Cataloochee Dental Group - Sylva

"First, the staff was helpful and friendly. That's the only reason I gave office two stars instead of one. I had been there before for a cleaning that went just fine. This last time I was there was to have a tooth worked on. I was led back and seated promptly at the time of my appointment. Shortly after, the dental assistant comes and puts numbing gel on my gum for the dentist to administer the shots. I wait and wait and wait. I waited so long the numbing effect of the gel wears off. I wait more. After 50 minutes I finally see dentist go to the patient in the chair over one from me. The dental assistant comes and put more numbing gel on me. The dentist then comes over and gives me the shots to completely numb the tooth. He said he would give it about ten minutes to numb up good before we start. So, after waiting 20 minutes and having been there waiting over an hour and the work hasn't actually started, I get up to walk out. On the the way out the dentist asks if I'm leaving. I say yes I had been there over an hour waiting on him. He said we could reschedule. I don't think so. The whole time I was there the dentist never once came by my chair to say he was being held up or it might take awhile longer than expected. On the way out he never said he was sorry or tried to explain the delay. He acted like he could have cared less about me as a patient or my time. That is what really chaffed me. Nor, has the dentist had the professionalism to call and apologize or try to explain anything. So, if you have plenty of time, you can waste it there!"

"This practice is amazing. The facility was spotless, and very well maintained. The staff was extremely professional on top of being warm, welcoming, and compassionate. They got me in on time, and moved me through my appointment without any long waits. I was VERY anxious but they laid out a clear treatment plan (with approximate pricing) and helped make a schedule/phases based on my needs, my insurance coverage, my budget, and my schedule. I am so glad I chose this practice, and HIGHLY recommend them."

"This is my first negative review anywhere, but I feel this needs shared. I got three cavities filled here. The next day, two of them hurt like crazy! I waited two weeks and it continued. I called the office and the receptionist said it would cost me to have them fixed, potentially more than I was charged for the fillings in the first place! After deciding to go elsewhere to fix this, they said they would send the X-rays (that I paid for, mind you) to the new dentist… Next thing I know I am deleted as a patient and the receptionist said my records are lost and there is nothing anyone can do, even though I still had a teeth cleaning appointment scheduled! This was extremely unprofessional and felt like a huge scam. I spent a lot of money that I had to save up because I am a college student who is struggling financially just for my teeth to come out worse than before :( Update: i went to another dentist and they did xrays. They pointed out that the fillings were done incorrectly and left lots of gaps and holes and would need fixed. Very upsetting and disappointing."

"New to the area and I was happy to find a well run practice. I have had a lot of dental work so it's important to me. First visit went very well yesterday. Rachael was my hygienist/assistant and she did a fantastic job! She did a thorough exam & cleaning and was just very personable throughout and explained things well and wanted to make sure I was comfortable. This seemed important to her. Dr Shah then completed my exam and was also thorough and friendly. Fortunately things looked good and I won't be seeing them again for a while, but I'm happy to have found a good dentist & team. Thanks!"

"This place was so difficult to deal with that I cancelled my appointment before even going. When I initially called to make an appointment the girl that answered the phone said she couldn’t make me an appointment until she confirmed with someone else that they accepted my insurance. I told her that I had already pulled up my in-network providers and they were on the list. She said she was instructed to check with someone before booking any appointments. This is very strange- shouldn’t she know what insurances they accept? Also a lot of people don’t even carry dental because it’s mostly worthless. Well she called me back the next day and said they accepted my insurance and she could book an appointment. I provided all insurance information. She then asked for both my social security number and my husband’s social. When I asked why she laughed and said she didn’t know why they needed it. To make a long story short they then hassled me with four phone calls about sending in X-rays even though I repeatedly told them that I was still allowed X-rays for this year on my insurance and that I didn’t have any up to date X-rays to send. They continued to explain that if I got X-rays and insurance didn’t cover it then it would cost me $140. As if I’m an idiot. I know how insurance works and I know that I was allowed X-rays. I also asked this woman who was once again calling to get my X-rays why they needed our socials and she said it was office policy to have every patients social. Well “office policy” still doesn’t tell me why you need it. I guess that means if you send your kids here then they need their social before being treated as well. I was so fed up with them by this point that I canceled. The doctor may be good- I have no idea because I was so fed up with the staff."