Welcome to The Tooth Corner Dental Offices, we look forward to welcoming you to our dental office. With over 15 years in the industry, The Tooth Corner is committed to offering you affordable dentistry for the whole family.
As a new patient, there are many things you can expect from your first appointment. We know that sometimes visiting the dental office for the first time can be overwhelming and can give some people anxiety as a result. We want to be able to simplify and ease the process as much as we can to better enhance your experience with our dental office.
We want to make sure you’re not lost when you get here, if you follow a GPS, you can search our Dental office name on Google Maps and you’ll be able to find our location on the map.
If you’re not using Google Maps, but are using an Apple Maps or another App, insert our full address, as sometimes, our Dental Office Name does not show up.
To make it even easier for you, just find the location nearest you or your location of interested by visiting locations and then click on the location icon on the map, put your address and click on get directions. You can also visit the “HOW TO FIND US?” tab on the location page below the map. There you will find all the detailed directions you need.
We organize and coordinate our dental schedule with our receptionist. This includes schedules for our Dental Assistant, Dental Hygienist, Dentist, and our Specialists. This means when you book and confirm your appointment, we’ve reserved this time for you in order to provide you with the necessary work you need to get done in the time slot allotted to you.
Our office will usually call you within 24-48 hrs to confirm your appointment prior to the scheduled date, this allows us to be sure that your time has been reserved just for you.
If you provided our receptionist with your mobile number or email, you may get an email or text message with a confirmation note to confirm your appointment. If you follow the instructions accordingly, you will be able to confirm your appointments through those mediums.
This is why when an appointment is missed or if you show up without notice, it can impact the flow of our patients and doctors work. When you arrive late, this has an effect on the patient scheduled right after you. Out of respect for our schedule and flow, we highly recommend you attend a few minutes early (we recommend 10-15 mins) to take the time to fill out the necessary paperwork and documents prior to starting your dental appointment.
There are a few things to consider when coming in for your dental appointment. Whether you are coming in by yourself or with your family, whether you’re a parent bringing one child or multiple children to the dental office, we want you to feel comfortable and at home here.
Every person coming in is unique with their own situation when it comes to billing your dental treatment appropriately. The Tooth Corner Dental Offices follows the Ontario Dental Association’s ‘Suggested Fee Guide for General Practitioners’. This Fee Guide is based on dental services performed by a dentist. Since this is a ‘suggested’ guide, fees may vary both above and below the guide. For more information on the guide please visit the ODA website to learn more. We offer affordable and fair pricing for the work being completed. Suggested guides do not include pricing for lab fees, which may be needed to complete a treatment.
Prior to coming to your appointment, you can save time by sharing your private insurance information with our dental office, this includes your policy number, the name of the insurance company, your full name (with correct spelling) and your birth date. This allows us the chance to get all the information needed for the insurance company and obtain a complete breakdown on what your dental coverage includes. Feel free to ask our dental office for a breakdown of these services so you can better understand what procedures and dental services are covered under your plan and what is not included.
We welcome all patients and accept government insurance plans including, Interim-Federal Health Programme (IFHP – available for new refugees within the first year in Canada), Healthy Smiles Ontario (available for children 17 years of age and under, for eligible parents), Ontario Works (available for families receiving OW benefits), and the Ontario Disability Support Programme (ODSP – available for individuals with a disability and receiving disability benefits). Two of our offices (The Tooth Corner on Edward St. and The Tooth Corner in Owen Sound) are Non-Assignment offices and may not take certain Government insurances. Please call those offices directly for details or see our insurance page under New Patients on the main menu for further details.
Don’t worry about having to pay up-front, we know that sometimes families can’t afford to, especially when you have a large family and multiple kids. This is why we take the time to bill your dental services to your public insurance directly.
If you’re not sure what your government insurance covers, we can help break it down.
Your oral health is important to us. We promise you that we offer affordable dental care that is affordable for your whole family. We even offer 0% interest-free options for individuals that can’t pay for all their work up-front. As noted above, we follow the ODA fee guide and can walk you through the necessary dental work that you need.
Patients can sometimes avoid following the dental treatment plan offered by the dentist, however, it’s important to note that by avoiding completing your dental treatment, you can sometimes risk worsening your condition further.
For example, you have multiple cavities but don’t want to get the work done. Your cavities may end up getting worse, which could later impact the root of your teeth and as a result may later result in the removal of your dental root (endodontics) and later may even require a crown to be placed – all because you avoided to do an early check and to fix a filling while it was still in its early stage.
Early checks and prevention can go a long way to avoid major dental procedures and costs at a later stage.
We get it, some people hate Dentists (you may have had a horrible experience in the past). You may have a concern and just want a professional opinion. It’s great you’re taking the step to take care of your oral health! Most of our locations offer free consultations on major services, including but not limited to, Implants and Braces.
If your first visit is for a “New Patient Exam” or you’re coming in for a cleaning, the dentist or dental hygienist will follow some steps before they commence cleaning.
You will be asked to fill out a New Patient Form, that includes your medical history. If this is for your child, the parent/guardian will be asked to fill out the medical form for each child.
The dentist will review the medical history with the patient (or parent of the patient), in case the patient has any medical background the doctor needs to be aware of, for example, if the patient has diabetes, hypertension or heart disease.
The dentist will then ask you:
For a new patient exam, the type of x-rays done will depend on the oral condition of the patient and what needs to get done. Some patients may require a full panoramic digital x-ray for a full mouth view and others may not.
The Dental Hygienist or Dentist will do the cleaning. The Hygienist or Dentist may use a hand-scaler or an ultrasonic scaling device to remove tartar (calculus), plaque, and biofilm from the tooth surface and around your gum line.
Following your dental cleaning the Dentist will go over the x-ray with you and identify any key concerns or problems you may have, for example, any evident cavities, root removals etc. that may be needed.
If you visited a dentist within the last 6 months to a year, our office may request your x-rays faxed or emailed over from the dental office that has your file. All you need to do is give consent to us to contact your previous Dentist to obtain your files.
Digital dental x-rays are very common and very safe as they emit very low doses of radiation. Digital x-rays have 90% less radiation than film-based x-rays. Digital x-rays will appear on the computer and are very quick to process.
Ensuring you are taking care of your oral health when you’re pregnant is important. During pregnancy, some women may feel greater sensitivity with their teeth and gums due to changes in their hormones.
If you are pregnant, please ensure the dental assistant or dentist is aware you are pregnant. With dental x-rays, there is hardly any exposure to any part of the body except the teeth and the radiation is very low that there is no harm. However, some women choose not to take x-rays regardless of what we have to say, and that is something we respect and will adhere to as per the patient’s preference.
At the Tooth Corner, some locations have multiple dentists and we have both experienced and qualified dentists that are male and female. Sometimes, based on the preference of the patient, you can ask to be with a female dentist. We respect your decision and can arrange accordingly based on availability. However, some locations may differ as we may only have a male dentist working there and options are not available to switch Dentists accordingly.
Depending on how much plaque or tartar build-up you have, a dental cleaning should take 30 to 60 minutes. A dental cleaning should not hurt. However, you may feel sensitivity around your gums or teeth if you haven’t had a dental cleaning for a long time or you’ve had a lot of plaque build-up.
A professional dental cleaning by a certified dental hygienist or Dentist aims to remove plaque, tartar, and stains that have accumulated on your teeth over time. Even with routine brushing and flossing of your teeth and gums, tartar can develop. By visiting a dental office at least twice a year, you can ensure that periodic checks will provide you with well-maintained oral health, which in turn has an impact on your overall health.
Depending on the level of work to be completed, sometimes the Dentist can complete multiple fillings on multiple surfaces and teeth in one dental appointment. Some dental treatments need more work than others and may require multiple visits. More complex dental treatments will need several visits, for example, Orthodontics (Braces), Implants, Endodontic procedures, Dentures, Crowns / Cosmetic dentistry etc. Our office will work closely with you to ensure we are working around your daily schedule to ensure we complete your work in due time.