On Friday, April 20, I happened to catch a TV segment of Michael Finney speaking of, among other "Finney's Friday Freebies", a program called "Dentistry from the Heart" which sponsored a day of free dental care, scheduled the next day at the offices of Guri S. Dhaliwal, DMD, in San Ramon. I was very pleased to learn of this opportunity, as I am in need of an extraction of a broken molar. The online announcement gave the instruction: registration at 7:00 a.m., service from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
I left my Millbrae residence for the 40-mile drive to San Ramon at about 5:30 that Saturday morning, arriving at Dr. Dhaliwal's offices just before 6:30 a.m., to find the registration area already crowded. I filled out the necessary paperwork and was told I would be the 20th patient of the day (they were going to ultimately accommodate at least 50). The volunteer staff handling the event was, I should note, very pleasant, professional, and easy to communicate with. By the time I was moved from the registration area to the dental office next door, it was 9:00 a.m. Not Too Bad, I thought; maybe they'll get to me in the next hour or so....
Well, I waited patiently, and with my customary good humor, until they finally called me in for an X-Ray, at noon. After the digital shot was taken, I was moved to a different dental chair, where one of Dr. Dhaliwal's colleauges brusquely took a cursory look at my molar, only to tell me, "Well, it needs to be extracted, all right, but I don't have the right tool for it here. It's in my own office, which is located nearby, if you'd like to schedule another appointment". This future appointment would not, unfortunately, be covered under the "Dentistry from the Heart" program, and therefore I would be charged for a regular office visit and extraction fee. I suddenly felt as numb as if he had injected me full of Novocaine! So, I asked him, I drove 40 miles in a sleep-deprived state and sat in two waiting rooms for five-and-a-half hours, only to be told you didn't bring the instrument for this extraction from your office?? All he could say was "Sorry...!"
The only thing extracted that day was cash from my wallet for gasoline & tolls for an 80-mile round trip, while my broken molar still sits, awaiting the service I was falsely promised!
I think the concept behind this program is a noble one, but my friend who called Dr.Dhaliwal's office was told by someone named Charles that this was, indeed, a marketing ploy to attract new patients, and she indicated that he showed absolutely NO concern about the ordeal I went through. Obviously, I cannot in good conscience recommend Dr. Dhaliwal's service to anyone, and in fact will warn away all who might be considering a professional relationship. I also will alert the sponsors of the "Dentistry from the Heart" program, Michael Finney's office, and the agencies which oversee the dental practitioners in California. My aforementioned friend is extremely active in social media, and has over 5,000 Facebook friends, so we will spread the word.... (BTW, I'm still wondering why the form I filled out asked for my Social Security #, when this was supposedly a free service -- a credit check, perhaps??) read more