What Can You Expect During Your First Visit to Our Office?

Dear Friends,

Welcome to our office! Thank you for trusting us to attend to your dental needs. If you have been referred to us by one of our patients, please let us know so that we may thank them for their confidence in us. We wish to take this opportunity to introduce you to our practice so that you are familiar with our procedures right from the beginning. Our entire practice is designed with you, the patient, in mind…delivering quality dental services in a comfortable, congenial environment. It is important that you become aware of how we accomplish this goal.

Philosophy

This is a dental practice, but we are more than that. We are concerned about your total health! For example, we ask you to complete a very thorough health questionnaire and you will have your blood pressure and pulse rate taken. Our practice is dedicated to the prevention and elimination of oral disease. Preventive dentistry is the cornerstone upon which this practice was founded and developed. We now have the knowledge to teach you how to prevent oral disease through modern home care techniques (brushing and flossing) and diet counseling.

If you need dental treatment, you’ll find that our modern techniques will eliminate your dental problems in a surprisingly comfortable fashion.

Your First Visit

What can you expect during your first visit to our office?

•If you have a specific dental problem that is causing you pain or discomfort, we will attempt to alleviate your symptoms. All of our patients receive immediate care for urgent situations, no matter the time, day or night.

•If you are visiting for a routine examination, you will be greeted and interviewed by our hygienist who will discuss your health history and any concerns you may have.

•Unless you can provide a full series of radiographs (x-rays), they will have to be taken so that we can detect or rule out any problems that cannot be seen by the naked eye.

You will receive a thorough clinical evaluation by Dr. Haley and/or one of our hygienists which will consist of examining the soft tissues of your mouth and neck to screen for oral cancer and other abnormalities,

Gingival (gum) health, bone health, and possible periodontal disease,

Teeth for carries (decay) detection and malocclusion (bite).

In most cases, we will be able to complete our diagnosis on the first visit and give you our recommendations for treatment, fees, and number of visits. However, special cases may

require more time and thought. In such situations, the doctor will

discuss your diagnosis and treatment at a subsequent visit.

Good dental health depends upon two factors: good home care and regular periodic professional checkups. Once we get to know you and your mouth better, we can create a continuing care schedule to fit your particular needs.

We try hard to be punctual for our appointments, and ask the same consideration from you. If you must change, or cannot make an appointment, please notify us 24 hours prior to your scheduled appointment to avoid a broken appointment fee of $50. We especially try to see our emergency patients as quickly as possible, so remember…if you cannot make a scheduled time, and please let us know so that your friend/fellow patient with a pressing problem may be seen more quickly.

Our Dental Team

Our team consists of a number of auxiliaries and support personnel, most of who will be involved in your treatment one way or another. By working together in a TEAM approach, we can increase the thoroughness and efficiency of your dental experience you will receive. The members of our TEAM are:

Dental Hygienists

Our dental hygienists Marilyn, Regina and Stacey have either an Associate or Bachelor Degrees of Science in Dental Hygiene. They are licensed professionals whose responsibilities include:

•Evaluation medical histories

•Taking part in the initial examination and hygiene diagnosis

•Preliminary periodontal treatment from simple scaling and prophylaxis (cleaning) to more complicated scaling

•Educating our patients in preventive oral health measures

•Conducting periodic hygiene exams (checkups) to evaluate the patient’s oral health maintenance.

Dental Assistants

Our assistants Annette and Christie are certified and have been specially trained at the college level to assist the doctor in patient treatment, and have earned the title of Certified Dental Assistant. Today, some of the procedures that dentists used to do can be safely and legally delegated to these “dental nurses.” You may find our assistants more involved in your dental care than previously expected.

Support Staff

Our reception and business area has been set up for your convenience and is staffed by our Office Coordinator Crystal. She is available to discuss financial matters, billings, and insurance.

The Physical Facilities

This office took many years and countless hours of hard work to design. It houses the latest in dental technology and the most modern equipment available today. The treatment rooms are equipped to deliver dental care in the most efficient and comfortable way possible. Our goal is to make your visit a stress-free and enjoyable experience. We welcome any comments you’d like to share to make your visits more comfortable.

What This All Means

By now you’re probably saying to yourself: “Sounds good, now how does all this benefit me?”

•In this practice, you can expect to receive thorough, high quality dental care

•No question is trivial, so please don’t hesitate to share your questions and/or concerns with us.

We Need Your Cooperation

Up to this point, we have been telling you what we do for you, but dental treatment is a two-way street. Our efforts to eliminate and prevent oral disease in your mouth depend as much on your cooperation.

By Cooperation We Mean

•Keeping appointments and arriving on time.

•Informing us at least 48 hours in advance if you cannot keep your appointment.

•Carrying through on the home car instructions you will receive

•Returning on a regular basis for your periodic exams...they are for your benefit and allow us to catch small problems before they become major and costly

•Following the Oral health directions given at the end of each procedure.

•Making definite payment arrangements and adhering to them.

•Advising us if any changes in your medical history including new drugs or medications you are taking.

•Visiting the list of web sites we give you in order to stay informed regarding the procedures perform and in order to increase Case Outcome.

•Fees for treatment are expected at the completion of each appointment. Cash, check, or MasterCard is welcome. By paying at the desk you can help reduce your costs since we reduce our billing expenses.

•After 30 days or if we must send you a statement, a five dollar ($5.00) service charge will be added to your balance for each monthly statement that is mailed. 1.5% Monthly Fee will be added to balances Sixty days Past Due. We try and keep our fees reasonable and feel that, when warranted, this is a better method of keeping fees in line rather than raining them across-the-board to cover the consistently slow-paying patient.

•In order to provide you with the best possible care, periodic fee increases are, unavoidable. Prompt payment by our patients helps keep the number and amount of thee increases to a minimum. Statement privileges and budget accounts are available to patients who qualify. For services over $150.00, we offer a 5% professional courtesy when the account is PAID IN FULL on the date of service with check or cash. This does not apply when paying with VISA or MasterCard forms of payment.

Insurance

We are happy to accept your insurance claim forms. It is your responsibility to provide us with the proper completed form, containing all the required information: Employment location, social security number, birth dates, signatures, etc. Please remember WE provide the treatment to you, not the insurance company. Hence, you are directly responsible for the payment of your dental treatment. Every insurance coverage is slightly different, so please don’t compare benefits with someone who works for another company.

We will try and do everything we can to obtain the maximum benefit for you, but please do not ask us to do anything fraudulent. Also, we reserve the right to refuse payment from certain insurance companies, based on our previous experiences with them.

Summary

We seek to maintain a high quality practice, providing our patients with the best treatment at a fair, equitable fee. We wish our fees to reflect the services which you have received, not postage, handling and bookkeeping fees. We realize that occasionally unforeseen problems do arise, and we will always be happy to discuss them with you. If we send three statements without a response, the account is then automatically sent to our attorney for collection. We are not mind readers… if you have a problem please let us know. This is especially true of cases involving a large fee, and a long duration of treatment.

We hope that your experience with us is a positive one and that this is the beginning of a long and satisfying relationship. And, please remember… we are always happy to answer any questions you have.

We are always searching for ways to serve you more quickly, efficiently, and satisfactorily. If you have any comments or recommendations… please, let us know! Remember… we are here to serve you, and we appreciate any and all of your suggestions. Once again, Thank you for trusting us to address your Oral Health needs and WELCOME!

Sincerely yours,

Kevin R Haley, DDS.MPH, FAGD

. and Staff