Willamette Dental Group - Portland - Lents

"Dr Nguyen seemed like the only treatment he wanted to provide was one we were not comfortable with. My daughter was nervous to get fillings and we had discussed the gas and she did not want it. I told them it was an absolute no and it continued to be mentioned which made her more anxious throughout the appointment. The hygienist asked my 6 year old if she wanted “mommy to stay in the room or wait outside”… absolutely not okay. She also said I wasn’t supposed to talk about the gas, only the doctor was supposed to talk about that with my kid. No. It took weeks for me to get an appointment scheduled because it took weeks for the doctor to even open the message from the front desk. He was insistent on doing silver caps on my daughter’s cavities and rolled his eyes at me when I told him I’d rather her have a traumatic experience getting fillings than have YEARS of trauma being made fun of for having silver teeth. When he walked in the appointment he asked again what we were doing even though I’d been clear that we wanted fillings done and when I asked what his plans were he said he’d like to do the cavity drops and then try the silver caps. AGAIN pushing for the caps I’d already said we would not be doing. After putting the drops (SDF?) on the cavities they gave my daughter the numbing jelly and she started to get understandably nervous but was still doing okay. He kept using the mirror to shake her cheek saying “this is what she would feel” and did it at least 6 times. He then took her glasses off her face without saying anything and again brought up the gas which I said “it makes her anxious she doesn’t want it” and he said “well she’s already anxious right now” at which point she lost it because she thought he was going to give her the gas anyways. As I was trying to calm her down he took his gloves off and walked out of the room visibly irritated. From the beginning of our interactions it seemed that he had been pushing only one course of action, the easiest for him, instead of listening to what our family decided is best for our child. Instead of trying to ease any anxiety he continued to do things that increased it. I told him that she’s 6 but she’s smart and because he’d given one course of action as an easy out she’s now only focused on that being the plan. He’s supposed to work with a family to do what’s best and instead he didn’t listen to anything we had to say or came back with an opposite response to anything that didn’t fit his agenda. Overall he said he didn’t feel comfortable doing a filling on her that day because she was too anxious and I told him he actually wouldn’t ever be doing a filling for her. He said our options at that point were doing the crowns or having her go under anesthesia to get her fillings done. I know my kid and I know that neither of those options are necessary for her, as I stated even at the original appointment. I’m honestly glad that he didn’t get to the fillings for my daughter because I don’t trust that he would’ve done them correctly even in the best of circumstances. If he doesn’t like working with kids he could just say that instead of trying to force parents onto a path they’ve repeatedly said no to because it’s the simplest option for him. I’m so disappointed in our lack of care. Everyone else that our family has seen here has been wonderful though."

"Dental hygienist Thao is caring, communicative and 100% committed to her clients. I was impressed with the thoroughness of her work and her ability to motivate & educate me on dental hygiene. She is the sort of employee who makes the entire organization shine. Thanks Willamette Dental for having such great staff."

"I’ve been going to WD for nearly a decade. While I don’t see the same staff at my appointments, I’ve always had a positive experience and feel they keep a good records of previous visits to provide appropriate treatment. It would be better if they updated their scheduling system to have an online option, right now they only do phone appointments two months out."

"My experience with Willamette Dental's doctors and staff Has been excellent. I would recommend Willamette Dental to my family and friends. I can't say enough good things about the team. Very professional, courteous, and thoughtful. Thank you very much for taking care of me!"

"Everyone I spoke with here was so thoughtful and caring. The skill level was outstanding. Definitely picked the right place to get my emergency oral surgery. One tip to note, if you want the nitrous option, ask about it ahead of time. There is a requirement that you have someone to drive you from your appointment and stay with you till you come back to consciousness."