Hello, this is Dr Edwards! I'm writing to respond to the previous review. There are always two sides to the story and you have to look at it from both views to be fair. First, I appreciate that the review stated that the surgery was as good as can be expected for what they were visiting me for. Surgery is a scary situation and everyone should view it as successful as long as the patient comes out better for having gone through it. With that being said lets address the other complaint. As you can easily find out you can go to millions of cheap doctors and hope that they do the best job that they can. But when you have to have surgery do you want cheap or do you want quality? Not that everyone who cost less isn't qualified, but you have to ask what corners do they have to cut in order to turn a profit. We don't cut corners and we aren't cheap. If you go to any surgeon you will find that every specialist may have a certain x-ray or diagnostic test that is required to perform their job in a safe and efficient manner. Just because you may not know what a test or x-ray shows, you should at least hope that it is being done for a good reason. Oral Surgeons use a Panoramic film or CT so they can trace the nerve which lies in close proximity and is sometimes intimate with the lower wisdom teeth. So when I remove a tooth and I tell the patient that they could loose the feeling on their lower lip and chin for the rest of their life, no of the patients argue about having that x-ray to make sure the wisdom teeth or any tooth for that matter, one, requires extraction, and two, can be done in a safe manner. If you were sent to have your arm removed or something as simple as eye surgery, the previous review suggest that you would walk into the surgeon's office, require no other test no talking with the surgeon and just sit and let them do what they want. Let's be honest, who in their correct state of mind would have surgery without a consultation to go over the possible complications and expectations. As a surgeon I feel the patients time is important but so is mine. I don't allow other doctors to treatment plan my patients without my input. Once you are in my office having a procedure, your life, your health and your happiness is solely my responsibility and not that of the referring doctor. As for the fees, if you go and have your car repaired, each item repaired or replaced has a fee. So Am I to believe that people put more importance on their car than their bodies. I am not able to predict everything over the phone, so when I see a consultation and we discuss what the patient wants and what I could do, then and only then could I possibly give you an idea of what things could cost. You always have the option of saying no. You can always have a denture or bridge, but if you want to have implants to replace missing teeth, they are expensive anywhere you go. So I can't apologize for what the prices are, they go with the market for implants. We try to give the patient as much info as possible before they come, while they are in the office and more for when they leave but if their concern is only with cost, there's no way for them to ever have a successful outcome. Again, I don't force any surgery on anyone, that's not my job, however, when you come I promise to treat you with the respect and skills I expect others to give my family. We don't try to haggle with our prices, they are what they are, but if you ask we will gladly give you the price of anything and everything that we may have to do or that you may want done, prior to you having or even scheduling to have the surgery performed. I hope that this at least gives you our side of this story. It really isn't always about money, but it is a business and I would have to close the doors if I stopped paying rent. Finally, for all others who require surgery of any kind, ask yourself, if you have to put your life and/or health in someone's hand, what is the most important factor that determines who you would let make an incision on your body? I'm pretty sure cost is not close to being the most important factor. Thank you for listening.
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