If you have never been to our office or if it has been several years, we ask that you fill out our new patient forms to start the process of becoming a patient at our office or reactivating your patient account. Your forms will automatically submit electronically to us once you have completed them – no need to print and send them in. Once we receive them on our end, we will call your insurance company, if applicable, to verify your insurance and call you to schedule your first appointment.
You will need to select one of the paperwork packet options below that best describes your situation to begin your new patient appointment:
If you have been seen in this office, but it has been 2 years or more and you are wishing to schedule an appointment –whether urgent care or to re-establish yourself as a patient– you will need to fill out our new patient paperwork so that we can update your address, contact information, health history and insurance information. We will contact you once we receive this paperwork electronically. Please see above for the appropriate paperwork packets for your circumstance.
Once you have completed your paperwork, we will call to schedule your appointment. On the day of your appointment, we ask that you arrive 5-10 minutes early to fill out our medical history update, in case anything has changed since you submitted your paperwork (please bring a list of your current medications, if necessary). Patients under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult, parent or guardian.
On your first visit to our office, we will take any needed x-rays, go over your health history, medications, allergies and any concerns you may have with the dental assistant. Please alert the staff to any known allergies, all medications and vitamins you are taking or any medical conditions such as, heart conditions, cancer, high blood pressure or recent surgeries. Some patients who have had surgery require premedication with antibiotics prior to dental treatment and cleanings. Your doctor or surgeon should let you know if you need to premedicate. Please make sure to let us know if your doctor requires premeds and bring any necessary documentation to your appointment.
Dr. Ben will come in and perform a full-mouth exam, oral cancer screening and review your x-rays with you. He will discuss any concerns you have or findings of the exam and diagnose the type of dental cleaning and any treatment you need. Some patients require just a standard, healthy-mouth cleaning twice a year. However, some patients may require a deeper periodontal cleaning called a full mouth debridement or scaling and root planings. These deeper cleanings often take longer than a standard healthy mouth cleaning and require local anesthesia. In order to get you scheduled for the type of cleaning appointment you require, we schedule these after your first visit. However, we do try to schedule them as soon after your first visit as possible, if not the same day, as scheduling availability for your necessary treatment allows.
If you are seen on your first visit for an urgent dental matter, we will look at that one specific area (this is called a limited exam and x-ray that specific area of the mouth). Depending on the time available in our schedule, you may have to come back for treatment and a comprehensive exam and full mouth series of x-rays.