problems with dentist

[fastosprintini]

---

Members don't see this ad.

maybe somebody here has a bright idea what to do...
my daughter is a college student in california, she has been seen there by a dentist who performed two procedures (onlays), she developed severe pain two days later, called the dentist and was advised over the phone that her pain most likely is originating from the ears (?) . no analgesics or antibiotics were offered. daughter went to urgent care center which could find nothing wrong with ears or tonsils , prescribed percocets.
pain got worse, we flew her out home to be seen by our family dentist who was freakin mad to find that the inlays were onlays (cheaper) , one tooth was completely normal and did not need anything in the first place , the other one had necrotic pulpitis with pus, which required removal of the onlay, a rootcanal procedure and a crown to save it.
he wrote an angry letter to the californian dentist accusing her of malpractice and fraud and backed it up by photos and x-rays.
when i spoke to their office the next day i was strung along for days, subsequently an offer of reimbursement for their bill (and nothing else ) was made provided i sign a lenghth legal waiver that frees them from any legal obligation/ responsibility thereafter , obviously a lawyer had it written up.
no word of apology was offered.
of course i told them that they are welcome to keep thar money and that they should be ready for whats coming their way....😡
so far i have sent a formal complaint backed up by our dentists to the california board of dentistry , i am planning to send a copy of things to our dental insurance carrier to make sure they review the billing paterns of the californian group.
now , is there anything people could come up with, to get back at this dentist 😡😡😡
i know , this is an anesthesiology forum but i feally like the way people here think.....😎
so, any suggestions appreciated, fasto
ps, of course i think about a lawsuit, however the californian lawyers i spoke to said that there has to be some lasting damage in order to justify to proceed.

 

[Planktonmd]

I am sorry for what happened to your daughter and also glad to hear that the problem was corrected.
As a physician I feel that litigation against another health care professional is not the best solution and if I were you I would be content that no permanent damage has happened and move on.

 

[Gimlet]

I agree that a lawsuit isn't really warranted here. There has to be duty, breach of duty, causation, and damage for you to have a case. You've got 2-3 out of 4. If some permanent harm had been caused your daughter because of the infection, then you might have something to sue for, but fortunately you fixed it before that became the case.

The guy does sound like a shyster, though. Maybe contact the Better Business Bureau in California?

 

[jetproppilot]

I agree that a lawsuit isn't really warranted here. There has to be duty, breach of duty, causation, and damage for you to have a case. You've got 2-3 out of 4. If some permanent harm had been caused your daughter because of the infection, then you might have something to sue for, but fortunately you fixed it before that became the case.

The guy does sound like a shyster, though. Maybe contact the Better Business Bureau in California?

I disagree with your assessment that a lawsuit is not warranted....doing work on a tooth that didnt need anything? Another one with necrotic crap in it that an onlay was placed on which required a subsequent procedure to save it?

OHHHHH, YEAHHHHH, I think ya gotta case, Fasto.

Like Plank, though, I wouldnt file.

Your letters to the appropriate licensing authority backed up by evidence was fabulous.

I'd also send a letter to the chick dentist herself.

 

[fastosprintini]

thank you all for the replies !
no, i do not want to go to the lenghths of a lawsuit which i see as a huge timesink designed to make lawyers wealthy. the money in question altogether is not more than $ 2,800 , flights and everything included . however , the thought that a child was mistreated and then left to suffer for a week by someone who has no sense of ethics makes me really, really angry , and i would like to get back at these fools.
do dentists have another licensing agency besides the state board? could i send copies of the issue to other insurance groups? to competing dental offices in town ?
any creative idea is highly appreciated , fasto

 

[aphistis]

What in the world is this doing in the anesthesia forum? Closing.

 

[jetproppilot]

What in the world is this doing in the anesthesia forum? Closing.

Dude, WTF?

Fasto's an anesthesia attending, Slim. Thats what its doing here.

I don't see impropriety nor inappropriateness here.

jesus c&^ist the hall monitors swoop in again.

So I'll, uhhhhh, open it back up.

 

[Planktonmd]

I second Jet's opinion on this one.
This is not a request for medical advice, it's simply a guy who is telling a personal story. It does not violate any of SDN TOS's (as far as I can tell), so what's the issue??

 

[Arch Guillotti]

I don't see impropriety nor inappropriateness here.

👍

 

[Fooper]

My wife just had a root canal - almost 3 hours in the chair & then very sore TMJs for 3-4 days afterward from holding her mouth open so long. You definitely have a case for costs, pain & suffering, and punitive damages. I would file -- not necessarily pursue all the way to court but you should be able to get a decent settlement. Do dentists have a national data bank??

Think of how many cases in the ASA Closed Claims are from dental injuries...

Think of the next person's daughter in that chair....

 

[Impromptu]

We had wonderfully uplifting lectures on malpractice yesterday (as part of our capstone-type class). After an entire day of tort law, I don't think you have any chance to get a malpractice lawyer to take up your case, let alone win it. Even if you met the 4 criteria needed to win a lawsuit (which you don't haven't), a $2800 award isn't enough to cover the court costs, lawyers, and expert witnesses (unless your home dentist is willing to make a pro-bono appearence).

The Better Business Bureau's main purpose is to mediate disagreements between two parties. Since they have made an offer to reimburse their bills, the BBB will likely take that into consideration.

Whether you pursue a case or not, the longer you hold onto the bitterness and anger, the more it will eat away at you. You've gotta ask yourself if it is worth it. While this isn't a religious forum, I've found my faith to be extremely healing when others have wronged me, especially those that don't want to make it right. Pray to have the strength to forgive them, or at least that your heart can be at peace again. Don't do it for them, do it for peace in your own heart. It is wonderful to be able to move on.

Once you have forgiven them, then you are able to rationally and lovingly decide if suing them would be worthwhile. Whatever your choice then, you won't be making it out of hate or anger (not good motivators).

 

[CAPBonanza]

If I were you, I'd get a lawyer to send them a threatening letter, saying pay up the $2800 in addition to reimbursing their part of the bills. Irrespective of whether you can prove that they've engaged tortious conduct (debatable), they've obviously engaged in malpractice (not debatable) and should be called out as such. While the cost of litigation is prohibitive in this case, the threat of such just might work.

 

[McSnappy]

We had wonderfully uplifting lectures on malpractice yesterday (as part of our capstone-type class). After an entire day of tort law, I don't think you have any chance to get a malpractice lawyer to take up your case, let alone win it. Even if you met the 4 criteria needed to win a lawsuit (which you don't haven't), a $2800 award isn't enough to cover the court costs, lawyers, and expert witnesses (unless your home dentist is willing to make a pro-bono appearence).

The Better Business Bureau's main purpose is to mediate disagreements between two parties. Since they have made an offer to reimburse their bills, the BBB will likely take that into consideration.


Although the BBB is one option, I can tell you, they are a business, not about the better of the bureau.

How they work is you sign up by paying a fee to them to become listed. Now, a claim comes into them and Dentist will receive a call from an 'agent' and Dentist will tell them 'he' offered to make it right and they go back to you and say, 'this is what dentist told us'. They attempt to mediate, you disagree and 'dentist' receives a mark on their record. That is what we all want to happen, right.

Well, in a previous life, I worked for a company that this happened to and when it was time to pay the yearly fee, the 'rep' said, we can remove that mark, but your fees will need to be increased!😱 Kinda, like mafia to me! We would all hope that mark on their record is there for life, but, in all likelihood, it won't.
I would still report them to the BBB and see what you can do with it and I would tell Dentist, your daughter is thinking about talking to "The Cameras", like a justice TV/News bit camera. That usually, will make a business stand up. If they call your bluff, follow through.

 

[Arch Guillotti]

(Re)closing per admin request.

 

[jetproppilot]

What in the world is this doing in the anesthesia forum? Closing.

P.S.

There was a DON'T SUE vibe going on in this thread.

Our country is in dire need of tort reform and a reprogramming of the general public to let go of the lawsuit-hair-trigger.

You missed the forest for the trees, Slim, and in the process killed a very salient message included in this thread that could've influenced many individuals decisions in the future.