Ritchie Dental Group, P.A.

Both my daughter and I saw Ritchie Dental Group. The staff is very friedly. My daughter's cleaning went well, but they wanted to refer us to a specialist in Austin. Never in the previous 12 years, did another dentist nor pediatrician ever commented on her supposedly "enlarged tonsils" and that they were not visible; and that we needed to see a "tongue and thrust" specialist. Beware...
For me, just coming in for my 6-month cleaning (2 hrs is a bit much for new patient). They too mentioned about "not being able to see my tonsils" - quite coincidendal I would say. Then, they wanted to replace all 5 fillings, do a new root canal/ crown replacement. I was not pleased with the hygeniest - too pushy, and not feel that she did a good job with the overall cleaning (did not spend the time cleaning) but rather looking for something that was not there. Final take is that they are trying to make a quick buck! (I since then spoke with my prior dentist/ hygienist who confirmed that my dental health is very good and there is not need for all that dental work). So - beware of pressure to undergo unnecessary treatments.

The procedures went well.
Thanks, Bob Hudson

I would have filled out the multiple choice questionnaire but there was a question I couldn't answer (& it won't accept blanks): would you return to the office: yes or no? It should also give the choice of: "Maybe"- or aren't you interested in those on the fence?

The root canal went well- I thought, until near the end, when someone came in & got the dentist to agree to see another patient -after me, & they were now waiting in another room. (At that point, I wanted him to just stop & take care of that patient now- so he could come back & work on me with full concentration- I could tell he was flustered by the request- but I was unable to speak with the dental block holding my mouth open.) Seeing this other patient (in my opinion) was going to throw off the schedule- so (in my opinion) my root canal was not completed: my bite on the crown was never checked, no paper- no tapping was done during that appointment. I thought- since it was a temporary patch- that possibly it was tiny- it didnt need to be checked- & that's why they weren't doing it. But, as we now know, it was way too tall- that crown was the only area that touched when I closed my mouth. So, a couple hours later, when the numbness started to wear off- I entered one of the most severe pain episodes of my life- I immediatly called the dentist, it was getting near five o'clock and I knew this tooth had to be looked at & probably could be easily fixed: I thought about how the bite wasn't checked was probably the problem. They attempted to contact the dentist while I was on hold for a long time: (I was able to get my anti-biotic at the nearby HEB Pharmacy, check out of the store & get to my car) before they finally came back only to tell me they "were unable to get the dentist's attention since he was with a patient!!" This news shocked me... I was then told they'd call me back after they spoke with dentist. (hmmm- they interupted him during MY ROOT CANAL- but someone else, during their procedure, was getting better treatment than I had been given just hours before: no interuptions during THEIR procedure- were they having brain surgery?!). But there was no way I was going to sit in my car waiting to hear what to do next since I knew I must be seen and it was nearing 5:00- no way was I going to live with this until the next day- when it could easily be fixed today- it's their fault- error that created this, and only a short amount of time is needed to fix it. I don't care WHAT he has to do at 5:00- he's going to finish this tooth.
So, instead of waiting (I was fairly sure I was being stalled: so they could then call me back & say: it was too late in the day for me to be seen. (I should have been told to drive over- not "wait for a call back" since it was very close to 5:00 & I live 30 minutes away- they didn't know I was down the street.) And still, no one is saying "sorry you are in pain" instead I'm treated as if I'm asking to be squeezed in for an "emergency" whitening procedure- then I received the same indifferent treatment by the other dentist when I walked into waiting room just before 5:00. She asked why I was there (with tears in my eyes- that went ignored) so I said that my crown was too tall- & it hurt- she just mumbled something and turned away- no "sorry.". At that point I was beginning to feel I wouldn't be seen at all but was glad that I had-while some of the numbing was still working- driven straight over to the dental office. By then the pain was increasing by the minute- despite my attempts to keep my mouth open. Note: A tooth that has a history of pain -like this one does, it doesn't take much re- ignite the nerves, creating all the old pains to come back- that's why, I believe, it hurt so much- (the tooth has had 5 crowns on it in less than ten years, some of the attempts to fix it were very very painful.). And still, what really upsets me is that no one said "sorry," not when I said it was hurting, or when I mentioned the crown (which they worked on just hours before- when doing the root canal) was too tall. I do not have a history of calling after my many procedures -crying- but I did this time. Clearly, the dentist messed up: there was no attempt to check my bite after the root canal- (which was eventually fixed that day- at my insistence & it did eventually stop the worst part of the pain- but also- before the grinding down to fix my bite was done- I asked several times for a numbing injection to be done first- before they attempted to touch the tooth- which was visibly swollen around it, but each time I was denied- with no explanation.) afterwards, I was given a prescription for a strong anti- inflammatory- I was in no way able or in condition to: go to the pharmacy, wait 45 minutes or more for the RX to be filled, then drive 30 minutes home- but it's what I was being asked to do. I said " can I take Aleve instead- as I had that at home already- he said the RX was much stronger and is (exactly) what I needed. In the end, I didn't get the RX filled, I wasn't capable of it. I asked for- and was given an ice pack. Once at home I was unable to move for hours- as the pain made my face, ears- everything hurt. It's Saturday 12/22/12 & I'm still in pain- slowly getting better I hope- but no one has thought to call and check- so I'm left wondering: is it supposed to hurt this much? Is something wrong? Am I going through all this only to not get better- will I later find I need to have something else fixed too?
I am quite sure it is standard practice to check the bite after the surface of a tooth has been altered and or patched, but no one was acknowledging this forgotten step. Plus: both dentists had the opportunity to say "sorry" (which is also a great way to avoid a law suit- studies have proven this to be fact-) so -in my opinion- you should learn to say the words- I know you say it during the treatment, but never once when I called back- or when I showed up- or as I was leaving, did anyone say they were sorry. I was in extreme pain and I'm still in severe pain for several days now- it even triggered a migraine with vomiting, which has never happened to me before, I get headaches- but not like that one. (Also, no Christmas parties etc. for me... Thank goodness I was done with my shopping & wrapping- as my life is now on hold.) The reason I am going on about this- is I hope you can learn something from this- maybe my pain & treatment will help to prevent someone else's, and I hope it's the last time that a doctor has let me down- putting their needs before mine- (which is what I feel happened when you were asked to see another patient right after me- you shorted my appt. in order to fit them in- & that is so wrong.) So my procedure didn't get finished & no one was in a hurry to help me when things went very wrong a few hours later. (I really hope you didn't also rush the last root you were cleaning out- did you look at it and say to yourself: "good enough"??? Did you skip anything else??? Is there more to come? -More mistakes done- to be revealed later? These are the things I think about as I lay here, again, with my body in shambles- all my plans for this week (& maybe longer?) are ruined -again. I feel no one has my back- that "good enough" is all I'm given. I had hoped for better treatment from you & your office. I'm so disappointed, and I AM SO SORRY. Victoria Swan

Greg did an excellent job.

Bob Hudson