How often should You Visit Your Family Doctor and Your Dentist?
I can’t recall many times, when I would have to be compelled to see a doctor for any illness or accident. I had been without a family doctor for more than 16 years now, when the last one retired from active medical duty. It was about that time I had my last overall medical examination, blood pressure, cholesterol, urine. Since I had no problems or warnings, always feeling fine, never felt any urgency to look for new family doctor since. People always remind me the preventive part of medicine and that I should go for another medical examination. Somehow I have developed a disdain for going to the doctor. Can I imagine if they find something and it could disturb my life? It is just manifestation of my ignorance. Since I like to put off unpleasant tasks, I have lasted so long without a doctor. Several months ago, in the spur-of-the-moment, I walked into a local family clinic and enquired about seeing a doctor. The receptionist asked if my reason had any urgency like being sick and I replied no. She asked me to fill out a long personal-health form. The waiting room was full of people I considered sickly. With every minute there, I became feeling more uncomfortable and wanted to go away. The receptionist took my form with the words that it would be reviewed by the doctor. They accept some new patients, and she promised a phone call to make an appointment. That was few months ago, and phone call never came. Somehow I am relieved that I have not been accepted. I feel I should have a medical checkup, but the system does not want me.
In spite, my fear of doctors, I have a family dentist. With my wife, we try to see him at least once a year. I do not have a dental insurance but my wife does. Each visit to the dentist just takes a healthy bite from my pay cheque. The dental office takes your money with a style and smile. These professionals have learnt the business side of their profession over the last twenty years. They used to have small and cheap looking offices in non-prime rental locations. They were usually located on the second floors of strip malls plazas of economy style office-buildings. The dentists’ names were always on their shingles, and they operated mostly as one-person operations. My dentist of the older generation in Toronto retired in early nineties with the building that was torn down at to make a room for new development at Bay and Bloor Subway station in Yorkville. He was working alone, attending patients, answering the phone, when his answering machine was not on. His wife was his only administrative help. At the time, he also did the dental-cleanings. If I can recall correctly. There was not much emphasis about the cleanings. I never heard about whitening then. Only, specialist that, he introduced me to, was a periodontist. His office was a block down the road. The dentist or his wife prepared and mailed their services statements. They were typed on an old IBM Selectric typewriter. The statements we received hardly ever exceeded $100.00 in the total amount to pay. The charges were so much reasonable and affordable to pay. The credit cards were not accepted then by the profession. The required payment was by a cheque from the insurance company or the patients paid the bill by mail. I hardly ever felt any pain from his treatments. Have to admit that sitting and waiting in his simple waiting room, while reading old newspapers and magazines raised some levels of anxiety, about what was coming. When he retired about ten years ago, his office closed for good. There was no continuity since he did not have a son or daughter to carry on the dental profession under the same name. The advertising was allowed only at the time of office opening.
Now, we go to a new family dentist for about a dozen years. It is a quite different experience now. His style and the office are quite typical for today’s offices. They are in prime retail area, where the rent is no longer an obstacle. Decoration, furnishing and equipment, is nothing like in the past. The office is also full of staff, hygienists, assistants or administrators. When you walk in, you get an impression of coming to a spa with the expectation of great enjoyment. It is more about the offices or businesses now, rather than the dentists alone. It is branding, marketing and advertising all the way. Nobody would ask a friend or relative for recommendation anymore since all kinds of advertising is always in your face. Flyers, newspapers, tv, radio and of course the Internet searches and ads. The dentists have become business people, and it is not uncommon for the doctor to enroll in MBA program. Fear of procedures can no longer be justified, but fear of the bills for those with no insurance is real. I suspect that people who do not like dentists are people who simply can’t afford their services. The prices have simply shot up all the way. When the cleaning was just about $35.00 in late eighties and performed by a dentist, it has gone over $300 per session now. It is provided by the hygienist now. It is not just the inflation factor. The hygienists are very proficient, but as they suggest that cleaning should be done 2 or 3 times per year, it is a real expense to budget for. Many people just can’t afford to pay these types of bill for many reasons. Anxiety of dental bill will exceed anxiety of visiting a dentist.
A friend of mine, also a dentist told me recently that it was a mistake he made many years ago, going for the dental profession. He should have been a different type of doctor. Is it a syndrome of other grass being always greener? Or is there some justification to it that medical doctors make a better living? The topic can be a subject of another debate, if we have new facts from both sides. This dentist was clearly tired working of long hours, commuting among three offices that he owned and located far apart. He wanted to be a successful professional making big money! The professional success is clearly defined by the amount of money flowing from owning offices where other associate doctors work for your dreams! The path to that success is not easy, and many give up, along the way. My friend sold his dream offices to another dreamer. Now he works as associate dentist for well-established office. He says that having a more family time was important to him than working to pay large business bills. His personal salary is apparently about the same now as before, but he enjoys more family time. We all work for financial rewards. Do they come as a result of our being good at something, or are money only goals? Is a profession just a vehicle to reach it? Are we patients or just customers?
Is there a lesson that family dentists or walk in clinics could learn from dental offices, or vice versa? Both are two different concepts in Canada. One is run entirely on private money as a business. The other one is free of payments from the patients. All fees paid by the Government insurance. Somehow we know that even the highest dental fees are usually paid for cosmetic procedures and that they are avoidable and optional. They will not make us go bankrupt or lose our homes. A trip to a family doctor or dental clinics for some basic symptoms could be a start of long treatments for serious medical conditions. How unpleasant sickness could be, at least in Canada, we do not have to worry about financial consequences of that treatment. For those reasons, I will take our health system exactly way it is. Pay high fees to our dentists and enjoy peace in mind with general health care. Gladly I will put up with minor inconveniences that are part of our looking for a suitable family doctor since in a serious medical need, I know I would be well taken care of.
Find conveniently located dentists on subway line all over Toronto; uptown, downtown, midtown or in suburbs with Internet, the search is the best!
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