The Artful Dentist

I have had a bridge that I absolutely love for 15 years. Unfortunately, I noticed that, due to gum line recession, and I'm sure a number of other factors, that one of the teeth under the bridge was beginning to become discolored. My regular dentist said that the bridge needed to be replaced and I agreed.

I requested an appt. at The Artful Dentist in order to get a second opinion regarding how likely the bridge replacement would be a success. If the chances were low, I would rather invest that money into paying for a more permanent solution, like implants or a partial, if I were a good candidate.

I was told over the phone that I was not in network but I scheduled the appointment anyway since they were highly recommended by someone I'm close to. I requested a good email address to have my records, including two week old x rays, to be sent to. After a few days I decided to call, cancel and find a different dentist in network. Dr. Daszko answered the phone after hours. I was surprised to catch a person that time of day. His response to my request was that it didn't matter if I was out of network, that there are ways to have insurance pay, and that Denise would call me on Wednesday (the day before my appt) to explain everything.

Denise never called to explain.

I showed up to my appointment early to fill out the new patient paper work and was brought back to the chair by Wendy. I asked if they had received the records my dentist had sent over. Her reply was that Denise, up at the front desk, would know...

Wendy was very unprofessional. She seemed very high strung and rambled on and on about how stretched then she was since they had recently lost a full time employee. She ran in circles complaining about how she couldn't find anything and repeatedly reached up to grab the mask off of her face with her gloved hands as she performed x-rays. Yes, it is a new year, but we are still in the midst of a global pandemic.

It was forty minutes after my scheduled appointment time when Dr. Daszko, while working on another patient, at the next chair over, requested information from Wendy about why I was there. She proceeded to tell him that I wanted a second opinion and that I "didn't believe" what my dentist had told me. That did it for me. I felt rage swell within and knew that I needed to get the hell out of there.

I got out of the chair and asked rhetorically, as I walked past both of them, with a very frustrated tone, if I needed to go up front to find out if my records had been received. Annoyed, I asked Denise if she had received my records.

She looked puzzled, sat back in her chair with wide eyes and said that she didn't recall seeing anything with my name on it. Forget about actually checking the computer she sat directly in front of.

I walked out, got in my car and drove to find a cup of coffee and cool down. I returned about ten minutes later. When asked if I planned to complete my exam, I told both Wendy and Denise that I didn't feel like I was in very good hands and that I did not intend to complete my appointment. Wendy replied that she understood and said, "I don't blame you".

I asked what I owed them for that day, knowing that if I had not returned, it was likely that they would have issued a $100 fee for not cancelling 24 hours in advance (wish he wouldn't have talked me out of it).

They charged me $50, to waste 40 minutes of my life. During payment, Denise mentioned that the office had recently been robbed and that nothing of any value was stolen. She brought up how the homeless population in the area was exploding and that she thought perhaps someone may have been looking for forms for prescriptions.
I never even saw the dentist and felt like I was verbally dumped on by an incompetent assistant while in the chair. Unfortunate, because the dentist was recommended to me by my best friend who had work done by him previously and it looks really nice. She loves it. Maybe they were having a bad day; certainly impacted mine in a negative way.

Boo.

So here is my review: I went to a competitor (Serenity Dental) because I received a post card and needed a cleaning which they had as part of a special with exam for $99. I had called and asked about cost since I did not have any insurance and I also was having tooth pain. They explained their "membership" so I went. After exam, XRays and consult I was told I needed a four quadrant deep cleaning - $1700 :O If I pay $300 for the membership it was $1200... I asked for my XRays (very important) and after calling around and comparing prices I found Dr. Novak who was subbing for Dr. Daszko who was on vacation. He was awesome, very informative and honest, he told me that I really didn't need a full four quadrant and explained why and how to proceed. After all was said and done it only cost me $275! REALLY!? Insurance or not check your prices. Great Place.

Let me start off by saying that I feel like I have been assaulted verbally. This needs to get your attention. Everything was going fine with the staff, very nice. But then George Daszko came in to finalize my routine visit. This guy literally berated me. He didn't like my flossing-numbers so he said my flossing was "like I took a shower once a year". But that's polite compared to what he does later. He asked when my last cleaning was but answered his own question by saying "what's it been, like 3 years?". And it gets crazier. He doesn't like when customers don't fully understand how LHI and the Army Reserve dental, and civilian dental programs work. I told him the Army Reserves covers me for my dental exams and checkups and procedures and all that important stuff. Which I was mistaken apparently. Here's where it gets out of control. He starts SCOLDING me saying "I don't HAVE see you. I don't HAVE to even talk to you. I don't HAVE to give you any brochures. All I'm required to do is verify that you are deployable. That's it!". I don't even know what else to say about this matter. Something was not right with this man's morning but never ever take it out on a customer.Y'all can now make an informed decision when looking for dental care. If you want to be treated like a decent human being, do not, DO NOT go to see George Daszko at the Artful Dentist.

Dr. Daszko is a nice guy he cares about his patients. However I spent around $1,000.00 out of pocket, my insurance paid him another 3,000.00 for two root canals and a crown. They both failed and I have to have them redone by a specialist. My dental coverage has a yearly limit. It was reached in Oct by Dr. Danszko and now I have to pay the specialist $3,000.00 out of my own pocket to cover the repair.
Final word go somewhere else. You will save money.

Friendly staff. Experienced provider/doctor.