When it comes to choosing your dentist, you must consider a number of factors. First you need to decide whether you are looking for ongoing care with a general dentist, or want routine dental check-ups and maintenance, or are seeking a dental specialist for some specific treatment – like a cosmetic dentist or a restorative dentist. After deciding on your specific needs, you must prepare a checklist of a handful of factors before selecting the right dentist for your smile. This blog explores 8 common factors you should check before deciding on your dentist.
1. Training and expertise of the dentist
While choosing a dentist, you should first run a thorough research on their training, skills, expertise, and experience on field – particularly in case of any specialist treatments you might need. All dentists are not qualified or equipped to deal with the complete range of restorative or cosmetic dental treatments. Some dentists might only be able to offer primary dental care services, and further refer to specialists for more complex cases.
Although these specialist referrals guarantee expert care, they can also be less convenient when it comes to location, scheduling appointments, or continuity of care. This is because it is necessary to properly investigate about the dentist’s expertise and experience in the specific type of dental treatment you need to avoid unexpected faults in your treatment plan. This ensures you receive the right dental care from the very beginning. At our clinic, Dr Yasha Shirazi, one of the leading dentists of South Kensington, is highly skilled and experienced to handle different types of dental health problems.
2. Availability of treatments
Not all practices or dentists provide the same range of services, if you seeking a specific dental treatment or a particular brand of dental product, you must inquire first if it is available in the dental practice you are seeing.
For instance, you might have come across several advertisements of Invisalign and are interested to get that treatment for a straighter smile. Although the dentist will offer you other solutions of invisible braces apart from Invisalign which have similar quality and function, you might not be convinced in getting them. This is why it is necessary to check first if the dental practice or the dentist you are choosing is able to offer you your preferred solution.
3. Referrals
If you are seeing a general dentist, he/she might refer you to a specialist for a more complex restorative or cosmetic procedure. If you are not concerned with being referred to a different provider, you must look into the way this referral process works. You should have an idea of what type of cases the dentist usually refers, how the communication is done between providers, and if the process alters the overall costs and timeline of your treatment. Being properly informed of these details from first can give you a more prepared and comfortable experience during the consultation, promoting continuity of care even if your treatment is done across more than one dental practice.
4. Emergency care
Dental emergencies may come up at unexpected times – damaged restorations or dental trauma may strike without pre-warning. This is why it is crucial to understand how the dentist or dental practice you choose deals with emergency situations. There are certain practices which provide flexible appointments during weekends or post working hours to address dental emergencies promptly, while there are other practices as well which have restrictive scheduling.
So it will be better to inquire beforehand about the availability of appointments during weekends, evenings or on holidays in those clinics; and what treatments they have in place for emergencies. This ensures you get prompt relief in times of dental crises and lowers stress. Being aware of your dentist’s emergency response policy allows you to remain prepared and handle emergencies confidently.
5. Integration of dental technologies
You must also investigate thoroughly if your chosen dentist or dental practice invests sufficiently in dental technologies to enhance patient experiences and the treatment efficiency. There are some dentists who are not ready to invest money and time in purchasing new equipment like CAD/CAM machines or dental lasers.
Although these technologies do not guarantee improved treatment outcomes, they can affect patient experience as well as efficiency of the procedure. For example, these technologies can help reduce chair time or the number of dental visits you require. Also note that dental practices providing advanced technologies in treatments typically charge more than dental clinics with traditional treatment options.
6. Focus on patient comfort
Are you anxious about getting dental treatments? Well, you are not alone in this. There are numerous patients who fall prey to dental anxiety while it comes to visiting a dentist. However, several dental practices offer various services catering to patient comfort. While some dental clinics use nitrous oxide or pre-medications to relax the patient, some practices even use massage, headphones or aromatherapy to ease anxious patients. So make sure to inquire during your initial consultation about what kind of patient comfort strategies are used by your chosen dentist.
7. Look for before-after images and check patient reviews
Most dentists and dental practices keep records of their past patients, including a gallery of the images of their teeth before and after receiving dental treatments. Seeing these images can give you an idea of your chosen dentist’s quality of work, and what you can expect with your dental treatment. This can be even more helpful when it comes to getting cosmetic dental procedures, such as porcelain veneers, teeth whitening etc.
Moreover, going through reviews and feedback of former patients of your chosen dental practice or dentist helps you evaluate or presume what kind of dental care experience you will have. These are real-time insights into the experiences of previous patients which allow you compare between several dentists in the industry.
8. Treatment costs
The costs of dental treatments often fluctuate significantly from one individual to other; and across specific cases, depending on various factors. But remember that investing in an expensive dentist appointment can be a smarter choice for your long term dental health and treatment experience. You can receive personalised care with painless treatments and also need fewer dental visits, unlike the NHS.
Suffering a tooth problem? We are your right destination. Contact us to get convenient appointments with our top rated private dentist in South Kensington.
