Dental patients that are about to undergo complex or costly dental treatments often get a second opinion from another dentist before undergoing treatment. Getting a second opinion can be a wise thing to do for a few reasons, including finding a lower cost for the same level of dental care. If your dentist presented you with a treatment plan, even if you feel completely at ease with the plan it might be worth considering a second opinion. Considering how complex, costly, and life-changing something like dental implants or cosmetic dentistry can be, you want to make sure you’re getting the right dentist for the job.
Here are several things to consider when looking for dentist near you for a second opinion:
- Does the dentist specialize in restoring oral function? You may have noticed that the dentists at Central New England Dental Associates are not general dentists, but rather prosthodontists. This means they have spent additional years training in order to specialize in replacing missing teeth and restoring oral function. Prosthodontists may have more perspective on the impact that the treatment will have on the rest of the mouth and account for that during treatment planning. This additional experience really comes in handy for really complex cases where multiple teeth need to be replaced ore restored.
- Is there transparency about cost? – You can never expect the person picking up the phone at a dental office to accurately quote you how much treatment will cost. The dentist is the one that comes up with the treatment plan and they can only do that after a thorough examination. Once the treatment plan is presented to the patient, however, the dentist should be transparent about all the steps and be able to itemize the cost upon request. A good indicator of a transparent dentist is one that answers all of your questions until you are satisfied without trying to brush you off.
- Is the dentist highly recommended? If you’re considering a dentist for a second opinion you should ask friends for opinions about the dentist or look at online reviews to read other peoples’ experiences. This should be true for the first opinion as well, make sure your friends and online reviews have good things to say about getting complex cosmetic dental treatment from this dentist.
- Is the dentist a good personality fit? When it comes to complex cosmetic dentistry, the treatment can happen over the course of multiple visits and months. When dealing with someone over such an extended period of time it’s best that you like them as well. The personality extends beyond good chair-side manner and could also inform the approach a dentist takes towards understanding your needs and planning the dental treatment accordingly.
If you’re looking for a dentist near Worcester for a second opinion, we urge you to book a dental consultation with one of our prosthodontists. We’d be extremely happy to see you and help you on your dental journey.