What to Look for in a Good Dentist: Personality Traits

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

Choosing a dentist based on their personality alone is never a good idea. Just because you like someone personally, doesn’t meant that they’ll be the best choice to care for your oral health. That being said, once you’ve determined that a dentist’s qualifications and their practice meet all of your criteria, their personality is important. No one likes a doctor with a poor bedside manner, no matter how proficient they may be; and the same applies with dentists. So here are a few things to evaluate about your prospective dentist’s personality.

1. Are they upfront and honest – for many dental patients, it’s important to have information upfront from their dentist, particularly those that do not have sufficient dental insurance coverage. A good dentist should be willing to at least estimate the costs of treatment they’re suggesting and give you an idea about the care they expect you will need in the future
2. Compassion – many dental patients feel like every time they set foot in the dentist’s office they are being judged. Dentists should be compassionate and supportive while providing the required information and motivation to their patients
3. Their complete focus – a busy dental practice sees a lot of patients, but when you’re in their chair, you should feel like you’re the primary focused. A good dentist should not give you the feeling that they’re trying to rush through your appointment, nor should they voice their stress to you even on the busiest of days. You need to feel like you’re the top priority!

Remember, it’s not just an individual dentist you should evaluate when you visit a practice – it’s everyone from the hygienists to the support staff that will give you a feeling if you’ve come to the right place for you!

A ToothSavers’ patient provides their feedback about the level of customer service provided to dental patients in the office.

“At ToothSavers, I got the best medical assistance. I also found the dentists offered a dignified presence made me feel at ease and safe”

Image Credit: Flickr Creative Commons

Originally Posted at ToothSavers.Wordpress.com

Tags: finding a dentist, looking for a dentist, New York dental clinics, NY dentists, personality traits of good dentists, ToothSavers, what makes a good dentist
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