Bites and Braces

Dear Parveen, We are glad that we were of some help when you came to us with a broken filling and a broken tooth, which was performed earlier in Assam. After having analysed your full mouth xray and individual tooth xray, we concluded that a RCT was required to treat the same along with a cap as the tooth did not have enough support structure. This was explained to you on the first day itself, once by Dr. Navya in detail and again by Dr. Dheemanth in detail. Your ‘dentist friend’ in Assam had somehow decided that the charges are on the higher side without knowing what the clinic is equipped with and what is being used for the treatment and you were on a biased note since the first day. Only after taking your consent for the same i.e., the RCT and the cap, was the treatment started. Both the sittings were painless according to your submission. After the procedure in the second sitting, post RCF (obturation) is done, there is a clear CCTV recording with voice (audio) wherein the file separation was shown and explained to you and that there is nothing worry about as it was in the apical third and also that it will heal (as against your accusation that this information was withheld). FYI, file separations are: a. not uncommon b. they are not because of negligence and are also not intended c. it can happen to anyone (patients and practitioners alike). Also, to educate you, the patient generally has pain after the second sitting (after obturation) as the RCF would have gone till the end of the root structure. Even on that day the importance of cap in your case was specified and different caps were shown and their charges explained along with their method of preparation and material used. You mentioned clearly that you were interested in the higher range as it was of good material (zirconia) and the method of preparation was CAD-CAM, but wanted to get it done after you come back. To this I gave you an option of getting the tooth preparation done so that the tooth is relieved of its contact with the opposing tooth and that pain/risk of further fracture is reduced. You missed your appointment for the same. The next day, your husband called Dr. Navya and she too explained the same to him and you were given an appointment for the same day in the evening, first slot (@5.30 pm). We accommodated you, though it was a busy day and you came only at 6.15 pm. Yet again, you were accommodated and again a complete consult was given to you and your husband for another half an hour. After which, your husband asked for 5 minutes of time to decide, which was again obliged. But both of you, without informing either Dr. Dheemanth or Dr. Navya, slipped out of the clinic (stealthily, CCTV recording as proof), after which we haven’t heard from you. Take away: 1. Proper ethical advice and treatment was given and carried out. 2. You chose not to continue for reasons that you know best, none of us have denied treatment. 3. Valid charges and advances are to be paid in any clinic/hospital as they are professional fees. 4. Putting up a negative review since you could not continue the treatment can be equated to blackmailing the professional and as we feel that there is an increase in such instances, the relationship between the patient and the doctor is decreasing and we strongly feel that Practo also shares an equal responsibility in this as they have to cross check the complete incidence and publish the review based on the facts and proofs from both the sides. We advise that you refrain from such practices as we have been more than accomodative when it came to treating you and explained the situation/case more than once. 5. There is a human interface that we doctors have to deal with and we are as friendly as possible, sometimes more and many times we forge a healthy relationship with our patients too, even with people whom we don’t know personally, right from the first day. Such practice from your side pushes us to start taking up cases mechanically. So our request to you is to think and act, and not just put up a negative review as a means of getting back (for absolutely no reason). 6. No professional (doctors/engineers/advocates/architects to name a few) takes orders from the patient’s friends. We are open to discuss the case with the professionals of the same field, with whom you may be acquainted and give details (which you never opted for, but only came back with orders from Assam). 7. Everything that I have said has complete evidence in the form of CCTV recordings with voice, photographs, xrays and prescriptions.