How smart should I assume my dental patients are when I talk to them? Assume they are smart, and assume they do not speak your language. Average intelligence in the population sits around 100 on the bell curve. You, as someone who had to be book smart to get through dental school, are probably up around 120. That gap matters every time you open your mouth. If you explain treatment the way you would explain it to a colleague, most patients quietly lose the thread and then say no to protect themselves from a decision they did not understand. So build [...]