A month after the Alberta government brought in a plan to update its 20-year-old dental fee guide, dentists and patients say that it’s helped them polish their relationship to a sparkling shine.
Back in November, the Government of Alberta updated its dental fee guide for the first time since the 1990s, which resulted in a lowering of prices for many common procedures by approximately eight percent.
The new guide came into effect on January 1 and while it wasn’t a smooth adjustment for a number of clinics in Calgary, it has proven to be beneficial.
“I can’t say it’s been completely easy because when some other force comes in and tells you how to run your business, it is challenging in the private world, but at the same time, we think the benefits will outweigh the challenges in the long run for sure,” said Jan Jaffer, CEO of TREC Flow Dental.
Jaffer says the changes have helped bridge the gap between dentists and patients.
“That level of transparency that we have now that we didn’t have a year or two ago I think really helps the patients in building trust with dentistry as a whole.”
He says that with the new guide, patients are often thinking a lot less about the cost of procedures and more about the treatment itself.
“It’s easier for patients to come in and they’re paying less, so they’re willing to, in most situations, actually talk more about treatment instead of money which was always a huge concern,” Jaffer said. “Now that we know the answer, we can focus on dentistry which is what we want.”
Patients, like Patricia Fonseca, agree that there is a lot more transparency in dentistry under the new guide.
“They are a lot more clear on what the fees are. I see them and I understand them completely.”
Fonseca, a patient at Nolan Hill Dental in northwest Calgary, says she used to hate going to the dentist but not because of the procedures that she’d undergo while there.
“I never got the right information, I never knew what was going on, I felt I was coaxed into doing things and I didn’t really understand why,” she said.
“Nolan Hill made quite the first impression on me. They are very transparent on information, very clear on the fee guide and I never had any questions on the type of lingo that they used.”
She says that she has also been able to build a very positive relationship with her dentist since the guide change.
“I felt that was really important that I am not just there as a patient who is there to get my teeth cleaned or something like that.”
Fonseca says the new guide and relationship has changed how she looks at her treatment schedule too.
“I’ll come back again and again because I understand what’s going on and I just feel comfortable that way.”
The dental fee guide covers about 1,600 codes for procedures that dentists can charge for.
The prices associated with the procedures in the guide are just suggestions and clinics are not required to follow them exactly.
Officials say the goal of the guideline change was to help people who cannot normally afford dental care.
(With files from Stephanie Wiebe)
