Dentists receive very good training globally. Even after that, the legislator obliges them to regularly train themselves professionally. You can therefore be sure that dentists generally practice their profession at a high level of expertise. But What makes a dental practice successful? There are quite a number of characteristics that any patient can check. Also, make sure of choosing the right dentist for the best results. Here is our checklist.
What makes a dental practice successful?
Scheduling
When making an appointment, the times that are convenient for you should be taken into account. There are often additional opening times for working people outside of normal working hours. Long waiting times are unusual in a well-organized practice. Of course, it can happen that emergencies delay the planned daily routine of the practice. If it is foreseeable that a patient will have to wait longer than half an hour despite an appointment, many practices will contact you by phone in good time.
Do you ever forget a check-up appointment? Then just ask in your practice whether they offer a so-called recall system. If so, you will receive an automatic notification if a follow-up appointment should be arranged again. So you won’t miss an entry in your bonus booklet.
Practice team
A good practice team is friendly, creates a pleasant atmosphere, and helps you feel that you are in good hands in the practice. Above all, however, the employees should take time for you if, for example, you have questions about billing formalities or oral hygiene. However, the dentist is responsible for purely medical information.
Discretion
Whether in the waiting room or in the treatment room – not all conversations between you and the dentist or practice team should be overheard by the other patients. Both the dentist and the practice team, therefore, pay attention to discretion in good practice.
Hygiene
Just like their practice team at the treatment chair, dentists wear face masks and gloves. Clean instruments and a new, clean beaker by the water basin are a matter of course anyway.
Professional tooth cleaning
The removal of tartar is far from sufficient for optimal prevention of dental diseases – both tooth decay and periodontitis. Every good practice, therefore, offers professional teeth cleaning. This removes plaque above and below the gum line, removes discoloration, and polishes the tooth surfaces.
Anxiety patients
Some patients feel uncomfortable days before going to the dentist. As a rule, your own bad experiences or those of friends are to blame. Talk to your dentist about your concerns and why you have them. A good dentist will respond to this and try to make the examination more comfortable for you with special treatment methods or, in the best case, even to relieve you of fear.
Young patients
Children still cannot understand how important regular dental visits are to them. Sitting still for long periods is also difficult for most. Some dentists have specialized in the needs of children and created a practice only for small patients. But good “general dentists” also adapt to the special target group and are patient when their little patients need more attention than most of the big ones.
Thorough investigation
If you regularly visit a dentist twice a year for check-ups, the condition of your teeth will be examined and documented. The dentist not only carefully checks teeth and gums in order to detect tooth decay or periodontal diseases at an early stage, she also checks the condition of the oral mucosa and tongue. This is how she knows whether the oral cavity is healthy.
Comprehensive advice
A detailed consultation takes place before every major treatment because there are often different therapy options, such as dentures. A good dentist makes sure that you are on an equal footing with him during the conversation. Some dentists also have a meeting area in the treatment room. The dentist will explain the advantages and disadvantages of the respective type of treatment to you in understandable language, will take the necessary time if you have any questions, and will make the decision together with you. Costs are also not a taboo subject. They must be comprehensible and determined as precisely as possible before the treatment. The dentist will advise you that additional measures may be necessary for the course of the treatment, which makes the treatment more expensive to a limited extent. Before you start, you will be given enough time to calmly consider the type of treatment.
Rework
Even with a conscientious dentist, problems can arise after the treatment. If you are ever not satisfied, say so. The dentist checks whether there are any defects and fixes them free of charge. They always try to find a solution that you are happy with.
