I took my daughter here today for her first visit with this office. Unfortunately with all the new insurance changes, her regular pediatric dental office no longer accepts her insurance. She went in for a cleaning and there was one problem tooth I wanted the doctor to look at. We waited about 20-25 minutes for her name to be called. When they called we both stood up and the lady told me that I will need to wait in the waiting room while my daughter goes to the back. I told her that I would prefer to go back with her. The lady said, "We'll we need to do X-Rays and you cannot be back here." I told her I would stand to the side out of the way of the X-Ray machine (in the hallway) She again told me that it is not their policy for the adults to accompany the children to the back and that they would like the hygienist to "bond" with the patient. I told her that I have never had a problem going to the back with my daughter to any appointment at any other dental office and that I didn't see what the problem was. Finally she told me that I could go back there after the X-Rays were done. And she pointed to the ground of the entry way to the waiting room and told me,"You have to wait right here until they are done." (15 to 30 feet away) "And when you go back, you are not allowed to speak."
Can you believe that?!?! The nerve of that woman. My daughter is 9 years old. There was no way in heck I wasn't going to go with her. At her other dentist they have chairs set up for a parent to wait in front of the child while they are getting their teeth cleaned. They welcome it!
Anyways, when I was finally allowed to move from "time out" and to join my daughter in the room, I was instructed to "Sit on that stool there." It was not a stool, infact it was a side table to hold the patients' belongings like a purse or something. It even had plexi glass atop it.
Anyways, I stayed while the hygenist cleaned her teeth, didn't speak until I was spoken too. The hygienist asked me a few questions about all the appliances my daughter has in her teeth. And I answered. When the hygenist was done and it was time for doctor Stewart to examine her teeth, he didn't even acknowledge me or introduce himself to my daughter or I. I am just as much a patient of theirs as she is, as she is a minor. The tooth I was concerned about he made not even a big deal about it or even talked to me about to reassure that everything would be fine. When he was done, he didn't say goodbye or shake hands or anything to me or my daughter.
The hygienist was a nice lady and you could tell she was trying to accommodate me being back there with her. However, the receptionist or the lady in the front and the doctor are not very nice people and I could tell they were actually offended that I care for my child.
This is not an office for pediatric dental. Do not take your children here as they do not try to make them feel safe or even welcome the parents. This is an office for older individuals as we saw many elderly people in the office...even near the Xray room.
We will not be returning to this office. Who says to a parent of a patient that they can't talk????! read more