A ClearChoice representative did a presentation at our senior center, and I was really impressed. I made an appointment for a consultation at a ClearChoice Dental Implant Center. I came away from that appointment really confused! Maybe you can help make things more understandable.
The representative I spoke with at the clinic said that they would want to remove all of my upper teeth. I have two dental implants that were done by my previous dentist (he retired) and a dental bridge that I am completely happy with. At most I think I would need two dental implants in my upper arch. If I do it their way, I am throwing away thousands of dollars I already spent!
They were really pushing hard to book the surgery at that consultation appointment, which just put me off. I don’t like to be rushed! They just seemed to have an all or nothing approach that did not take into consideration my individual circumstances at all. I did schedule another appointment with them, but am thinking about cancelling it. They spent way more time explaining the financing options than they did the details of the procedure itself! Basically it was, “Oh, we’ll just remove everything and do implants, and here are all the options to pay for it…”
Is this typical? So much of what you read indicates that they are the top of the line in dental implants, but their approach was a real turn-off.
Camilla in San Francisco, CA
Dear Camilla,
A trend in emerging in letters we receive about prospective ClearChoice patients. The treatment plan is almost always “extract all the remaining teeth and do all-on-four dental implants”. Almost every letter also mirrors yours in the discomfort with the level of sales pressure put on in the initial appointments, and the feelings of being rushed into treatment.
These reports make ClearChoice sound like they are not as focused on health care provision as they are on marketing. That is unfortunate. As everyone knows, there is never a “one size fits all” approach to medical or dental treatment. A second opinion on your case would definitely be in order. Can you still contact your retired dentist? If you are happy with the work he or she did, they may have excellent recommendations about who you should see now.
Support for this blog post is provided by the dental office of Baton Rouge dentist Dr. Perry.