When you are evaluating the Dental professional who will help you and your family maintain the highest level of health, I think you need to consider a few factors beyond whether or not the Dentist is on your insurance list and if the Dental office is in the next block.

What are your dental needs?  Are you sure that you are even aware of the condition of your mouth?  Has anyone sat down with you and explained what a healthy mouth looks like?  Have you been offered a chance to see how your mouth measures up to "great health"?  This process takes time.  It does not happen in a five-minute exam and a five-minute consultation.

Who selected the Dentists on "your list"?  Did you know that almost any Dentist can be on any list of "preferred providers"?  The requirement is that he or she will sign the contract to work for a fee set by the insurance company following  the treatment "guidelines of the insurance company".  That's about it!

There are few (if any) extraordinary requirements for education, experience, excellence, or patient satisfaction--few (if any) requirements beyond those of state licensure for participation in most dental insurance preferred provider plans.  It's about "the buck"--accepting a reduced fee so the insurance company (middle man) can make a profit while corralling as many participants from as many employers and agents as possible.  And usually the less treatment you receive, the more the insurance company makes.  If that is all you are looking for in a health care provider, just about any Dentist should keep you happy.

If you have high expectations for you and your family, you might want to evaluate your choice a little closer.

Your needs determine the right Dentist for you.  If your mouth is truly healthy, if you are blessed with healthy gums and strong, straight, perfect teeth and a relentless daily drive to personally maintain them by flossing and brushing, there is a good chance that almost any Dentist can help you monitor your Dental health.  Congratulations!

Unfortunately, most of us have somewhat greater needs.  Consider that many of us have lost a tooth or teeth, or have had a number of restorative Dental procedures by the time we reach adulthood.  Also consider that the old restorative techniques--silver fillings and "porcelain-fused-to-whatever metal" crowns--deteriorate and discolor our teeth and gums over time.  Teeth shift and wear.  Bone levels change.  Gums recede. Is the Dentist who spends his day seeing 30 or 40 patients, two or three or even four patients at a time, going to spend the time educating you and finally helping you clinically to your highest potential?  Is this Dentist going to personally have the time to treat you and your family, or will the details of your treatment be left to his "helper" (whose last nameyou don't even know) as he sprints on to the next person on "your list".  If you feel like a number in the Dental office...that's exactly what you are!

Verify your Dentist's expertise and credentials with the State Board.  Have there been disciplinary actions taken against the Dentist's licenses to practice? Is that OK by you?

Look at photos of cases in your Dentist's office that may be similar to yours. Compare pictures of your condition, before and after treatment, to other patients the dentist has personally helped.  You can see dental excellence in photos.  Are the tissues natural-looking after treatment?  Can you see the gum line and is it natureal looking? 

If being technologically up-to-date is important to you, look at your Dentist's web site and library of digital photography of his case work.  If the Dental office doesn't have these in 2014, maybe technology is not the focus of that particular office.  If all of the phoos are canned (purchased from a distributor of dental web sites--you can tell) then you have no documentation of the capacity for generation of beautiful Dentistry of this Dental office.  If the web site is all commercially generated information, not personally written by the owner, you can bet that there will be little personal contribution to the Dentistry you receive.  In other words, just like the cleanliness of the floor and bathroom reflects the clinical cleanliness of a Dental office, the web site of a Dental office should be a reflection of the personal care provided on a day-to-day basis by the Dentist.

My opinion is that the Internet can be a good source for finding a Dentist in this age of technology and information.  Read testimonials of existing patients carefully.  Verify credentials by reference to State board web sites.  Ask about your Dentist's recent continuing education.  A Dentist practicing at the standard levels when he graduated would probably be far below current standards of sterilization, barrier techniques, surgical excellence, and restorative techniques.  Responsible continuing education developes competence in modern dental technology including new CT-based diagnosis, digital radiology, implant dentistry, new and beautiful biologically compatible restorative materials, sterile technique, bone grafting and atraumatic surgical techniques.  Ask about it!

Don't be a victim of desparate marketing attempts to grab patients with loss -leaders like "free whitening" or "free exams and x-rays".  Believe me...Nothing of substance in Dentistry comes for Free".

If you are lookiing for the finest Dentistry available for you and your family, demand to see it in photos, in writing, in the words of existing patients, in continuing education credentals, in on-on-one conversations with the Dentist who will personally partner with you to help you get what you want!

You are the one responsible for your Dental health and the selection of your Dentist.