I have been a patient of Dr. Wong's for about 20 years and have noticed a general change in patient care since becoming affiliated with 123Dentist.com. I recently contacted this office for a nightguard replacement that lasted about six months before breaking. The lab agreed to replace it using the existing scans even though it was just out of warranty, but I was not given a time estimate for the replacement.
Two and a half weeks later, I contacted the office and was told it would take another week.
Two days later, I was in the office for a CT scan in preparation for implant surgery and was given the nightguard that was supposed to take another week.
Four days later, I received a message from the office telling me my nightguard was ready for pickup. In subsequent conversations with the office, I have been told that they did not speak to the dentist and did not know I had picked up my nightguard, that the new nightguard was actually a repair of pieces of the old one (which is impossible because I still have it and was told not to return it), and that they don't know whether I was given someone else's nightguard or whether the lab made two.
In addition to the above, when the hygienist was doing the CT scan mentioned above, my hair got caught in the machine, and it was pulling so hard that it was very painful. I told the hygienist to stop the machine, and she responded that she could not - once it starts, they cannot turn it off. In my searches online since that visit, I have learned that every dental CT scanner has an emergency shutoff and is required by law for patient safety and to guard against radiation leaks. The only possible explanation is that the hygienist did not know how to operate that function on the machine. I was charged $200 for the scan and had to make two phone calls requesting a copy before being told that a CD had been burned and I could pick it up.
After this office visit, I received an email and a text message asking me for my feedback, and I sent the above information in response. To date, I am still waiting for a reply. In my conversation with the office, I received explanations, including "Our corporate office looks at those once a week," "My manager has been away," and variations on that theme. Given the slow response to patient concerns and the speed at which I was asked to pay for the painful CT scan, I feel more like a paycheck than a patient. read more
