO₂ per remote appointment compared to in-person visits. This figure considers only the avoided patient travel—additional savings come from reduced resource consumption at the practice.

This aligns with studies showing that telehealth can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 0.7–5 kg CO₂ per consultation, depending on travel distance and mode of transportation (Greenhalgh et al., 2022).

Scaling the Impact

To put this in perspective:

• 1 remote appointment = 1.37 kg CO₂ saved

• 100 appointments = 137 kg CO₂ saved (roughly equivalent to charging 17,500 smartphones)

• 1,000 appointments = 1.37 metric tons CO₂ saved (similar to the emissions from driving a car for 3,400 miles) (EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator).

When dental practices incorporate virtual consultaJoin leading practices in adopting remote assessments and help shape a more sustainable future for dentistry.

tions into their workflows—especially for routine checks, aligner progress reviews, and treatment planning—the cumulative effect is substantial.

Beyond Carbon: Patient Benefits

Reducing emissions is only part of the story. Remote treatments also:

• Save time for patients and clinicians.

• Reduce stress and inconvenience of travel.

• Improve accessibility for patients in rural areas or with mobility challenges.

• Offer greater autonomy and flexibility in care.

When sustainability and patient experience align, everyone wins.

Moving Towards Greener Dentistry

As regulatory bodies and healthcare systems increasingly focus on net-zero targets, dentistry cannot be left behind. Remote treatment solutions like Virtual Consultant Online enable practices to:

Ready to Make an Impact?

Join leading practices in adopting remote assessments and help shape a more sustainable future for dentistry.

👉 Learn more about Virtual Consultant Online