Since dental work involves both your appearance and your physical health, it is important that you feel that your dentist is an ethical dentist. Here are three ways that you can evaluate whether or not your dentist is behaving in a way that is ethical and in your best interest.
First, your dentist’s primary focus should be on your health and well-being. This means that the dentist’s first concern when treating you should be about whether or not your teeth and gums are healthy or if they need to be treated for any infection or disease. An ethical dentist will be clear on what treatments are required to maintain your health and which ones are cosmetic. While everyone wants a beautiful smile, ethical dentists focus first on making sure that your smile is healthy. Once your oral health is assured, then an ethical dentist will move on to working on the aesthetics of your smile, at your request.
This leads to the second trait of an ethical dentist. Ethical dentists will want to involve you, the patient, in all steps of treatment including the diagnosis, the treatment plan, and follow-ups to treatments. You should feel that your dentist is listening to what you have to say, whether it’s in regards to your comfort or your budget. An ethical dentist will not pressure you into unwanted treatment, nor will they dismiss your concerns out of hand, claiming that they are in control because they are the expert. No one is a better expert about your body than you. You’ll know if you’ve found an ethical dentist simply by asking yourself whether or not you feel like you have control of your consultations, appointments and treatments.
Finally, an ethical dentist respects his or her colleagues in the dental profession. This means that an ethical dentist will refrain from making negative comments about colleagues or their work. Most significantly for the patient, an ethical dentist will have no issue with you seeking a second or even third consultation. As noted in the first point, the primary goal of ethical dentistry is to ensure the patient’s health and well-being. This includes their mental and emotional health. If you feel that you would benefit from hearing about more options for treatment you should never feel that your dentist is discouraging you from being active and involved in your own oral health.
Annika Logan, D.D.S., is an ethical dentist located in Huntington Beach, California. She and her staff pride themselves on ensuring the health and happiness of each of their patients. Call Annika’s office to schedule a consultation today.
