How Do You Select A Dentist?

Recently I found myself in a position where I needed to find another dentist.  I pretty much have spent my entire adult life with the same dentist so I wasn’t sure what was even out there.  Who knew there was so much to consider.  Lo and behold he was retiring – and of course I didn’t act proactively, I pretty much waited til he was gone and I had a crisis to search for one.

My previous dentist was always very comfortable and I never had any issues – just to be clear on that.  But my kids went to a pediatric dentist so one of the things I did know is that technology had advanced and Xrays had the ability to catch cavities so much earlier nowadays through advanced technology.  My dentist was still on the older technology – didn’t bother me but since I had to search for a new one anyway I may as well search for one with the best technology.

First, when he retired he sent everyone’s records to another dentist for our dental care.  I never even looked into that dentist because for me location was important.  Most of my dental care needs to be done near my work and the successor dentist was farther from my work.  Unless I had no choice, I needed to concentrate my search near my office.

Logically, I asked everyone I work with who they went to and of course if they were happy and how long they have gone to the person.  That narrowed my search down alot because not everyone had a dentist near the office so it was not relevant to know if they were happy or not.

Next I asked more specific questions such as:

• How far in advance do you need to schedule a cleaning?
• If you have to cancel a cleaning, how long do you need to wait to get rescheduled?
• If you have a crisis is there an emergency number and emergency coverage?
• If you have a situation such as a severe toothache, can you get an appointment in a timely manner?
• Are they open 5 days per week?
• Do they have early hours and/or late hours for people who work during the day?

That led me very clearly to a Scottsdale dentist in the area I was searching.  I then scheduled a time to come in and see the facility and the staff at work.  One of the things that totally impressed me is that every single dentist chair has a tv right in front of where the patient sits – and they control the remote.  My previous dentist merely had a picture on the ceiling that you had the luxury of staring at for 20 minutes to 2 hours.

In the end, I opted to go with this dentist and his name is Dr. Greene.  I have been very happy with this choice.  In fact, I have struggled with my childrens’ pediatric dentist for years.  In fact I dreaded calling them; I dreaded taking the kids there etc… Once I found this awesome dentist I immediately also moved my children and now we are all so much more happy.

Another great dentist I found is karl jobst dds grove ok – where do you live?  What are your priorities for selecting a dentist?