"Is Your Clinic a No Parent Zone or Can I go back with
my child?”
Can you be a
part of your child’s dental experience? Of course! Parents are ALWAYS welcome
in our clinics. We love visiting with our parents as much as our patients, and
we appreciate your help in giving your child the best dental experience that we
can.
However, we
find that the majority of children do better on their own, feeling like a “Big
Kid”! But, we know that… It completely depends on the individual child. Every child
is different and we treat each child according to his/her individual
needs. The decision on where the parent
remains during your child’s dental visit is best made after discussion between
me and, you, the parent. Ultimately, it is based completely on what is best for
your child. You, as parents, know your
children better than we do. I know that
is a general answer. The more realistic answer is that all kids are different
and all kids go through various phases of development. Each phase calls for a
different scenario. You (the parent) and I would need to talk about the
procedure and together decide what scenario would work best for your child.
Let me
explain what I mean by that….
I know that
with my four children the answer to this question varies depending upon which
child we were talking about. For one of
my children, it would be best for me to tell her everything that is going to
happen before we get to the visit so that I can help her work through all of
the questions that she has about the procedure.
It would be best for mommy to be with her throughout the procedure. On the other hand, another daughter would
need to know what she was having done, but, at the visit, it would be best for
me not to accompany that child. I know
that I would divert her attention toward me rather than allowing her to focus
on the dentist or physician performing the procedure. For another of my
children, it is best if we don’t get into too much detail about the procedure
beforehand because the thoughts and questions (that lead to more thoughts and
questions) create crippling anxiety that would probably prevent us from getting
that child in the door. That being said, when at the procedure visit, this
child would need me to attend in order to help manage her behavior.
All of that explanation leads to this: all kids are different. I have 4 VERY different personalities in my children, which, in turn, helps me to better understand how to approach each of my patients.
The bottom line is-- where a parent remains during the dental visit is best determined through a conversation (without your child present) between the dentist or dental hygienist and the parent. When we can be absolutely clear about what the procedure includes in terms of discomfort, dental instruments (tools) used, sounds that your child will hear, tastes that your child will taste, etc. A very realistic picture can be painted for the parent and then together we can decide. The reason we are able to explain so thoroughly is that our procedures are very routine- oriented. They never change, in order to supply each child with consistency whether they have to come one time or 5 times.
Finally, I
always provide a written description of the procedure which describes how we
will describe the procedure to your child during the procedure. Again, this
procedure will not change depending on whether the parent attends the procedure
or not. That way, if you want to talk
about things at home, you know what to say, what terms to use, and you can have
a good conversation with your child without accidentally frightening him/her
about what is to come.
Waiting rooms can
be relaxing for parents. I have learned
that I can bring stuff to read, things to get done while I have my sacred 30
minutes on my own. Many of our parents utilize this time to get things done
that cannot be done as easily with kids around. We have free wifi and lots of great
reading (our waiting room has a plethora of magazines and reading materials) or
if you’d rather you can just veg out and watch one of the movies we are playing in our waiting rooms.
Please be
sure to inform the front desk staff or the hygienist/assistant that you would
like to accompany your child. We can go from there on whether or not the
particular situation would be beneficial for your child. The best time to make
this decision is following their cleaning appointments when Dr. Rohner informs
you that they need to return for a filling or extraction. Ask all the questions
you need. We will find the answers and come to a conclusion on what will be
best for your child’s visit.
-From The Desk Of Dr. Rohner F.A.Q. (Frequently Asked Questions)
#parentfriendly #childfriendly #kidsdentist #parentsallowed #individual #children #personal #relationships #parenting #whatsbestforyourkid #dentist #ARPD #workingtogether #FAQs
