Most kids don't enjoy (and that's an understatement) visiting the dental office. An anxious and cranky child can be very difficult to deal with, especially if the environment of the dental office isn't kid-friendly. Therefore, you need to go the extra mile to ensure that your kid gets the maximum possible benefits from their dental consultations. Start by ensuring that your children's dental care specialist has these three features:
Convenience
Children get cranky and difficult to deal with when they are tired. Therefore, you need to take your kid to the dentist when they are fresh and rested. For most kids, this means going to the dentist in the morning hours, when they haven't tired themselves out with play or schoolwork.
This can't happen if the dental office is located far from your home, work, or school. You will find it difficult to go out of your way and make the dental consultation appointment before resuming your other activities for the day. Therefore, the dental office should be conveniently located near your bases of operation so that you can go and come back from the consultation with ease.
Kid-Friendly Activities
When you go to the dentist, you go to get your dental treatment and nothing else. It is different for kids, especially those who have been going to the same (friendly) dentist for a long time. Pediatric dentists endear themselves to kids via different activities and methods, for example:
- They give kids prizes (such as stickers or toys)
- Providing healthy snacks to kids
- Providing audio visual entertainment
- Ensuring their dental offices don't have an obvious "air" of a hospital or dental office (think hospital gowns and drug odor)
These tactics work. Therefore, your kid's dental care should be handled by a dentist who practices them.
Friendly Staff
Lastly, the dental office should also be staffed with compassionate and friendly professionals. It's not just the dentist who should be friendly with kids; everybody who will have contact with your child should have a friendly demeanor. For example, if it's just the dentist who is friendly but they are being assisted by a scowling dental assistant, they may still develop an unhealthy fear of dental care.
The factors above underscore the reasons you shouldn't automatically assume that your current dentist is suitable for your child just because they have been with you for a long time. You need a pediatric dentist who is professionally trained to handle kids and their dental issues.
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