Island Dentistry

I made an appointment with this office for dental pain/tooth ache. Dentist evaluated the tooth and felt that I would need a root canal and referred me to a endodontist whom I seen 4 days later, spent approximately 2 minutes with me looking at the tooth and informed me there was a need for obvious tooth extraction. Endodontist office called Island dentistry and was informed by the person taking the phone call that they “did not know “if the dentist extracted teeth. I would receive a phone call back. In the meantime since the tooth was so painful, I set up an appointment with a periodontist in orange park. I did receive a phone call back from Island dentistry stating they would “set up an appointment “. Approximately 1 hour later I had my appointment with the periodontist who also felt that the tooth needed to be removed emergently. This was done approximately an hour after my appointment started. In addition, I was told by the dentist at Island dentistry that I would need multiple crowns. Periodontist disagreed and stated that I would need 1 crown and 1 cavity filled. Very poor diagnostic skills and untimely treatment of dental pain. I would strongly recommend avoiding this business.

I went for my first appointment, everything was great. I paid to get my retainers replaced, they billed insurance and charged me a fee, not telling me that my insurance was not going to cover the retainers. i recieved a bill for that. when i went to pick up my retainers i was very dissatisfied with the fit, i complained and was told " they always will have a little give in them" not given the option to be refit for the retainers. I accepted the retainer because i felt i was given no other option. The next week i went to an orthodontist and was fit for retainers, they do not have a give and are much better quality for the exact same price. I wont be returning to this dentist.

I really enjoy going to Island Dentistry. The service is fantastic. Office is super clean. People are nice. I highly recommend this place! I got my husband to switch from his old dentist and he is happy he came here as well.

Update 2010
Both canals ended up being sealed with infections still in them... Ended up having the teeth pulled, sinuses and previous sites drained and cold lasered. Another $400 out of pocket. Not happy.
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My "healthiest" child (8) ended up with two cavities in the same tooth on both sides. The cavity went unnoticed until the gum was swollen and infected, and part of the tooth fell off leaving a hole. We went in and tried probiotics in lieu of antibiotics and the staff was friendly about the decision. The infection went down and we did the "baby" pulpotomy (root canal) and had quite an extensive filling. We did some tylenol and arnica (homeopathic) before and after the visit. There were no tears and very little to no pain, and this is a rather sensitive child. She still swears that there were no needles or shots involved, which is awesome because I know I have felt the needles for the shots and they hurt like h*ll. We called around and many dentists wouldn't touch a child at all, and the prices elsewhere were at least a few hundred more for the whole procedure. Of course, she still has a mini-vacation in her mouth, after having both teeth done, but it could have been worse. A plus, the office refuses to do mercury. We have an autistic child who had mercury poisoning, so I was happy to see that they had done their research. One man, upon our checkout, was rather enraged that they refused to fill his child's teeth with mercury. Kudos to Dr. Scales that he would rather turn away patients than cause them neurological harm. It is hard to find people that choose ethics over money.

My first visit was warm and welcoming. I went for my regular visit and found I had a filling that needed some work . They were able to fit me in to have the procedure done on the same day as my visit, saving me another day from asking off of work. Very pleased with the service!

Love Dr. Scales & his staff! I always feel very comfortable going there for cleanings & any treatment I may need. I have & will continue to recommend friends to their office! I know they will be in good hands!

Always great. Everyone is always pleasant and careful

When I first visited Island Dentistry it was such a great experience. Their staff, especially Dr. Scales were excellent and gave me a treatment plan that worked for me. They even used my review in their advertising. NOW that has all changed. I called at the beginning of April and asked if there were any cancelled appointments I could have BUT FIRST they have to collect missed appointment fee from 2yrs ago even though I called to cancel (we'll get to the messaging system later). I ask to schedule an appt just in case no cancellations come up. We did. The end of April approaches and I call to make sure of my appointment date. There's no appointment. No apology, but they get me on the book. Now they confirm this appointment 3X via text and VM. Then, the Friday before my appt I receive a text saying Dr. Scales said another appt the same day would be better...could I switch the appt that I had confirmed 3X. Sure. I respond back that I can make the afternoon instead of morning time. The day of my appt comes and I receive a text that my appointment is at an even different time than the 2 previous, then an apology text is sent from Island Dentistry. At 20 past my original time they call me as if I missed my appt. I told Brandy, the office manager, that Sherry and Lynn had been texting and leaving VM and time is 3:30 per Dr. Scales request. THEY GAVE MY APPOINTMENT AWAY! Brandy acknowledged that the messaging system has problems and I need to reschedule. She then cut me off while I was going through my list of complications with getting an appointment and said, "ma'am I have apologized..." Dismissive. This is how a lot of good doctors lose patients. That front desk can make or break you.

I was very pleased with my first vist to Island dentistry today. Vanessa was great, she gave me an office tour and explained everythng as she xrayed and photoed my teeth.

What I was most pleased with is that they didn't immediately try to have me do a bunch of expensive detail work. They showed me areas that they would watch int the months ahead, and then scheduled me to have a thourgouh cleaning.

All in all a really great experience, it's always difficult to switch to a new dentist, but Island Dentistry made in smooth and easy.

Doctor Scales is a great dentist. Really interested in the best interests of his patients. Got me in and out in a day with a broken tooth issue. Saved my birthday party plans!