Monday, June 7, 2010

an email that I had to desperately send to the dentist office...

Just to be clear, this is not the regular dentist we use.. our regular office does not perform sedated dental procedures. This place was referred to us by our dentist, though. I hate HATE calling there because they have no clue how to answer most of my questions..and they still think that Natalie "only" has a murmur, despite the many times we've corrected them.
This is the email that I had to send... kind of explains more of what's been going on with it...

Hi there! My name is Dawn Bent and I'm the mom of Natalie Bent. I usually call your office but to be honest, every time I speak with someone I don't feel like my concerns are being addressed at all. Here is why I'm becoming more anxious..

Natalie was due to have 6 cavities filled/taken care of on May 12th.When her father and her showed up for the appointment at the actual office they were being treated as though they were in the correct location to have this sedated procedure. When a significant amount of time passed, he was told that they were supposed to be at the actually Children's Hospital to have Natalie get these cavities filled. Due to that, Natalie missed her very important appointment and to this day I never received an apology from your office concerning this. When I spoke to Dr. Asani (I think I may be spelling that wrong,sorry) I was told by her that we missed our appointment because we just "showed up to the wrong place". I have to say, I'm getting more upset by that because the office never told us where to go. So, as any person would, Natalie and her daddy showed up at the dental clinic. We were told that Tuesday prior that she would only go to Denver Childrens if something beyond a regular filling were to happen. And for some reason I keep hearing the word "crown" in place of a "cavity filling". Your office treated Natalie like she was at the right place May 12th. I still can't figure that out. Once the visit was useless and she missed her appointment with a doctor at Denver Childrens, we were told that a new appointment would be scheduled very soon for her.

Natalie has a severe heart defect called "Tricuspid Atresia". She MUST have these cavities filled really soon. I don't know what is going on underneath those spots on her teeth and no dentist has told us either. We don't know how deep the cavities are and for that, I really feel like the office is playing russian roulette with my daughter's health. She needs a sedated visit where these cavities, everything, can be taken care of. I was told by Dr.Asani soon after the May 12th incident/visit occurred that she couldn't schedule another visit for Natalie but to "wait until the end of June". That's just not acceptable and our pediatric cardiologist would agree with me. I am not "strapping Natalie to a board" and have her scream to get this completed (that's what the clinic told us to do). If Natalie screams for any period of time, her oxygen saturations dip too low, just like most "heart kids". She has been through so much medically. I am upset that that was even suggested and in that way.

Natalie really needs to have her teeth taken care of. Please reply to this email ASAP. We're hoping to have her teeth fixed in the next week or so. I myself need major surgery on June 30th so this needs to be completed beforehand. I need an exact date scheduled. If I don't hear from anyone in the next day (email or phone) I'll have to come and visit and speak to someone directly. On the phone, I just get more upset and confused once I hang up, so again anything other than having an exact scheduled appointment over the phone won't work. Thanks so much and I look forward to a reply.
Sincerely,


UPDATE:
Well then. I am shocked. I actually got a response through email and apparently we were scheduled for June 28th. Good thing I contacted them first because no one was going to tell us. They're getting a hold of someone at DC's to get Nat in there sooner. Wow..the power of not accepting what you're given... Really pays off.

2 comments:

Two Lines On a Stick said...

Good for you, for calling them out on it and asking for a response. What a crock. Keep us updated with their reply and if you can get something scheduled!

Sarah said...

You have to be an advocate for the kiddos - I remember someone telling me that when Claire was in the hospital - you are the ONLY one that can speak up for her!! Good for you, and so glad her appt is scheduled!