Preparing for the First Dental Visit
At World of Smiles Pediatric Dentistry we are excited to welcome you and your child to the practice and are certain it will be a pleasant experience.
The first visit will consist of a thorough review of your child’s dental and health information and a comprehensive dental examination along with a discussion on proper diet, nutrition and good oral hygiene habits. Usually, a professional dental cleaning, remineralization therapy and any necessary radiographs are also performed during this visit. The information gathered will allow our doctors to prepare a treatment plan and recommend the best options for your child’s dental care.
You can help us make the first visit enjoyable and positive. It is best if you refrain from using words around your child that might cause unnecessary fear or tell “scary” stories about going to the dentist. Words such as “needle”, “shot”, “pull”, “drill” or “hurt” may cause preventable anxiety and make the first dental visit more difficult for your child. At World of Smiles, we strive to make your child’s first dental visit a positive and exciting adventure. Therefore, we use words that are pleasant and non-frightening to your child while explaining what we are doing in “kid-friendly” terms.
We encourage you to stay with your child during the initial examination. Our goals include: providing the highest quality of care for your child, developing a positive relationship with you and your child, discussing proper diet, nutrition and oral hygiene as well as answering all questions.
When should my child start?
The American Academy of Pediatricians, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentists and our Board Certified Pediatric Dentists recommend that a child’s first dental visit occur around his/her first birthday or within six months of the eruption of his/her first tooth.
This first visit will orient the child to the new experience of a dental office. Also, the parents and/or caregivers will receive information on proper oral hygiene habits, nutrition and diet guidelines. Just as it is important for a child to have Well-Child Check-ups with your pediatrician, it is important for a child to establish a Dental Home. Early education and check-ups can lead to a lifetime of good oral hygiene. We will partner with parents to keep children cavity-free.
World Of Smiles is primarily a pediatric dental office. This means we employ board certified pediatric dentists, who receive an additional two years of training to specialize in the oral health of kids and those with special needs.
At World Of Smiles, we firmly believe in starting kids on a path that leads toward success with their oral health. A big part of this is the age 1 dental visit. The purpose of a first year exam is to educate the parents or guardians on what is taking place in the mouth of their child, how to prevent caries, what proper nutritional habits will keep teeth healthy and strong, and what to do in case of a dental emergency.
Our pediatric dental practice is specially equipped to make each visit fun for kids, with TVs over every chair, toys and games in the waiting area, and special prizes to take home.
Pediatric Dentistry
Teen Dentistry
World of Smiles is growing up with the addition of a dedicated teen clinic! The new office is located in Suite 220, just across the hall from our original office, allowing parents to continue scheduling their teens with younger siblings at the same time.
This transitional practice will focus on preventative care for teens and young adults including regular cleanings, exams, x-rays, and sealants. The office will continue to offer nutritional counseling as well as acting as a resource on the dangers of tobacco and marijuana use and other teen issues.
In addition to basic care and hygiene, the clinic will treat small fillings, and provide some extractions. Concerns like root canals, aesthetic crowns, and third molar extractions will be referred to a trusted provider. Only once their dental needs regularly exceed our scope will it prove necessary to find those young adults a new dental home with a true adult dentist.
And of course, we are also adding space in our schedules to allow parents to be seen right alongside their teens! This service is described as Adult Preventative Dentistry, since we will not be set up to handle the more complicated cases.
We will need to establish if we are a good fit for your own dental care.
If you are interested, please COMPLETE THIS SURVEY to see if this service is a good option for your dental needs.
Grown-Up Dentistry
What is holistic and sustainable dentistry?
We define holistic and sustainable dentistry as treating the whole child and family in a safe and intentional environment. Our goal is to provide a positive learning experience for each child that we meet, and we work with parents to identify the contributing factors to their child’s decay. Our extensive patient interview, Oral Hygiene Instruction, Nutritional Counseling, and the use of the Cari-Free Program all play a part in treating our patients.
The features of our approach to holistic and sustainable dentistry include:
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Mercury-free
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BPA-free
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Recycling all approved plastics
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Electronic charting
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BIS-GMA free options
Click through the gallery below for more detail on some of these and other topics.
At World of Smiles, we only use the most sophisticated products that we know are safe and healthy for our patients. Therefore, we do not use any mercury-containing materials. We use dental materials that are the most biocompatible. Furthermore, we do not use Dental Sealants that contain Bisphenol-A. Rest assured that we are concerned with the overall health of your child.
From the moment you enter World of Smiles and complete all forms on a computer, you will recognize you are in a high-tech environment. Everything from digital radiographs to paperless charting is incorporated into this modern pediatric dental practice.
Televisions built into the ceiling above every dental chair provide children with a positive and family-friendly distraction. By keeping the patient distracted with our commercial free, age appropriate movie selection, the dental team can easily communicate with parents while thoroughly examining and cleaning their child’s teeth. During treatment procedures, the child is able to engage in a fun movie experience which makes appointments seem shorter and much more enjoyable for the child.
We run a highly sophisticated dental software program that allows us to create individualized treatment plans for our child patients. We can easily display your child’s radiographs, pictures and dental needs on the computer screen to better communicate with you and answer any questions you may have. Once we determine a plan for your child’s oral health care, we will print you an easy-to-understand take-home statement.
At World of Smiles we provide only the healthiest options for our patients which is why we installed the highly sophisticated Pelton & Crane Water Filtration System. This state-of-the-art system filters all incoming water so that patients receive only the highest quality filtered water during cleanings, treatment and while in the office.
All x-rays are taken with state-of-the-art computer technology, which uses significantly less radiation than traditional x-rays. We also have an unique extra-oral panoramic machine which can capture everything we need to see and eliminates gagging or struggling to keep the film in place. Patients love how easy it is!
We believe in keeping up with technology and the most sophisticated dental products. There are some cutting edge products that allow for repairing an area of tooth decalcification or early cavity without drilling. This is a very new concept and still in the early stages of research and development but the possibilities are exciting.
Our Office Policies
Patient Appointments
Patients are seen by appointment only. We make every effort to be on time for our patients and we ask the same courtesy from your family. If you cannot keep an appointment, please notify us immediately, giving a minimum of 48 hour notice to avoid any missed appointment fees. We realize that unexpected illnesses and emergencies may occur, but we ask for your assistance in this regard.
Our office strives to schedule appointments at your convenience and when time is available. Preschool age children should be seen in the morning when they are fresh and easily cooperative. This enables our doctor and assistants to work slowly and at a comfortable pace with your child. School age children requiring treatment should be seen in the morning for the same reason. Dental appointments are considered an excused absence and a doctor’s letter is available for your child’s teacher upon request.
Please understand that all of our patients will have school schedules to maintain and while our goal is to enable each individual child to miss a minimal amount of school, there may be times when your child will need to be excused for a short period of time during the morning or early afternoon for their regularly scheduled exam and cleaning. We expect all of our families to be prepared to schedule at least one visit during the school day.
Insurance & Patient Co-Pay
If you have insurance we will help you determine the coverage you have available. In order to best assist you, it is important that you submit your dental and/or medical insurance information to us with your New Patient Paperwork a minimum of two business days prior to your scheduled appointment. This allows us time to contact your insurance company and obtain a breakdown of the benefits your employer or you have purchased from the company. Please call your insurance company before the visit to ensure your children are enrolled on your dental plan. In addition, you will want to bring a dental benefit book that your carrier should be able to provide. Our business team will be happy to help you understand your policy.
Should your child be diagnosed with treatment services, we will be able to provide you with a detailed plan which will give you an estimate of how much your insurance company may pay for each procedure, as well as the portion you will be expected to pay at the time of service.
Professional care is provided to you, our patient family, and not to an insurance company. The insurance company is responsible only to the patient, and the patient is responsible to World Of Smiles. We will assist you in every way we can in the filing of your dental claim and handling of insurance questions from our office on your behalf.
In an effort to reduce the cost to you, the patient, while maintaining the highest level of professional care, we have established the financial policy as follows:
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Payment of any account balance is due in full within 10 days of statement date.
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We gladly accept Visa / MasterCard, checks, or Care Credit
Our full financial policy is available for download HERE.
Consultations
We are happy to schedule a second-opinion consultation with our doctors to discuss treatment diagnosed for your child. It is important to us that families are committed fully to a recommended course of treatment and we make every effort to provide all available information on the types of treatment completed at World of Smiles, as well as options to make appointments comfortable and positive for your child.
All patients that are referred to our office from another practice or who have self-referred their child for a second opinion are required to undergo a complete examination by our doctors before providing their diagnostic opinion. Families will be asked to complete our New Patient Paperwork and ensure that all available x-rays and chart notes from their prior office have been transferred to us prior to the scheduled appointment for review. Please note that many offices require 7 – 14 business days to transfer records.
It is imperative that we have all available dental insurance in a timely manner as we will be providing your family a treatment estimate of financial responsibility after your consultation with the doctor. In addition, we require medical insurance information when the issue is related to trauma or a medically diagnosed disorder.
We do advise both parents and no other children (other than patient) attend the appointment, so that all questions can be answered. If families need additional financial or treatment questions addressed, we are happy to offer a follow-up consultation at no charge with the doctor and administrative staff.
If you have questions about the consultation services we provide, please contact our offices.