Using a Tablet in the HOF Consultation

The tablet has entered orofacial harmonization (HOF) practices because it solves a real problem: a phone screen is too small to show a treatment plan to someone sitting next to you. A bigger screen helps explain, compare and keep the patient at the center of the conversation. It also creates new risks, in privacy and in posture, that most professionals only notice after the first scare.

This guide shows what to display, how to prepare the device, how to run the conversation without taking your eyes off the patient and how to handle what the app allows (and does not allow) on each screen. If the question is how to organize the consultation itself, see the first consultation script and the assessment consultation.

What does the tablet solve in the consultation?

It does not improve the consultation by itself. What changes is the ability to show instead of just describing. In HOF, much of the conversation is about proportion, symmetry and volume, and those concepts get clearer with a large image in front of both of you.

Without a clear reason, the tablet becomes a barrier: the professional looks at the screen, not at the patient's face. Use it as support, not as a stage set.

The tablet and Harmy: what works

It is important to be clear about what exists. Harmy is an app for phones, Android and iPhone. There is no web version or iPad-optimized version. That does not stop the generated content from appearing on a larger screen; it only changes the route.

For the tablet, the most practical route is the patient link: it opens in the browser of any device, with nothing to install. The shared image and the PDF can be sent to the tablet by email or message. See more in presenting before and after in the consultation.

In any format, the illustrative simulation caption must be visible. It keeps the patient from mistaking the projection for a promise. The limits of that conversation are covered in limits of visual simulation in the consultation.

Preparing the device before the first patient

The tablet in the room is seen by many people. Treat it as a clinic computer, not a personal device.

The most critical point is notifications. A message from another patient popping up at the top of the screen in front of the person in the chair is a breach of confidentiality that no consent form covers. Turn on "do not disturb" by default and allow only what is necessary.

Privacy: what the patient must not see

Every piece of data shown on a screen turned toward the patient must belong to that patient. This simple rule prevents most incidents and relies on LGPD in patient records and clinic photos and sending patient photos by WhatsApp and the LGPD.

A good practice is to open only the folder or link for the patient who is in the room, and close it at the end. To show examples to someone who is not yet a patient, use illustrative material, not photos of other people. For this, Harmy has an example patient (a fictional person), useful for practicing the presentation without exposing anyone.

How to run the conversation with the screen

Posture matters as much as the image. The goal is for the patient to speak and decide, not to sit through a presentation.

1. Start without the screen. Listen to the patient's concern and goal before showing anything.
2. Show their photo, standardized, and ask them to point to what bothers them most. See standardized clinical photography.
3. Present the plan by area, stating the ml and the reasoning, without promising the result.
4. Only then display the simulation, with the statement that it is an illustration and that the actual result varies.
5. Turn the screen toward the patient and let them explore the slider, asking them to say what they notice.
6. Close with the quote, on a separate screen, so you do not mix the clinical decision with the price.

For the close, the points in how to increase plan acceptance and patient objections and responses fit in after the simulation.

Ergonomics and setting

Physical details change the mood of the conversation. Two seats side by side work better than one facing the other with the screen in between. The tablet sits at a height where both can see without craning their necks, on a stand that does not wobble. Medium brightness and a clean screen make a difference to the image colors; a room with very strong light behind the patient washes out contrast. The clinic setting covers this in more detail.

Hygiene counts too. If the patient is going to touch the device, wiping the screen between appointments goes into the routine, with a product suitable for the device, and the same care applies to pens and clipboards.

When paper is still better

Not everything needs to go on screen. The informed consent form needs calm reading and a signature; if the clinic uses a digital format, digital signing of consent forms explains what to look for. Post-procedure instructions tend to be more useful printed or sent to the patient in writing, because they consult them at home. The tablet complements paper, it does not replace it in everything.

Quiz: did you prepare the consultation well?

End-of-day routine

The tablet closes the day like the rest of the clinic. Delete temporary files, sign out of open accounts, confirm the lock and put the device to charge in a closed space. If any patient file was saved on the device, move it to the patient record and delete the local copy. This digital hygiene belongs in the end-of-day closing and in the clinic data security.