I was deeply disappointed by my experience at Premier Smiles. After being a patient of Dr. Choi for years, I sent him a picture of a tooth that I thought looked off because of a visible discolored chip. He didn't respond to my first email, and after I sent a follow-up, they responded that it should be fine to wait until my regular appointment that was ~5 weeks away (an earlier appointment was not needed). Shortly after this, however, the tooth started causing discomfort, would make loud cracking sounds at night, and a piece of it would fracture off. Later on, I would realize that the picture I had sent to Premier Smiles showed large clear cracks that, in my mind, constituted a dental emergency that should have been brought to my attention (and ideally addressed promptly).
It is particularly disappointing that the practice didn't alert me to the tooth's worsened condition because it had caused problems in the past and my understanding had been that Dr. Choi and I would monitor it to ensure that it is promptly treated if it got worse. Admittedly, Dr. Choi had recommended a filling on the tooth earlier, but I was hesitant because the tooth had already undergone several recent fillings.
Eventually I would learn (only after asking a direct question about it) that Dr. Choi had largely left the Premier Smiles practice nearly a year prior [August 2023], and was working there only a few days each month. That would seem to explain why he blew me off even though my tooth was in a severely weakened state and rapidly deteriorating. Their entire practice lied to me by omission for about 11 months--there is absolutely no way I would have continued going to Dr. Choi if I had known he had largely left for another practice [PE-backed Clear Choice, at which he wouldn't see Premier Smiles patients and where they only do major implant/prosthesis procedures based on what I was told].
I think Nhi the office manager should be absolutely ashamed of herself for not telling me over countless scheduling calls that he would only be working at Premier Smiles a few days each month in the future. It was also humiliating to hear her suggest that I specifically see Dr. Choi for "continuity of care" even though it would mean waiting several weeks or months as my tooth would presumably continue to crack. I asked if they had ever considered telling me that he had mostly left the practice, and the response was that they told me Dr. Choi had "limited availability." It seems pretty evident to me that they deliberately deceived me because a reference to limited availability in the context of me trying to schedule an appointment in a given month or two just made it sound like Dr. Choi was running a busy practice at Premier Smiles.
When I finally scheduled an appointment with Dr. Sunnie for the filling after many sleepless nights and dealing with the horrific sound of my tooth cracking, she arrived late, and after I asked a few questions and they did some x-rays, I was told I would have to reschedule. By the time Dr. Sunnie did a filling on the tooth about a month after I had originally reached out about the issue, the tooth seemed to have irreparably deteriorated much more than it would have if I had received the early diagnosis that I believe I deserved. I got the impression that Dr. Sunnie was being disingenuous when she said she thought a loud crack I heard was from my nightguard and not the problem tooth. When I asked via email for clarification on why she thought the sound originated from the nightguard, the practice didn't respond.
I wouldn't be surprised if they find it humorous that they tricked me into remaining a patient far longer than I should have, and made so much money off me, but I don't find it funny at all, and indeed expect to be paying the price for it for a very long time. The whole experience was particularly painful because I had even trusted them enough to refer a close family member to Dr. Choi for major dental work. I believe this was a deeply unsettling and clear example of dentists putting their own agenda and profit well ahead of the integrity, transparency, and focus on patient wellbeing that I expected.
They also wouldn't send my full set of dental records (if they ever did) for well over a year. They sent some files when I initially requested them, but only sent more after I sent an image from my phone showing I knew they had (or should have had) at least one image that hadn't been provided, as well as sections of Virginia law and federal law/HIPAA which I believe indicated that they were required to provide me with the files.
I am aware of an account that negative Premier Smiles reviews are unfairly taken down, so I hope to post my experience in multiple places. read more