worst dentist in the history of dentists.

[Deleted]

I enrolled in a DMO plan through school. I chose a dentist based on location (I know - my fault!) and waited 1.5 months to get on their roster. I then waited another 2 months to get an appointment.

I went in for my first appointment a few weeks ago. They did the full 16 x-rays and the dentist decided I need an inlay - something about a previous filling falling out? My insurance covers all fillings 100% but of course covers nothing for the inlay. I asked her if we could just put a regular filling there and she said no. I still haven't scheduled that procedure.

I went in today to get my cleaning (I get 2 free per year with full fluoride tx). the girl pokes around then tells me she recommends fluoride 2x a year. yeah, I know that. so give it to me. she then tells me that she thinks I should use this nicer fluoride tx because it stays on your teeth for 4-6 hours instead of a few minutes. I told her no thanks and asked for the regular stuff. she then tells me that they don't carry the regular fluoride. YOU KNOW, THE STUFF MY INSURANCE COVERS? I really needed my teeth cleaned (I haven't had insurance or money for dental care since I was a kid) so I just paid the $35 for her stupid treatment.

THEN I had my consult with the oral surgeon. he was actually very friendly, but he couldn't see the root of my one tooth based on the SIXTEEN X-RAYS they did a few weeks ago. he explained that I needed a panoramic xray. the lady came in and asked me to sign for it because it costs $70. I asked why my insurance wasn't covering it, and she said it's because I already had x-rays done. yeah, fucking dummy, you did them. they could have just done bitewings and the panoramic FOR FREE. they also knew I needed my wisdom teeth out when we did the x-rays last month because I was complaining about pain from them.

finally all but one of the assistants are just rude. the nice one was actually trying to find me a referral to an oral surgeon when I noticed another patient's file all out in the open on her desk - it was an itemized bill of every procedure she had done and I saw both her first and last name. hello, HIPPA violation.

so obviously I don't want to go back to this place. they are the devil of devils.

mostly I wanted to vent, but I also want to know what you all would do in this situation. also if I call can I force them to give me all those fancy xrays I paid for so I can take them to another dentist?

per my DMO I'm pretty sure I can switch dentists but I'll have to wait a few months and I supposedly have that outstanding cavity right now...

If it mattes, their yelp page is full of horrendous reviews like mine. what's worse is that the dentist himself responds to reviewers and basically calls them liars. unfortunately dummy tacom didn't think to check yelp before picking her dentist.

thanks. you deserve a drink.

[rosebudred]

I'm so sorry you are dealing with this

I don't know for sure, but I do believe you should be entitled to a copy of your X-rays (they are your medical records after all).

[diamondsnpearls22]

I hate reading this, because it gives the good dentists bad reps.

It sounds like the office doesn't care about the patients and are just trying to make money. I would NOT get the inlay done, most likely a filling can be done.

Take your x-rays (yes you most definitely can get them!) and go to another dentist.

Sorry you had a bad experience..boo!

[Deleted]

Thank you ladies. Should I ask for a copy of my whole file or just the X-rays?

[Roc A Bee]

I'm sp sorry. I love my dentist, and the last time I was there I heard other patients' horror stories of going to different dentists Nd being told they have cavities they don't really have.

My insurance covers up to 3k a year, but only 200 has been spent this year because my dentist doesn't try to fix problems that aren't there.

Good luck. Hope you find someone you can trust.

[CloudBee]

Dec 6, 2012 19:01:22 GMT -5 diamondsnpearls22 said:

I hate reading this, because it gives the good dentists bad reps.

No it doesn't. It gives this bad dental practice a bad rep.

[CloudBee]

Dec 6, 2012 19:09:51 GMT -5 tacom said:

Thank you ladies. Should I ask for a copy of my whole file or just the X-rays?

Entire patient file - and know that they may ask you to pay for copies of each page and for the x-ray prints. That's pretty common.

[diamondsnpearls22]

Dec 6, 2012 19:09:51 GMT -5 tacom said:

Thank you ladies. Should I ask for a copy of my whole file or just the X-rays?

You really only need the x-rays, the new dentist will do their own exam and determine what to do from there.

[Deleted]

Thanks!

[Deleted]

That sounds awful.

I don't understand why he or anyone else would argue with someone on Yelp. It just makes places like this look even worse.

[ellipses84]

I went to a place like that and avoided the upcharges for the most part, but I was super annoyed that they would want to schedule every little thing as a separate visit. They said I had great insurance and it seemed like they were trying to get the most money from it possible. After DH had a bad experience and I had the worst cleaning of my life, we switched dentists. It's the same insurance and we love our new dentist. The only Yelp review I have ever written was a bad review for that dental office, while I was searching for our new one.

I can't answer your questions but I wish you luck and I'm sure you will find a way better dentist!

[LoveTrains]

Yes, you should be able to get copies of the x-rays.

[phunluvin82]

That sucks. Get your x-rays and take them somewhere else!

[lys]

Some of these issues are insurance, not dentist issues. (not all of them, however)
You will have to pay for the copies of the x-rays. The Dentist is required to keep them as part of your dental record for a period of years.

[weardogbride]

My husband is a DDS and I work in his office. I would highly advise you to upgrade to a PPO plan if at all possible. Usually, only corporate run dental chains accept DMO plans and there is a revolving door of dentists so you will likely never see the same one. The chains know how to work the DMO system and will up charge you for a lot of things that are not covered on your plan.

However, a panoramic X-ray is standard before doing a wisdom teeth extraction so it probably was necessary. They are expensive, but I would be surprised if any oral surgeon would operate without one.

My advise would be to change plans immediately and find a privately owned office!

[weardogbride]

Oh also, I would look for a dentist that has an intra oral camera and uses it! My DH will take pictures of any problem areas and show you on a TV mounted above the chair so you can see what is actually going on. For the most part, decay and problems can be seen and it's nice to know they are treating problems that are actually there.

[Deleted]

Wow they sound horrible. I figure most people already hate going to the dentist, why are they intentionally making things worse by treating their patients like cash cows? Frankly, I think they sound like idiots.

Question re insurance (and I don't mean to hijack your thread - just a quick question since I've never had dental insurance before). At my new job, we were told we could pick either the HMO or the PPO. I picked the PPO but I already have a dentist that I love and want to continue going to (I have dental challenges from years of horrible care). I've heard that any dental practice will accept any PPO - is this true? Or will a private one accept any PPO, or do they have to be on the provider list? Is there an additional sum if they're not on the provider list, or do I have to pay in full out of pocket? Answer me like I'm a child, please - like I said, I know nothing.

[ellipses84]

Dec 8, 2012 9:57:16 GMT -5 @joesther said:

Wow they sound horrible. I figure most people already hate going to the dentist, why are they intentionally making things worse by treating their patients like cash cows? Frankly, I think they sound like idiots.

Question re insurance (and I don't mean to hijack your thread - just a quick question since I've never had dental insurance before). At my new job, we were told we could pick either the HMO or the PPO. I picked the PPO but I already have a dentist that I love and want to continue going to (I have dental challenges from years of horrible care). I've heard that any dental practice will accept any PPO - is this true? Or will a private one accept any PPO, or do they have to be on the provider list? Is there an additional sum if they're not on the provider list, or do I have to pay in full out of pocket? Answer me like I'm a child, please - like I said, I know nothing.

You should call your specific dentist and ask which one they will take. In my experience with Dental HMOs you still have a list of offices you can go to. We have an HMO and we go to a practice with a husband/wife team and one dental assistant and they are great. The last place we went to was a huge clinic. I think with PPO the Dentist still has to accept your insurance, so you should check with them.

[Deleted]

Thanks everyone. They're even worse than I thought, lol.

I looked up the oral surgeon they referred me to and he has 1.5 stars on Yelp. Hellllll no. So I found someone else but I was instructed to get a referral addressed to the new surgeon. When I called my dentist the receptionist told me I was wrong and I didn't need that. I told her I was just following the directions given to me. She told me to cross out the old surgeon's name and write in the new one - I said I'd prefer not to take chances with my insurance not covering the $2k procedure because I altered a document. She said to bring it in and she would alter it. Finally after rounds of begging she agreed to write a new referral. I asked for an email address so I could send the surgeons's info and she just said no. Wtf?

I'm so glad I'm done with them once I go pick up that referral!

PP, I can't switch plans. It's either the DMO or no dental insurance - I am a grad student and this was all that was offered to me.

[weardogbride]

Even if a DDS is fee for service only, they will usually work with your insurance. They will bill you the entire portion and then file the claim for you. Then you will get an insurance refund check for whatever the insurance covers.

[Deleted]

Dec 8, 2012 11:07:48 GMT -5 ellipses84 said:

Dec 8, 2012 9:57:16 GMT -5 @joesther said:

Wow they sound horrible. I figure most people already hate going to the dentist, why are they intentionally making things worse by treating their patients like cash cows? Frankly, I think they sound like idiots.

Question re insurance (and I don't mean to hijack your thread - just a quick question since I've never had dental insurance before). At my new job, we were told we could pick either the HMO or the PPO. I picked the PPO but I already have a dentist that I love and want to continue going to (I have dental challenges from years of horrible care). I've heard that any dental practice will accept any PPO - is this true? Or will a private one accept any PPO, or do they have to be on the provider list? Is there an additional sum if they're not on the provider list, or do I have to pay in full out of pocket? Answer me like I'm a child, please - like I said, I know nothing.

You should call your specific dentist and ask which one they will take. In my experience with Dental HMOs you still have a list of offices you can go to. We have an HMO and we go to a practice with a husband/wife team and one dental assistant and they are great. The last place we went to was a huge clinic. I think with PPO the Dentist still has to accept your insurance, so you should check with them.

Thanks. I already actually picked the PPO and my dentist's office said they'll take any PPO but they cannot promise how much coverage it'll give me until they have the name/type of plan. It's okay - any insurance is better than none, I have to figure. I don't want to change dentists, regardless. It took me forever to find this one, she's beyond amazing and I can't fathom going anywhere else.

[holly116]

Good luck moving forward. There are definitely some sketchy dentists out there.

When I was freshly out of college, at my first job with dental insurance, and 1200 miles from my childhood dentist, I did the same thing as you and picked one of those chain dentists for a regular cleaning. I had all inclusive coverage, but somehow this new dentist found three cavities and said I needed some sort of deep extensive cleaning. I had never even had a cavity before in my life.

Now, I wasn't the best about going to the dentist regularly in college, was a smoker at the time and certainly fell asleep/passed out more times than I'd like to admit after drinking too much and not brushing my teeth in the years prior. I feel like they totally played me. I agreed to everything and had a bill for $500 over what my insurance would pay. Six months later, I asked for recommendations from a coworker and found an awesome new dentist. Apparently the "cavities" the other dentist found were minuscule and my new dentist said there was no way he would have gone to such extremes. He would have watched them for at least another six months. Totally sucked. My MIL works for a dentist and says this sort of thing happens more than anyone would ever believe.