75% of dental clinics in Lisbon don't answer the phone. We ran the study.
We called 79 clinics during office hours. The results surprised us.
Key takeaways
- ✓We called 79 dental clinics in the Lisbon region, 3 times each, during office hours.
- ✓75% (59 clinics) never had a human answer — calls went to voicemail or rang out.
- ✓Only 1 clinic answered consistently across all attempts.
- ✓Lisbon, Cascais, and Almada have the highest concentration of clinics with inadequate phone coverage.
How it started
We suspected that many dental clinics were missing calls. But suspicion isn't evidence. So we decided to test it.
In May 2026, we called 79 dental clinics in the Lisbon region — three times each, at different points during the working day. We logged what happened on every call.
Methodology
Clinics: 79 dental clinics across Lisbon, Cascais, Almada, Sintra, Setúbal, and Oeiras. All had a verified Google Maps presence with a rating and phone number.
Calls: 3 rounds per clinic, all made on 21 May 2026, during office hours:
- Round 1: between 09:00 and 10:00
- Round 2: between 11:00 and 12:00
- Round 3: between 17:00 and 19:00
Technology: We used Automatic Machine Detection (AMD) to distinguish between human answers, voicemail, and unanswered calls. Every call was automatically logged with its final status.
Ethics: No clinic was identified individually. Data is presented in aggregate form only. No information was collected — calls were automatically terminated after detection.
Main finding
75% of clinics never had a human answer the phone — across any of the three attempts.
Of the 79 clinics:
- 33 clinics always went to voicemail or an automated attendant (42%)
- 8 clinics did not answer at all — no voicemail, nothing (10%)
- 18 clinics had mixed results — some calls to voicemail, others unanswered (23%)
- 19 clinics had a human answer on some calls, but not all (24%)
- 1 clinic consistently had a human answer on every round (1%)
Geographic breakdown
Clinics without consistent human coverage broke down as follows:
| City | Clinics without human coverage |
|---|---|
| Lisbon | 23 |
| Cascais | 10 |
| Almada | 10 |
| Sintra | 7 |
| Setúbal | 5 |
| Oeiras | 4 |
Lisbon accounts for nearly 40% of the clinics with insufficient coverage — a reflection of the higher density of clinics in the capital.
What this means for patients
When a patient calls to book an appointment and can't reach anyone, they have three options: wait and try again, call another clinic, or give up.
In most cases, they call another clinic. Your clinic just lost a patient — possibly for good.
What this means for clinics
A missed call isn't just a missed appointment. It's the start of a multi-year relationship with a patient who has family, friends, and neighbours. The long-term value of each patient far exceeds the value of a single appointment.
For the 59 clinics that never had a human answer, this study is a wake-up call: the door is open, but no one is welcoming the patients who arrive.
Conclusion
This study wasn't designed to criticise clinics. The reality is simple: receptionists are busy, peak hours coincide with the moments most calls arrive, and it's humanly impossible to answer every one.
The solution isn't more staff — it's technology that complements the existing team, available during the moments when they can't answer.
Ricardo Amaro
Founder of 42Desk. Helping businesses never miss a call with AI receptionists.