Not sure what you mean by “reputation”. But generally I think it’s hard for anyone to like their Dentist visit. Even a “checkup” typically involves a cleaning which is invasive and uncomfortable. This is compounded by the fact that people don’t take care of their teeth so feedback from dentists is almost always poor. I don’t think Dentists have a bad rep, but I can safely say I don’t look forward to my visits 😅
The first dentist I ever went to was great. He was good with kids and adults and did his job. He was realistic about kids being kids and gave us the tools and information to make sure our teeth were healthy. I had him all the way through my braces and into high school. He then retired.
My next dentist was a horrendous, preachy, asshole who loved to tell all of his patients what was wrong with them, make people feel bad for their decisions to drink soda, and surmised that we were all eating too much junk food (which he wouldn’t really elaborate on when asked). My diet wasn’t perfect, but I had mostly home cooked meals with steamed vegetables, along with the occasional fast food lunch with friends.
He was also Mormon and I know a lot of Mormons love to get on their high horse and take pleasure in being petty, insufferable, assholes. I haven’t read their batshit book (albeit, most in that genre are similarly zany and harebrained), but there must be some discussion on how to be a bad neighbor to everyone you meet in there based on their predilictions for unfair/unwarranted judgement and exclusion. He only hired other Mormon dentists to his practice and all the dental assistants were similarly preachy and religious.
I dreaded going to the dentist for mostly social reasons and didn’t want to be shamed by being told that I had better take care of my teeth (which were fine) because my parents had spent a lot of money on my braces (and it wasn’t that much money because the first dentist wasn’t a sneering profiteer).
I ditched that asshole once I went to college and have had a couple dentists since then who were fine, did their job and didn’t give me a bunch of flak for not flossing after every meal like a fucking psychopath.
Fundamentally, I think the issue with dentists is that when you get a bad one, they make you feel bad, which is the absolute antithesis of healthcare.
Additionally, because of the arbitrary and asinine distinction in the US between oral care and basically the rest of the body, dentistry is seen as cosmetic and unnecessary, often allowing or obligating dentists to charge an arm and a leg for most of their services. We all know how prices ratchet up from initial obligations to cover higher costs into “fuck the consumer, they were fine paying the higher prices anyway so let’s increase our profit margin”.
Compound that with the ridiculous price setting and insurance rackets baked into anything close to the health sector, and you have a lot of frustration even before patients get into the chair.
If you’re not a dentist who will practice compassionate care, at least be one who just shuts the fuck up and does their job. Of course let the patient know what’s going on in their mouth and how they can better take care of themselves or treat something they’re dealing with, but chill the fuck out with the fire and brimstone shit about missing a cleaning or not flossing all the time.
Healthcare is all about bedside manner. If you don’t have it, you’re not a good provider and your business can and should suffer (the fact that our healthcare structures are businesses and profit motivated is fundamentally opposed to effective care, anyway, but that’s the subject of another essay).
Edit: Cleaned it up a bit and added that my first dentist retired.
Additionally, because of the arbitrary and asinine distinction in the US between oral care and basically the rest of the body
You’ll be (un)happy to know that your neighbours to the north suffer from same affliction. We have universal healthcare, but teeth aren’t part of the body apparently, so that’s not covered.
Always a fun time to go to a medical professional and feel like you’re talking to a used car salesman who is trying to upsell you on a useless/unneeded procedure.
Do they? Well most people dislike dentists because it’s very uncomfortable to have someone messing about in your mouth, and many things dentists do (cleanings, some surgeries) hurt or leave you uncomfortable for a long time after, and most people think of it as mostly aesthetic. Compared to say, a surgeon that might be similar but is saving your life, or a family medicine doc that at most puts a piece of wood on your tongue.
Also, dentists go to dentist school, not med school (in most countries at least). Dent is easier to get into, and is usually a shorter time to get your degree. Some people think this devalues dentistry, and say dentists aren’t as good as “regular” doctors because of that. It’s not valid, dentists are very good at what they do, so don’t stress it.
Do they? Maybe it’s more unpleasant because they’re expensive
My mother in law was an office manager at a dentist. Dentists have sales quotas and have bonuses to everyone in the office for upselling.
You go in to a medical professional for health care and advice and they try and sell to you.
That’s weird. I’ve never ever had any dentist try to sell me anything except for coming up with solutions to problems I have with my teeth. Never up selling or anything
Yeah. It’s extremely common. Fluoride treatments, sealants, crown replacements aren’t necessary. And things like veneers, and whiting are pushed pretty hard.
I think one of the problems is even determining where that line is.
I think my dentist is “good” and they have NOT been pushing things like veneers or whitening.
However I’ve lucked out with good teeth so they are almost never fixing problems I currently have. However as I get older, they’ve started recommending more serious preventative measures. However I have no way of knowing whether I actually need them or if they are superfluous.
It’s coming down to having a dentist who I trusted very much. However he retired and sold his practice, so do I trust the new guy?
Ya, going to the dentist can feel like seeing a car mechanic. You come in for one thing and then they try to sell you tons of other stuff that you are not even sure you need. It can feel really scummy. There are good ones but just like car mechanics they usually own their own business. If you go to the jiffy lube of dentists they will try to sell you other shit and may make the issue you went in for worse.
Real doctors go to real medical school. They learn tons of biology, pharmacology, anatomy.
Dental school deals with one body part and only a small subset of health problems.
