Review by
weedemnreap
Stars:
2.0
on
2012-03-05
Link
Facilities:
Service:
Painless:
Results:
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The office staff is awesome; Erlinda (hygienist) is really wonderful but Dr. Pfost is a different story. My mom has mid-to-late stage dementia and needed dental work. Near the end of 2011 I asked if they could see her (explaining her condition) and they said yes. At that time, Erlinda did 3 deep scaling/cleanings (3 appointments) and another cleaning today with no problem. Mom then went to Dr. Pfost's chair for some filings but wouldn't open her mouth for him. I tried to coax her to open up for several minutes and when he reached in front of her and she pushed his hand away. At that, he unclipped the drip bib and jerked it off her (she was startled and jumped) and said, "Go! Get out of here!!!" I could not believe it. I told him he didn't need to speak to her or treat her that way. I explained again that she has dementia and doesn't understand and process well. He went on to say that he couldn't use sharp instruments on her; I agreed but said again that he didn't need to react like that. He responded, "Well, if she won't do what I say, I'll treat her like a child." Really - that's how he treats children? He went on, "Why is she even here?" I reminded him that he had seen her before and said she needed to have more work done. He said, "Well, she wasn't like this before." Well, yes, she was; they had a hard time getting her to open but then she did and he was able to examine her. In fact, at that time, I had tried without success and he said that maybe I was distracting her and she would respond better to him.
I agree that he couldn't work on her like that but I also expect him to be professional and not react out of anger or frustration. I would have totally understood if he had said, "This isn't working; let's reschedule" or even, "I can't treat her" but for him to respond to her the way he did was reprehensible and I will be reporting him to the Board of Dentistry. It makes me wonder how he treats uncooperative kids or anyone else that bothers him. We will be seeking another dentist.
About Hygienist: As I mentioned above, Erlinda was wonderful. She is very gentle but thorough. She explained what she was doing and gave tips to improve dental health.
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