According to the dentists, most people really need a dentist at some point in their life, especially if they have never gone to one, or not gone regularly. There will come a time when that aching tooth simply won’t respond to pain-killers and you are losing sleep over it, so you finally take the plunge to see a dentist. So how do you choose? Here are 5 ways to make your search a bit easier.
- Ask family or friends – those who have a nice smile – who they recommend and why.
- Go online and ask Google. Pay close attention to the websites to see what testimonials are there, what the pricing is and whether they allow you to pay it off. Find out how many people work there. A clinic usually employs several dentists while a practice may only have one or two.
- See if there are any customer reviews on places such as Facebook.
- Ring them to find out what their customer service is like. If the receptionist is cranky give them a miss. It’s bad enough having a tooth out without having to put up with people who can’t treat you with respect.
- Go for a consultation to see for yourself in person. Most dentists are caring people who want to help you and create a good impression. The success of their practice depends on it.
- That said, don’t be pressured into having work done that you don’t want or can’t afford. If you have any doubts about what is said, get a second opinion.
If you live in a city with a university that teaches dentistry and you want a second opinion, phone the uni and ask if they take patients. They are learning their trade, not attempting to make money, so they are not likely to tell you that work is needed if it’s not.
Don’t worry about having untrained or barely trained people practicing on you. No students are allowed to practice on live patients until they are into their third year of training and they are always overseen by their professors. This can be a good way to get work done without it costing a whole lot, because they don’t charge as much as a dentist who has to cover all his costs.
In any case, you don’t even have to let them do any work, but just look at what work needs doing and advise you. This is a good way to find out for sure if the dentist down the street was right in what he said needed doing. Once you’ve found a dentist that you trust and get on well with, it’s a good idea to keep going back to them and get everything they advise done. You’ll be much healthier and not have to have teeth out if you do.