I went to the dentist last Friday. It was HORRID. I would have thought that a dentist serving the entire university would have been pretty great (from what I could tell, it was just him manning the whole show--there was only one chair in the entire office). It's not like he didn't have practice, you know?
I have to say that going to the dentist in NZ was the second-worst dental experience of my life. The first occurred with SmileCare in San Diego. For the love of all that's holy, DO NOT EVER (and I mean EVER) go there. I will have to remember to post my synopsis of my experience there at a later date.
I've also had some AMAZING dentists. Dr Keri Do in Honolulu has my eternal love. Forever. I started flossing for that lady, just because I couldn't handle her disappointment in me when I told her I usually forgot. LOVE LOVE LOVE her.
So. Right, back to NZ. I walked in, ok with my estimate of $100--$50 for the required X-rays, $50 for the checkup. When I ask about the cleaning, though--all of a sudden, a checkup DOES NOT INCLUDE a cleaning. What on earth? I've never heard of that nonsense. Suddenly my quote jumps to $195--the cleaning is an extra $95.
Fine. You know what? It's been a year since my last checkup (ahem, and cleaning) that I got for $16 (grr), so I just grinned and opened my mouth.
I now have major cuts and bruises all inside of my mouth due to this guy's ineptitude. He was armed with this tiny saw that he ran through the gaps in between my teeth...but he also ran it through most of my gums, as well. *Whimper* And I KNOW he didn't clean parts of some of my teeth--this guy had some horrible technique. Some teeth? he covered them about 12 times, pressing hard, usually on my already bleeding gums. Other teeth got barely a glance-over, were like the lost teeth of Atlantis. He never switched his chair to the other side of my mouth, either.
Well, it's no WONDER people here don't go to the dentist! It's a freaking massacre, taking place wholly in your mouth.
When I asked my Kiwi friends for their recommendations, no one had any--most Kiwis just don't go until there's an emergency. Which is apparently why dentists here are so good at cosmetic dentistry, but not preventative dentistry. Well, that, and the cost of it.
In any case, is there a BBB in NZ? 'Cause I have something to report...
Next up, an eye appointment this Friday. Work is covering up to $245 of the cost ($45 for exam, the rest is for frames and lenses). My glasses are 5 years old. that is 95 in spectacle years. I've worn them almost every day, all day since getting them! Plus, my prescription has changed, I'm sure of it! I wonder if Zenno, or whatever that online optical store is called, accepts foreign prescriptions?? I'd love some cheap prescription sunglasses as well...
4 comments:
I had a similar experience last week
bastard charged me $120 (he's the OWNER of the f*cking place) for 20 minutes of HALF ASSED CLEANING and NO check up on whether I had cavities
I got the hell out of there.
Was so pissed he charged me that cash and said "from what I can see, it looks fine".. WTF?
CHECK! it takes 5 minutes!
Fellow Kiwi here...I haven't been to the dentist for about five years, not since the free dental bus used to come to our high school every year! I know I probably need to go, though i'm pretty lucky and have never had a filling or anything. Dental costs are just far too much for me.
oh, and try lessforspecs.co.nz, that's where I got my frames (and lenses from) last year. I found frames in a store and tried them on, and turned out lessforspecs sold them online! I saved around $100 all up I think, compared to what the optometrist woulda charged.
My experiences were that I'd never heard of this "cleaning teeth" thing until I moved to the US from Britain. When I last lived here in Australia I started going reguarly to the dentist after I had pain in a tooth. He did a good job (he had Canadian degrees and worked in Canada), but I felt he kept inventing minor things he could fix to charge extra money. I've been back in Aus for 1 1/2 years (from the US) and haven't been to the dentist yet because it's an extra expense I can cut out I suppose and given my previous experience it can add up. A visit to the doctor only costs about $A30 after we get the Medicare rebate and prescriptions are a similar price too. But you have to bear the full costs of dental care yourself in Australia unless you had some private health insurance that covered it (and I don't know whether regular private health insurance does as I don't have any). In the US my health insurance covered most of the cost of dental treatment.
thanks for the stories, guys! in my experience, i've been pretty lucky. there's no in-between with dentists--they are either really good or really bad...
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