Finding a family dentist in most urban locations is easy enough, but let’s face it when it comes to YOUR PARTICULAR FAMILY’S dental care you only want a dentist you can trust – so you want not just a family dentist you want an excellent family dentist.
I think you would agree that most parents when scouting for a family dentist would have some or all of these things on their list depending on the age of their children:
The A list for Dentist’s Qualities
- Affordable
- Approachable
- Willingness to answer questions
- Explains things well
- Treat children with respect
- Have a pleasant child friendly waiting area
- Has an excellent reputation
- Is patient with nervous attendees
While relocating can be an exciting event often presenting a family with new opportunities and benefits, one of the down sides is that along with the move comes the task of finding new professionals to take care of your family’s needs.
So we thought we would put together some brief pointers to help you make your selection when choosing a dentist for your family.
A Dentist’s Perspective
As dentists ourselves we would like to think that when you relocate you would take the time to find a dentist before you actually need one.
The advantage of this approach is that time is on your side and you can choose a dentist in a convenient location at your leisure and check out the standard of their service with an initial check-up before there is an emergency and you find yourself in the undesirable position of having less choice for both quality of service and location.
In reality however most people don’t look for a dentist until they need one.
What You Can Do
Google the terms ‘excellent family dentist’ plus your location, or ‘excellent children’s dentist’ and your location
- E.g: excellent children’s dentist gold coast.
- This will bring up in the search results any family dentists in your area that have already been recommended by others
Location: think about whether you need your dentist to be close to your place of work or close to your home.
- If you work in a CBD rents and parking are at a premium and you may find they may be more expensive than a dentist in the suburbs near where you live.
- On the plus side choosing a dentist close to your work may end up being more affordable if you have to take a lot of time of work for extensive treatment.
Select a dentist to ring and if you have a current problem ask if they are taking on any new clients presently and allow the conversation to flow. Otherwise explain the nature of your concern.
Listen to their manner – do they sound
- Genuinely friendly – do they stop being friendly if you ask what they perceive is an unwanted question?
- Unhurried – if they are brusk or off-hand they may simply have too many clients and it may be difficult to get an appointment when you need one.
- Ask if they willing to explain their pricing structure, even just loosely so you can guage their affordability for your family
How far in advance do you have to make an appointment?
- This will give you an idea how busy they are.
Remember: An excellent dentist will also be a popular one. If they are truly excellent and caring they should reassure you that if you are in pain you will be seen as soon as possible.
