Tiphanie Barzey · 1 out of 5 stars · 8 months ago
Poor communication, zero accountability, and unprofessional energy. I normally don’t write reviews, but my experience today left me so frustrated I feel like it’s important to share. I came back to this office after having a great experience during my initial cleaning everyone was kind, professional, and made me feel comfortable after not seeing a dentist for years. Unfortunately, this second visit was a complete 180. The dental assistant who brought me back had an attitude from the start cold, unwelcoming energy, like saying hello was something she had to do, not something she meant. No warmth, no effort. I’m not expecting anyone to roll out a red carpet, but when you work directly with patients, the way you carry yourself matters. Your energy becomes part of the patient’s experience. When the doctor was in the room she had no issues in that department with him it was all warm conversation & laughter with him. The part that really upset me came when I went to the front desk to check out. I was told I owed 50% of the cost because my insurance only covered half. This was never discussed with me beforehand. No treatment plan review, no breakdown of what my insurance covers nothing. I then said that I thought it was standard practice to go over expected costs before doing any work, the woman at the desk told me, “Sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t.” When I gave the suggestion to reiterate that cost review for billable work especially when out of pocket expenses are expected is something they should definitely be doing another colleague jumped in, passive-aggressively adding, “Well most people know their insurance.” That right there sums up the entire energy of the visit. Instead of taking accountability for failing to communicate properly, they doubled down with condescension. For the record, I just got out of the military and am still adjusting to civilian insurance but even if I hadn’t, it’s absolutely reasonable to expect clear cost communication before a procedure, not a surprise bill afterward. Here’s the thing: any time a healthcare provider (dentist, doctor, whatever) is performing billable work that isn’t 100% covered by insurance, it is standard and ethical practice to review the cost before doing the procedure. That’s called a “treatment plan”. When someone gives feedback about something that should have been explained up front, the correct response is, “You’re right, we should have clarified that I’m sorry for the confusion.” Not a snappy “you should have known. Accountability goes a long way. The entire interaction was unnecessary and unprofessional. Instead of trying to make it right, front desk staff made me feel like I was the problem for expecting transparency. I left disappointed, uncomfortable, and honestly questioning if this is how they talk to all patients who dare to ask valid questions. It’s a shame because my first visit was excellent, but today’s experience showed me how quickly a lack of professionalism and empathy can change everything.
