Key takeaways
- No referral, no waiting list. Call and book.
- The first visit is an assessment, not a production line. Expect it to take longer.
- You leave knowing the cost. A written estimate before anything is agreed.
- Tell us if you are anxious when you book, not when you arrive. It changes what we can arrange.
- A gap of years is normal here. Nobody comments on it.
What happens at your first appointment
It is longer than a routine visit, because there is more to take in.
- A conversation about why you are here, and anything worrying you. This shapes everything that follows.
- Dental and medical history, including every medication you take.
- A full examination: teeth, gums, bite, existing dental work, and the soft tissues, including oral cancer screening.
- Diagnostic images, where they are needed.
- A cleaning, depending on what is found.
- A plan and a written estimate, staged over time where that makes sense.
You are not committed to anything on the day. Take the estimate home if you want to.
How long it takes
Longer than a check-up and shorter than people fear. The office will tell you when you book, and it depends on whether images and a cleaning are part of the same visit.
Allow extra time for paperwork if you are filling in forms on arrival instead of beforehand.
What to bring
- Photo identification
- Your insurance details, if you have coverage
- Your CDCP member card, if you are enrolled
- A list of your medications, including anything over the counter and any herbal remedy
- Any previous X-rays you hold, if they were taken elsewhere
The medication list matters more than people expect. A great many medications affect the mouth, healing and bleeding.
If it has been a long time
A gap of five, ten or twenty years is ordinary here.
Nobody is going to lecture you. People stop going for cost, for a bad experience, or because life got in the way. None of that is unusual and none of it changes how you are treated.
The first visit is assessment and a plan, not a marathon of treatment. You will not be talked into everything at once.
Staging is normal. The urgent work goes first and the rest follows in an order you agree to.
If you are anxious
Tell us when you book, not when you arrive. At the appointment it is harder to act on. Beforehand, the office can note it, set aside more time and arrange things differently.
Ask for any of this without justifying it:
- A quieter time of day
- Time to look around before anything happens
- An agreed signal to stop, which means stop, not nearly there
- A running commentary as we go, or none. Consent is explained either way, because that part is not optional
- Bringing someone with you
- A first appointment where nothing is done except talking and looking
You do not have to explain why. Saying "I find this difficult" is enough.
If that is not enough, we offer sedation. Nitrous oxide, oral sedation and intravenous sedation are all available here, and which one suits you depends on your medical history and the treatment. Learn more about dental sedation.
Paying for treatment
We bill most insurance plans directly. Bring your details and the office confirms what your plan covers before treatment begins.
We accept the Canadian Dental Care Plan. It is open to all ages for eligible Canadian residents; eligibility requires no access to private dental insurance, the required Canadian tax returns, adjusted family net income under $90,000, and Canadian residency for tax purposes. Bring your Sun Life member card. Learn more about CDCP coverage at our practice.
A written estimate comes before treatment, and a fresh one if the plan changes once we can see what is happening.
If cost is your constraint, say so. It changes the conversation. Treatment is staged over time, and the order it is done in is something we decide with you.
Bringing children
A first visit where nothing much happens is a good first visit. Bring them along to your own appointment first if you can. Sitting in the room while nothing happens to them is the cheapest anxiety prevention available.
Check-ups, fluoride and sealants are the everyday work at that age. Learn more about children's dentistry.
Dentistry on Britannia is a general dental practice. Our dentists are general dentists, not specialists in any RCDSO-recognised specialty.