Dentists, as a whole, tend to be conservative in treatment recommendations. Sometimes, this isn’t in the best interests of the patient.
I have heard stories of patients who have complained to their dentists about the appearance of their teeth, and the dentists have pooh-poohed their concerns, telling them that their teeth were fine. But when the smile does not appear fine to the person who is wearing it, it is not fine. Cosmetic dentists seem to be strongly tuned to listening to their patients, and this is one thing that I believe drives their passion for wanting to create beautiful smiles. They recognize that people really want this.
There are some cases, though, where even passionate cosmetic dentists would make an exception. I faced one of these early in my practice, when I had a woman who wanted me to put a gold star inlay in her front tooth. It was in late 1979, in the worst part of that recession, and I was having a very tough time getting my practice going. It was tempting to agree to do that for her, but I was concerned that it wouldn’t be a service.
Here are the relevant issues:
- It’s her smile, and she has a right to do with it what she wants.
- As a dentist, I maybe comprehend the possible compromising of the health of her teeth from this treatment better than she does.
- As a struggling new dentist, I need the money.
- I need to consider the impact on my reputation that agreeing to do this treatment might cause.
- I don’t want to offend her and possibly lose a patient, or lose the trust of a patient.
I thought carefully about it, and then I decided what felt to me was a perfect way to handle it. I told her that I had some reservations about doing the procedure, but would consider doing it if she still wanted it after six months. I felt that would give her time to reflect on doing this and to re-consider the wisdom of it. It turned out that I was right – after six months she had moved on to another fad and was no longer interested in the tooth art.
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