WE WILL NEVER COME BACK. TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE. "We only take little kids like her in the morning." That's nearly the first thing Dr. Nadia Diab-Shamari said to me as I stood at my daughter's feet in the dentist's chair for our 3:30 PM appointment. She ignored my daughter, failing to even say hello. Instead she continued, "You need to come when we have the energy to deal with her and give her the attention she needs. Now, I don't have the time." When she and her staff had the time and energy?! What?! This is a pediatric dentist. My daughter is four years and 10 months old! She's practically five.
I was shocked. She hadn't even introduced herself. The implication was that my daughter had a total meltdown--that she had caused a problem, preventing the hygienist and dentist from cleaning and checking her teeth. What other explanation could there be? In fact, my daughter had not had a tantrum at all. On the contrary, she had been perfect in the dentist's chair! When the hygienist, Allie, came out to get my daughter in the waiting room, Allie remarked, "Wow, I didn't even think you were here yet, you were playing so quietly!"
Dr. Nadia Diab-Shamari took completely different tack. Instead of greeting my daughter and telling her what a great job she was doing, in questioning why she was there at all she signaled to my innocent daughter that she had done something wrong--she hadn't.
Dr. Nadia Diab-Shamari continued to repeat herself, indicating later that my daughter was far too young. "Look at her. She is too young to be here now. Luckily we had cancellations today." There were four empty chairs surrounding us. "She is far too young. Only four years old. The afternoon is only for children five and up. Be sure to schedule your next appointment in the morning."
My daughter spoke up: "I have school in the morning. I love going to school, so I am here in the afternoon. I'm starting kindergarten next year. If I come in the morning, I'll miss school."
"Maybe you should come on a day you don't have school," Dr. Nadia Diab-Shamari said to her.
I interrupted her: "She's actually turning five in January, so this conversation is moot. Wait, are you saying that we should go to another dentist if we can't come in the morning?" I asked.
Her reply says it all: "Yes, maybe."
Our next appointment wouldn't have been until after she was already five, yet the doctor didn't care that she had rudely lectured us for five minutes with only a cursory mention of anything teeth-related. If she had just taken the 10 seconds to read her actual birthday, maybe she wouldn't have made my daughter feel like she was a bad girl when she had done a great job at the dentist in the "too late" afternoon.
Dr. Nadia Diab-Shamari refused to apologize for her rude, insensitive, disrespectful bedside manner. This dentist made my daughter feel like she had failed or done something wrong. Truth be known: Dr. Nadia Diab-Shamari failed, not us. She should be nowhere near children with her attitude. This is a pediatric dentist. All dentists who work there should embrace their stated mission to be "caring, nurturing, and respectful" no matter a child's appointment time. read more