Just normal politeness at the dentist is all I am asking for

[MsMarch]

DS is having private orthodontic treatment as the waiting list for NHS treatment is too long. This should NOT be relevant, but I admit, the insane amount of money it's costing us is probably impacting how I feel about this.

The reception staff are so incredibly unfriendly and unhelpful and it's really starting to wind me up. They don't say hello. If you ask a question they either look at you blankly or start to do it, but refuse to actually say anything. eg I asked if we could set up the next appointment and she didn't even look up. By the clicking, I assumed she was looking at the calendar. But after about 20 seconds of silence and no eye contact I had to say, "sorry, are you looking for an appointment" and she was quite snippy in her "yes, we're very busy".

When I took DS in this week I had to drop him as there'd been road works and we were late so I told him to tell them I was just parking the car. When I came in, buzzed to be let in. Waited. Waited. Waited. When I finally go tin, three staff in reception, 2 on the actual desk, so I admit, I was already a bit confused why I had to wait but anyway. I see DS isn't in the waiting area so I say, "Hi", in preparation to ask where he is, and they both just sit there, continuing to look at their computers. So after a few seconds, I'm like, "HIIIIIIII" and they look up, all confused and say, "we were just busy with something".

It's INFURIATING.

And the woman who did his braces was great so I have no complaints, but I won't lie, I would have lied to have been told that the actual orthodontist is NOT the person who would be doing it, but instead it would be a "therapist".

Am I just being ridiculously precious? I'm really getting very annoyed. DH had a similarly unpleasant experience while trying to set up the appointment in the first place.

You really need to leave a stern Google review.

That's the first thing I looked at when choosing a private dentist.

I'm sure you're not the only one receiving this rude treatment, so more people need to be honest in their reviews.

Sorry to have started thread then jist disappear!

It appears this is a common dentist issue.

To be honest, if I could vote with my feet, I would. Dh handled the start of all this and by the time he told me that he also experienced this, it was too late. And I am afraid I didn't really clock we even had an option on providers. I think because we were originally referred for an nhs assessment.

As for the one poster who thinks I should just be more patient, no. They are active rude and dismissive. Acting like I am crazy to ask about a toothbrush THEIR video showed me was unnecessary. But actually, yes, I 100% do expect to be acknowledged when I arrive at a reception desk. The clue is in the name " reception " . I dont mind waiting, but a brief acknowledgement of my presence is absolutely basic level expectation.

DS's DF used to take him to the NHS orthodontist he was referred to many years ago, so I can't comment on their politeness, but they had spelt his first name incorrectly on all correspondence, and when I requested they changed it, they told me they couldn't! Very strange.

My dentist is lovely but my hygienist is either strange or rude. She was working away on my teeth then just abruptly turned and started typing on her computer. I sat there for a minute or two then realised she must be finished. She said absolutely nothing so l said thanks and left. It was weird. Do people with poor social skills enter these jobs??

My previous dentist was a horror. I was booked in for a deep clean but had a large abscess on my gum so wasn’t sure if it could go ahead. He jabbed me with a local anaesthetic I wasn’t expecting and immediately went to work. The deep clean was incredibly painful. I have an essential tremor that gets worse when stressed.

“Are you shaking?” he asked me, with a note of disdain in his voice.

” nnnghhh yes mmmph”

” Well can you please STOP!”

I suppose at least he said please?

Ha, I'm having orthodontics at the moment and could have said exactly the same! The 'therapist' thing really marked me, I was expecting to see the ortho or at least the sales nurse at my initial appointment.

The sales nurse is the best looking woman in the practice, how cynical.

It's a good lesson in how the private sector isn't the answer, if anything the customer service is worse than the NHS. But no, a total stranger of mysterious qualifications wants to glue brackets to my teeth.

the receptionist at my local vets is just the same, so rude, it is a shame

the hygienist is odd, said, you should come more regularly, oh when did i last come i asked,
she hadnt a clue, obviously, and lied, said it was january when in fact it was May!

Are you polish by any chance?
I have found a lot of polish people like this, efficient, reliable and because their English is excellent they often get customer facing jobs. However there is no warmth in their interactions.
eg we went to a hotel and there was no smile or welcome to the hotel from the receptionist. She just barked at us for our names and gave us the key no ‘have a nice stay’ etc.
Personally I feel this is something they should change; ‘when in Rome …

We have the Portman smile clinic buy the small chain DD2 has had her braces with and they are far worse. Ours is free but we can't wait to be done with them.

I actually moved dentist because the receptionists were so inexplicably rude at the old one. The new one is lovely. Some people should not be in public facing jobs!

This is a huge pet hate of mine. I can be a bit socially awkward and can find unspoken cues really challenging. I’ve also (somewhat ironically) worked in lots of customer facing roles, which I’ve been good at because in work it’s easier to know the ‘rules of engagement’. I cannot comprehend having someone speak to me and not respond. If I speak to someone at a desk, and assuming they’re not mid phone call or mid conversation with another client, I expect them to say “I’ll be with you in a moment” “hi, I just need to quickly finish one thing and I’ll be with you” etc if they aren’t able to immediately take on my task. That’s customer service. If you work at a reception desk, your first priority is always to the customer in front of you. You then say “I’m sorry for the wait, how can I help?” Or something similar.
When doing a task, you should give updates on what you’re doing to manage expectations - “im just checking the calendar now. Hmmm, sorry this taking a little while, we’ve very busy in July” or “I’m sorry, the computer is running so slowly this morning, isn’t technology infuriating, please bear with me” etc etc.

Our vets can be the same - you hover awkwardly by the desk and they’re there silently clicking away and then will abruptly say “well did you want something?” But they’ve given absolutely no cues they’re ready to speak to you or have even noticed your presence.

Have to say I really can’t get worked up about rude reception staff. They’re irrelevant to me and I’m irrelevant to them.

however I’d love to know how much the orthodontic treatment is costing private? I’m considering similar

I also recently moved dentists in part because of the reception staff. Exactly the same, no acknowledgement or anything and it's really not clear if they've heard you. You can't tell if someone doesn't look up or say even a word.

Last time I was booking the next appointment, which actually was always weird too they wouldn't ask what worked they'd just offer a random day and time. If I said I couldn't do that, they'd pluck another random day or time out of thin air. Presumably this could go on forever except I'd then jump in to say what days don't work for me since they clearly wouldn't ask.

Anyway she was silently making the appointment then a few seconds in, abruptly stood up to sneeze. I said bless you, which was ignored. She then continued standing there and started chatting to the other receptionist. There'd been no confirmation, you know, "that's all done" and "you'll get a text" so after a few moments I asked if it was all booked and she looked at me like I was insane and just said 'yes' then carried on talking. It was so weird.

Interesting that it's a dentist thing. Or are we all going to different branches of mydentist?!

I had this in Pret yesterday. I was buying 3 things which I placed on the counter, and asked for a coffee. The woman said absolutely nothing and no eye contact, just motioned at the card reader for me to pay, shoved my items into a bag, and called over the next person. I gave it a minute until she was free again then asked very politely if she'd heard me when I ordered a coffee (as I hadn't checked the price of my other items to know if the total included the price of a coffee or not), again no eye contact, just muttered 'IT'S COMING' on an exasperated fashion. I think she was the manager as well as they don't usually wear uniform. It wasn't very busy either.

I've worked plenty of customer service jobs, and I know its not always enjoyable and people have bad days, but to me there is a bare minimum of politeness that's acceptable.if you can't manage that, you shouldn't be in that kind of job imo

I'm moving dentist this week, in part because the reception staff and dental nurse are so gruff and unhelpful. The main reason is that the practice opening hours are tricky if you work, think 9-4 weekdays only, but the lack of politeness from the front line staff is a big contributor to me moving.

Yeah, that sounds rubbish OP.
I work in a customer facing role and we have to acknowledge customers within a few seconds even if its just catching their eye or saying "I'll just be a minute."

It's just basic good manners.

Well, ours is, to me, eye watering. And I do wonder if thats impacting my thinking on them generally. It's £4000.

Thanks that’s good to know. I appreciate it varies but I had about £10 k in my head so 4 doesn’t seem so bad. I’m hoping to get initial appt in the summer holidays

I used to have exactly the same thing from my own Dentist reception 'team.'

There were always at least two of them on the desk with one or two lurking behind.

One of them was just.. horrendously rude!
It was such a shock the first time, I thought she was rehearsing a local Am-Dram panto production 🤨
The others all seemed to take her lead and I think she poisoned the atmosphere.
She would also click away for 5 minutes on her computer before deigning to grace you with her attention 😁
Silly girl,total power trip.

They are all new now and couldn't be more helpful.

Yes!
I expect to be acknowledged.

My son’s orthodontist was exactly like this! That was a fun few years..

Ha @Fairyliz ! I was also wondering if DiggingHoles was perhaps Polish.
My Polish friends think British people have very weird and unnecessary rituals for politeness! 😂

Write to the practice manager, not as a complaint but just to let them know that they might want to get their reception staff some customer service training. You’re paying - they shouldn’t act as if they’re doing you a favour.

Write to the practice manager, not as a complaint but just to let them know that they might want to get their reception staff some customer service training. You’re paying - they shouldn’t act as if they’re doing you a favour.