A University of Rochester collaboration is using an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered virtual patient to help dentists strengthen communication, build trust and respond more effectively to patients’ fears and concerns.
For many patients, sitting in a dental chair can be stressful long before treatment begins.
“Fear, anxiety, uncertainty about a procedure, concerns or misconceptions about treatment can all shape a patient’s experience,” said Shasha Cui, EdD, MBA, assistant professor and education specialist at Eastman Institute for Oral Health (EIOH). “For dentists, providing excellent care requires more than technical expertise. It also requires knowing how to listen, explain complicated information clearly, recognise concerns and establish trust.”
A collaboration between EIOH and the University of Rochester’s department of computer science is piloting an interactive platform called SOPHIE — Standardised Online Patient for Healthcare Interaction Education — for dental education.
“AI cannot replace empathy,” said Ehsan Hoque, PhD, professor of computer science and an expert in human-centred AI. “But it can provide an environment where clinicians can repeatedly practise the communication skills patients depend on, without the pressure of practising for the first time during a real clinical encounter.”
SOPHIE uses a three-dimensional virtual character that can see and listen to a clinician, hold a conversation and respond in real time. The technology was originally developed to help physicians practise difficult conversations with patients facing serious illness. Cui saw an opportunity to adapt the approach to dentistry.
“Health professions programmes have traditionally used trained actors, known as standardised patients, to help clinicians develop communication skills,” she explained. “The approach can be highly effective, but it also requires significant resources, making it difficult to provide every learner with repeated opportunities to practise.”
Because SOPHIE can be accessed through a browser, trainees can practise at their convenience and repeat scenarios as often as needed. This is particularly valuable for developing skills such as recognising anxiety, active listening, showing empathy, asking open-ended questions and involving patients in decisions about their care.
The team organised the training around what it calls the three E’s: Empower, Empathy and Explicit. The approach encourages clinicians to involve patients in their care, demonstrate empathy and communicate information clearly. Residents can try different approaches, receive feedback and practise again.
Cultural differences and language can also influence how patients perceive treatment, ask questions and interact with healthcare providers.
“SOPHIE really helps us understand how to communicate better with the wide range of patients Eastman serves,” said Prateek Daga, DDS, an EIOH resident who participated in the pilot programme at EIOH’s Golisano Specialty Care Perinatal Dental Clinic.
For Daga, communication is particularly important because clinicians may have only a limited amount of time to establish a relationship with a patient. If that connection is not made, he said, trust can quickly be lost.
Residents reported increased confidence in handling challenging patient conversations and valued the opportunity to practise repeatedly in a low-stakes setting. AI-generated measures also suggested improvements in conversational balance and the use of open-ended questions.
The collaboration is another example of the university’s focus on Team Science, bringing together experts from different disciplines to address challenges that would be more difficult to tackle independently.
“The ability to collaborate across disciplines has been extremely beneficial for many projects and is one of the University of Rochester’s strengths,” said Jin Xiao, DDS, PhD, EIOH professor and associate dean for Oral Health Education at the University of Rochester school of medicine and dentistry.
The study, published in the Journal of Dental Education, brought together researchers from the Eastman Institute for Oral Health, Computer Science and the Clinical and Translational Science Institute.
“The SOPHIE project has been a successful and exciting step forward in exploring how AI-powered virtual patients can enhance communication training for dental residents,” Cui added. “The positive response from our residents and the lessons learned from the pilot have demonstrated how this approach provides meaningful, practical and scalable learning experiences. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with our colleagues to further develop SOPHIE and expand its use for resident education.”
For dentists and educators at EIOH, however, the ultimate purpose of the technology is much simpler than the AI behind it.
“Great dentistry is not only about fixing teeth,” Xiao said, “but also caring for our patients.”
