Comfort Dental Braces

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: I chose to take the advice that was given to me on February 2, by Comfort Dental Braces which was to go back to the orthodontist that I went to for a second opinion because their office had decided not to remove my braces The figure that I quoted to the Revdex.com on February 2, was the cost that I estimated before I had actually visited with a second orthodontistI have since seen another orthodontist and his fee for removing my braces and making my retainers is $ Therefore, I am only asking that Comfort Dental Braces assume responsibility for the cost for another establishment to remove my braces and make my retainers, which is $ Thank you for your time and consideration in this unfortunate matter Sincerely, [redacted]

First of all, I am very sorry to hear about your frustration and confusion Would you please come into the clinic so we can meet and speak face to face? It seems an appointment was made with you to do just that on January 12, that was missed I would love to speak with you personally and resolve the matter.This was also emailed to the incorrect address so I nearly missed being able to reply, please send any and all additional correspondence to [redacted] @dentalonline.bizUpon reviewing the records and speaking with my office manager, I feel that I understand the confusion and would like to go over this in person There was some concern about the mother of these patients speaking primarily Ukranian better than English, but at the time I had an employee fluent in Russian and Ukranian that served as a translator The general dentist office next door also has Russian/Ukranian speaking employees that are available when needed According to my records, one daughter was seen just three days ago, the second was seen January but is not due to return for another weeks from now, and the last daughter was seen 11/23/ She was scheduled for 12/21/but that appointment was cancelled by the patient At none of these appointments did any daughter express their discomfort or pain, I am always available to see any of my patients that are in pain The policy is set that when patients are behind by more than three payments then half needs to be paid in order to schedule another adjustment appointments to progress in treatment (not including emergency appointments for pain, they are always welcome to be seen to make them comfortable and there is an emergency number available for after-hours or weekends if necessary) In regards to payment and insurance, I’m happy to provide a copy of each contract for your daughters and we can review this when we meet Yes it is true that your insurance is paying for part of their treatment That amount is subtracted from the total cost, payments are set at per month for the patients portion interest free and start after braces are placed I’m happy to explain more and more clearly in person Please call my office and let’s schedule a time where we can talk I have called your phone number and personally left a voicemail inviting you to come speak with me

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because: I will never return to comfort Dental of Lakewood again, in my opinion they are dishonest and misleadingSincerely, [redacted]

RevDex.com: I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] , and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. Sincerely, [redacted]

Complaint: ***I am rejecting this response because:I will never feel comfortable returning to this business after how unprofessional the staff was to me on 6/15/The word credit was used to vague it was not specified to certain procedures and there was never a time limit that I was to use it byThis situation has been very upsetting and has caused me a lot of distressI do not feel that I should loose my money simply because the business chose to be misleadingSincerely,*** ***

To Whom It May Concern:This patient was bonded with orthodontic appliances in February of and was quoted an estimated time frame of 12-months to complete her treatment She was seen for a total of appointments over months This included coordinating treatment with her
general dentist to place and restore implants for two front teeth as well as fabricating and using two pontic or ‘fake teeth’ in the place of her missing teeth during treatment As treatment neared completion, she had a complaint about the ‘inside of one lower tooth not being in line with the outside’ and pointing to a back tooth Where treatment was completed around September of 2016, all efforts were made to address the patient’s concern, including visits from August of to January to make bends in her wires and move brackets to attempt to address her concern, even though it was explained that moving a lower tooth outward when it’s already in a good bite will cause an interference (or heavy contact) with the top tooth and is not recommended or sometimes not plausible She has been seen by her general dentist who has restored her two implants and the general dentist thanked us for the good work we had performed and for coordinating her treatment together On January 11, the patient presented to our clinic and was aggravated, rude and extremely disrespectful in a manner we haven’t seen before She stated that she knows that I know what I’m doing but that I’m ‘choosing not to’ treat her appropriately She was instructed that our treatment has taken her as far as she is able and her next visit would be to remove her braces or she was invited to see another orthodontist Final pictures and records were taken and show the excellent quality in which she was finished Her case has also been shared in orthodontic study groups (one containing nearly 3,orthodontists) with not one orthodontist feeling she was treated with anything but excellence; some adding that her expectations and behavior are unrealistic She called later that same day stating that she would not be coming back and wanted to seek treatment elsewhere I received a telephone call from the orthodontist she went to in order to seek a second opinion He said he thought we had done… quote: ‘a fantastic job’ with her orthodontic treatment, didn’t know why she was ‘so obsessed with that one tooth’ and recommended to me to make a bend in her wire and get her out of treatment as soon as possible (It should be noted that she had also gone online and began leaving negative reviews on January 13, which was prior to her consulting a different orthodontist) I had informed him that’s exactly what we had been trying to do for the past months but that she was still unhappy and treatment needed to be discontinued because the behavior shown at the last appointment was completely unacceptable and her expectations unrealistic She called the office on February 2, and was reportedly rude and aggressive towards staff, demanding that she be seen for future adjustment appointments As per our conversation at her last appointment, her final appointment would be to schedule removal of her appliances and any further treatment she feels she needs would need to be addressed at a different office After her phone call, the office manager was asked to look into the situation and to call her to have her braces removed During that phone call this patient declined and said that she wouldn’t be coming back No attempt was made to speak to the doctor on the phone, she is more than welcome to call and speak to me personally This patient appears to be disputing half of the cost of her braces, which I feel is both dishonest and unrealistic She is still welcome to have her braces removed and delivery of retainers as she has paid for them If not, I do feel she is entitled to a refund for the cost of removing the braces and retainers which at our office is dollars and whereas her treatment was and her treatment is beyond 90% completed, this would be a fair value I would welcome and encourage the use of a non-biased third party orthodontist to review my records for this patient at any time to assess the quality of my work and treatment performed

To Whom It May Concern,
This letter is In response to a complaint filed by *** * *** on 7/14/regarding a "flipper'' that she was dissatisfied withand requested a refund
An interim partial denture (the patient refers to this prosthesis as a ''flipper") was made for *** on 09/19/for replacementof a missing toothThis type of prosthesis is the least expensive option for replacement of a missing tooth and is meant to be aninterim (temporary) solution until a better option is available (usually an implant, bridge, or partial denture)When providing thisservice we try to communicate to the patient the many challenges associated with this type of prosthesisWhile they can providegood esthetics in replacing a tooth, they are generally not comfortable, durable, or functionalWe caution patient against chewingwith "flippers" and recommend replacing them as soon as finances permit (usually recommended within months, not years)Theyalso cover a significant portion of the palate which is needed for strength but this palatal coverage often causes difficulties inspeechThe customer's complaints about the "flipper" are all legitimate but also and expected due to the nature of theprosthesisWhen we receive such complaints we do all we can to improve the fit and function by making adjustmentsDuringadjustment appointments we caution patients that such adjustments can weaken or damaged the prosthesisThis point wasmentioned by the customer but is also a and expected occurrence
The patient returned to our office dissatisfied with the "flipper" and a doctor sat down with her to discuss her optionsAlthough herexperience with the prosthesis was not a positive one, neither was it unusual or unexpectedThe doctor offered to give the patient a$credit (the full cost of the prosthesis) toward future treatment but did not offer a full $refundThe office had invested asignificant amount into providing this treatment in chair time, disposables, impression material, staff wages, and most significantlythe lab billThe $credit was a very generous offer to help the patient financially and she agreed to thisNearly two yearsfollowing this agreement the patient called demanding a full refundThe refund was denied and the patient filed the complaintThepatient is still welcome to visit our office for future treatment and the credit will be honoredWe understand if the patient no longerwishes to continue treatment as she feels there had been a conflict of trustIt is also important to note that the patient had failedand broken appointments on 09/23/2014, 10/07/2014, 11/24/2014, and 12/22/2014.Thank you for your consideration in this matter,
Sincerely,
Jerry M** DMD

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:
I chose to
take the advice that was given to me on February 2, 2017 by Comfort Dental
Braces which was to go back to the orthodontist that I went to for a second
opinion because their office had decided not to remove my braces.
The figure
that I quoted to the Revdex.com on February 2, 2017 was the cost
that I estimated before I had actually visited with a second orthodontist. I have
since seen another orthodontist and his fee for removing my braces and making my retainers
is $500.00.
Therefore, I
am only asking that Comfort Dental Braces assume responsibility for the cost for another establishment to remove my braces and make my retainers, which is $500.00.
Thank you
for your time and consideration in this unfortunate matter.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because: I will never return to comfort Dental of Lakewood again, in my opinion they are dishonest and misleading. Sincerely,[redacted]

First of all, I am very sorry to hear about your frustration and confusion.  Would you please come into the clinic so we can meet and speak face to face?  It seems an appointment was made with you to do just that on January 12, 2017 that was missed.  I would love to speak with you...

personally and resolve the matter.This was also emailed to the incorrect address so I nearly missed being able to reply, please send any and all additional correspondence to [redacted]@dentalonline.bizUpon reviewing the records and speaking with my office manager, I feel that I understand the confusion and would like to go over this in person.  There was some concern about the mother of these patients speaking primarily Ukranian better than English, but at the time I had an employee fluent in Russian and Ukranian that served as a translator.  The general dentist office next door also has Russian/Ukranian speaking employees that are available when needed.  According to my records, one daughter was seen just three days ago, the second was seen January 6 but is not due to return for another 6 weeks from now, and the last daughter was seen 11/23/16.  She was scheduled for 12/21/16 but that appointment was cancelled by the patient.   At none of these appointments did any daughter express their discomfort or pain, I am always available to see any of my patients that are in pain.  The policy is set that when patients are behind by more than three payments then half needs to be paid in order to schedule another adjustment appointments to progress in treatment (not including emergency appointments for pain, they are always welcome to be seen to make them comfortable and there is an emergency number available for after-hours or weekends if necessary).  In regards to payment and insurance, I’m happy to provide a copy of each contract for your daughters and we can review this when we meet.  Yes it is true that your insurance is paying for part of their treatment.  That amount is subtracted from the total cost, payments are set at 139 per month for the patients portion interest free and start after braces are placed.  I’m happy to explain more and more clearly in person.  Please call my office and let’s schedule a time where we can talk.  I have called your phone number and personally left a voicemail inviting you to come speak with me.

To Whom it May Concern: This email ([redacted]@gmail.com) is associated with the Comfort Dental East Tacoma at 3820 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, WA 98418.  The complaint specifically indicates the dental work was performed at the Lakewood Comfort Dental.  Please contact the Lakewood Comfort...

Dental at 253-475-9120 as each Comfort Dental is an independent franchise.  Thank you, Paul A[redacted], DDSPartner DentistComfort Dental East Tacoma

11/09/2016
To Whom It May Concern,
 
This letter is in response to a complaint filed by [redacted] on 7/14/2016 regarding a “flipper” that she was dissatisfied with and requested a refund.
An interim partial denture (the patient refers to this prosthesis as a “flipper”) was made for [redacted] on 09/19/2014 for replacement of a missing tooth. This type of prosthesis is the least expensive option for replacement of a missing tooth and is meant to be an interim (temporary) solution until a better option is available (usually an implant, bridge, or partial denture). When providing this service we try to communicate to the patient the many challenges associated with this type of prosthesis. While they can provide good esthetics in replacing a tooth, they are generally not comfortable, durable, or functional. We caution patient against chewing with “flippers” and recommend replacing them as soon as finances permit (usually recommended within months, not years). They also cover a significant portion of the palate which is needed for strength but this palatal coverage often causes difficulties in speech. The customer’s complaints about the “flipper” are all legitimate but also normal and expected due to the nature of the prosthesis. When we receive such complaints we do all we can to improve the fit and function by making adjustments. During adjustment appointments we caution patients that such adjustments can weaken or damaged the prosthesis. This point was mentioned by the customer but is also a normal and expected occurrence.
The patient returned to our office dissatisfied with the “flipper” and a doctor sat down with her to discuss her options. Although her experience with the prosthesis was not a positive one, neither was it unusual or unexpected. The doctor offered to give the patient a $300 credit (the full cost of the prosthesis) toward future treatment but did not offer a full $300 refund. The office had invested a significant amount into providing this treatment in chair time, disposables, impression material, staff wages, and most significantly the lab bill. The $300 credit was a very generous offer to help the patient financially and she agreed to this. Nearly two years following this agreement the patient called demanding a full refund. The refund was denied and the patient filed the complaint. The patient is still welcome to visit our office for future treatment and the credit will be honored. We understand if the patient no longer wishes to continue treatment as she feels there had been a conflict of trust. It is also important to note that the patient had failed and broken appointments on 09/23/2014, 10/07/2014, 11/24/2014, and 12/22/2014.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter,
Sincerely,
 
Jerry M** DMD

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Sincerely,
[redacted]