I unfortunately cannot recommend York Endodontics based on my experience with their front office at the 600 N Highland Ave location.
My husband previously had a great experience here, which is exactly why I chose this practice for my own root canal. I gave the office the benefit of the doubt repeatedly because mistakes happen. Unfortunately, there were eventually too many mistakes to overlook.
There were multiple errors in my information, including my address, city and email. There were problems verifying insurance that I had previously been told was verified. There was confusion about whether they had my X-rays and referral, despite my previously being told that the doctor had reviewed my X-rays. There were conflicting appointment times, and most concerning to me, the wrong tooth was documented.
Still, I tried to work with them.
What finally pushed me over the edge was arriving after waiting months in dental pain and being told that I was there only for an evaluation, when that was not what had been communicated to me.
During my previous phone conversations, evaluation and root canal treatment during the same visit had specifically been discussed. My understanding was that I was coming for an evaluation with the expectation of proceeding with the root canal during that same visit if the doctor confirmed it was appropriate.
When I explained this, I was told that they "don't do that," which made me feel as though I was being accused of making up or misunderstanding the conversation rather than anyone considering that there may have been yet another communication error within their office.
What makes that especially frustrating is that York Endodontics' own website states, "Occasionally, treatment can be done the same day as the consultation." Their website further explains that certain complex cases require a second appointment. So what I described being told over the phone is something their own published information specifically says can happen.
At another point, I was dismissively told that this had been "ongoing since December." Ongoing what, exactly? My contact with the practice in December involved a different tooth and different circumstances. The only things that have actually been ongoing are my tooth pain and, unfortunately, repeated administrative problems with this office.
What bothered me most wasn't simply that mistakes happened. It was the complete lack of accountability when I tried to address them.
Audrey, the administrative assistant, was the primary person I dealt with during this situation. Unfortunately, I found her communication rude, defensive, dismissive and unnecessarily argumentative. Instead of acknowledging that there were clearly multiple discrepancies and trying to determine what had gone wrong, I felt that nearly everything I raised was met with another contradiction or explanation for why somehow the office wasn't responsible.
Emily, a dental assistant, was also present for part of the interaction. I want to be fair that she was not the primary person responsible for my experience, but I was disappointed that as the situation continued and I repeatedly requested to speak with an endodontist, no one helped facilitate getting my concerns in front of a doctor.
I specifically asked to speak directly with an endodontist because I did not want to assume that my experience with the front office represented the doctors or their clinical care. My husband's clinical experience here had been excellent. I wanted a doctor to hear what happened, review the situation personally, and have an opportunity to resolve it.
I was not permitted to speak with an endodontist. Instead, I was ultimately told I could simply go somewhere else.
That is probably the most disappointing part of this entire experience.
An apology and a sincere effort to straighten everything out would have gone a long way. I wasn't expecting perfection. I was expecting basic accountability and customer service: "There are clearly several discrepancies here. Let us figure out what happened."
One typo is a mistake. One misunderstanding happens. But when there are errors involving contact information, insurance verification, X-rays/referrals, appointment information, communication and even the tooth documented for treatment, there comes a point where a patient should reasonably expect the practice to stop, investigate what happened and take responsibility.
Instead, after waiting months in pain, I drove from Carlisle to York and back without treatment and without ever being given the opportunity to speak with an endodontist.
The mistakes were concerning. The way they were handled--and the refusal to acknowledge or meaningfully address them--is what ultimately made this experience unacceptable. read more
