My daughter is a dentist in Tampa, but she lives 5 hours away, so I see Dr. Smith locally instead.
Yestreday I sent Dr. Smith the following email:
"I visited my daughter last week and she did deep-cleaning and extracted 2 molars. So, I'd like to postpone my cleaning scheduled at 4pm on 3/11 by 4 months. Would you reschedule it and let me know? I prefer 4pm on Tue/Wed/Thu.By the way, while she was cleaning my teeth, she told me that there were some scratches on my implant teeth and there was some black debris on my teeth. She asked me to remind my hygienist (I don't remember her name) on my next visit to use the implant cleaning scaler instead of the regular one on my implant teeth.Thank you and looking forward to hearing about the new schedule."
To my surprise, Dr. Smith replied:
"Thank you for choosing our office for your dental needs. Unfortunately, we do not believe our office is a good fit for your dental needs. We feel that it is in your best interests to continue care with your daughter in Tampa in order to facilitate consistent treatment and management of your implants, periodontal disease and restorative care. We regret any inconvenience this may cause and will forward your x-rays to the provider of your choice.Our office will be available for emergency treatment only for the next 30 days. Please contact your insurance provider for a list of in-network providers. Please be advised that all future appointments with our office have been cancelled at this time."
I never dreamed he would dismiss me as a patient. What troubled me even more was that he made no mention of the scratches found on my implant teeth -- damage that may well have occurred in his office. I felt he owed me at least an acknowledgment, if not an apology.So I went to his office in person. I told the receptionist, "I'd like to talk to Dr. Smith." She said, "He is with a patient," so I said, "I will wait." A minute later, she came back and told me, "He doesn't want to see you." Frustrated, I called out, "Dr. Smith!" loudly enough for him to hear. He emerged from the treatment room and stood in the corridor; I was in the lobby, but we had a clear line of sight to each other. Without hesitation, he repeated the same message from his email. I said, "At least you should have apologized about the scratches." He said, "We didn't make those scratches. You smoke, you drink coffee -- it is you who made the scratches." I said, "How can I make scratches on my own teeth?" He turned around without another word and went back to the treatment room.Several people were present throughout this exchange: the receptionist, a nurse, and patients both in the treatment room and in the lobby. read more
