making a complaint about a dentist

lexa

Hi, I need to make a complaint about a dentist. I assume complaints should go to the dental council however there doesn't appear to be any guidelines regarding the complaints procedure on their website. Has anyone previous experience taking this route? I'd appreciate any advice.Thanks

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Is this the orthodontist or did you go the veneer route? This first stop should be the dentist in person, if no result the dentist in writing, if nothing then dental council in writing. Maybe some more details?

lexa

Hi Fitzgeme

Issue is with orthodontist. Did look into the veneers route, but turns out the predominant issue is my midline being quite noticeable off to one side which veneers can't really fix. I have tried discussing this with the ortho on several occasions and via email, but he remains unreceptive to my concerns so I've pretty much reached an impasse.

Lexa

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Gather you correspondance together. Put together a short registered mail, logical calm letter (not a email) together with the previous mails to the dentist, physical paper is harder to ignore. Have you asked for money back or remedial work? Have you gotten a second opinion from another orthodontist to see if fixing this is possible orthodontically?

lexa

As we've not reached the point where the orthodontist is acknowledging that there is an issue, a discussion around potential solutions hasn't happened.Looking into the ortho option at the moment. The problem could potentially be fixed but would involve a full course of ortho again and probably some extractions and while the midline issue may be addressed it could cause further problems. Also having done ortho already for 3 years I'd be a little hesitant to do it again given my previous experience and the uncertainty surrounding outcomes. I'm also not sure if it would make a discernable difference at the end of the day, so it's pretty difficult to make a decision on what approach to take.

yobr

lexa wrote: »

Hi, I need to make a complaint about a dentist. I assume complaints should go to the dental council however there doesn't appear to be any guidelines regarding the complaints procedure on their website.

I would ring the Dental Council and they will give you all the information you need about making a complaint ...

work

Fitzgeme is giving good advice. However you need to consider exactly what you want:
1) To make a complaint, in which case I advise you to phone the Dental Council and ask them about this or
2) To get a solution for your problem in which case you should get a second opinion from an orthodontist, also consider getting a consult with a prosthodontist to see if a restorative solution exists.

You should formally (in writing at this stage) let the existing orthodontist know you are not satisfied.

Good luck

lexa

Thanks for the advice.
I rang the dental council and it seems they don’t have published complaints guidelines so the process is to write a letter or email and they will send a copy to the dentist, which the dentist is obliged to reply to. Not sure how drawn out this process is though. Fitzgeme, I’d be inclined to take your approach to this.

At the end of the day I just want the problem sorted as quickly as possible. However it’s still not really clear what the solution is and dentists would probably have varying opinions on the approach to take. I am still looking into it at the moment.

Have had consult with prosthodontists and orthodontists. The midline issue can’t be fixed restoratively but could possibly be fixed orthodontically but there are no guarantees and it could cause further issues and would take another 18-24 months on top of the 3 years I’ve done. So I haven’t decided whether or not to pursue the ortho option yet. I think I need to get a few more ortho consults before I rule it in or out.

However having had ortho treatment already I feel this issue should have been addressed, and were it not possible to fix it should have been discussed. It wasn’t discussed and the ortho won’t acknowledge this. At this point an official complaint seems the logical approach as I’m beyond frustrated trying to deal with the guy and he doesn’t appear interested in discussing the issue anyhow.

day dreamer

I understand this must be very frustrating for you having had the treatment and you are still not happy. If your attempts to discuss this with the orthodontist have failed, then consider writing to them and outlining exactly your concerns and what you would like to be done or expect them to do.

Unfortunatley, sometimes treatment doesnt go as well as expected but you should be able to get some response.

vishal

maybe it has been mentioned before, but, an off centre midline is not noticed by lay people up to 4mm off as long as the two front teeth are level and the midline is completely vertical and not slanted.

usually doctors will do whatever it takes to make people happy and i am sure your orthodontist would like to know how unhappy you are before you lodge any official complaints.