I wanted the other dentist, who is the top rated in dentist in the area. However, I was told that I could only become a patient of Dr. Du, who was taking over the practice. Before moving to the area, my last dentist retired and left his practice to a much younger colleague. She was fantastic and was very well-versed in all the latest practices. So, I didn't mind being passed off to a younger dentist. However, my concerns grew over time...
-They used computers at each chair to play music during your visit. While I appreciate this would likely be relaxing, I was asked to state a musical genre I wanted played during my visit. I honestly didn't have an answer to that question, but I was repeatedly asked to make a selection until I just said "um, ok, leave this on." It was unnecessarily awkward.
-I was told every visit that I'm not flossing enough, but I floss twice a day. I started flossing more often to appease my dentist, but then my gums started receding and causing pain. Finally, my dentist declared that had porous teeth and this could not be prevented.
-A hygienist in the office told me that I could get rid of dark stains in between my teeth by holding whitening mouth wash in my mouth for several minutes and then flossing. At this point, they had panicked me enough to try it (even though I don't have particularly significant staining). This method created open, painful sores on my gums. I should have known better - that doesn't sound like legitimate dental advice.
-This dentist doesn't dress particularly professionally. He is prone to wearing Timberland boots and skinny khakis with heavy stitching instead of real dress pants. He looks like a high school kid whose parents forced him to dress up for church. He already looks very young, so the "I'm going to the mall after this look" isn't helping.
-This dentist asked me how my kids are. I'm single, and I have no kids. I'm not sure if he doesn't know who I am or if he just assumes that everyone who doesn't look as young as him must have kids by now? I would feel like a jerk if I called him out on this during the visits, so I actually said my non-existent kids were ok just to save us both the discomfort.
-One of the reasons I'd kept this dentist was the convenient weekend hours. I work in NE DC and live in Alexandria. My work is very busy. My life is just easier when I can keep appointments on the weekend. However, he suddenly stopped keeping weekend hours with no real explanation of whether or not they would continue at some point. Whenever I scheduled, I would get some vague "the doctor has been having trouble doing weekends lately..." kind of response. So, I started having to take time off from work for cleanings every six months. I guess that's not super often, so I still hung in there.
Ok, all of that was a little weird and made me never quite comfortable with this dentist. I'd thought about looking for a new one, but I'd been too busy. So, I kept going. Then, this happened...
I was scheduled for a filling last Monday. I had to use some of my paid time off. This is also an extremely busy time at work, so taking off was difficult, and I'd end up having to work harder for the next couple weeks...but I needed a filling and there were no more weekend hours. On the day of the appointment, I left work early, walked 10 minutes, rode the train for 20 minutes, waited 30 minutes for a bus, rode the bus for several minutes, and drove 15 minutes. I arrived to find a hand written note on the door that the office had lost power, and they would call to reschedule. I tried calling the office, and it just rang forever. There had been a major accident in the immediate area. Instead of a 10-15 drive home - I was in my car for over an hour. Anyway, I was also upset that there was no backup plan for contacting me.
They called me at exactly 7:30am the next day. I guess this shows them being on top of this, but I honestly think that is a rudely early time to call anyone. I couldn't answer because I was getting ready for work. I called them back at 8:15am. I asked why there was no back up plan to contact patients. The person I spoke with definitely took a tone with me and said "well, there will be one now." When I said that no one had apologized, I received tense silence. I'm not sure if she didn't know what the business should apologize for or was horrified that I would ask for such a courtesy. When she collected herself, she "I apologize if..." but it meant very little to me after I had to ask for it and while she used a tone like I was being scolded. She concluded her speech with "I can have you speak to the dentist because I am only rescheduling your appointment." I told her there was no need for either because I was never coming back.
Maybe, he is a great dentist. I wouldn't know because he only ever gave me a cleaning and stood me up for my filling. But I don't think he is ready to lead a small business. However, if you are reading this...my kids are fine... read more