Would you cancel and find someone else?

[justpoppy]

I need a significant amount of dental work done. Think multiple implants/crowns - at a significant cost but it will make a massive difference to my life.

The implant surgeon at my current surgery has been recommended. I had a consultation with him recently and I liked/trusted him. He explained everything well and I was happy to go with him. The first appointment I could get was about 8 weeks after my consultation which I didn’t mind too much. It’s a two hour appointment and involves an aeneasatist too so I knew i’d have to wait a while. The surgery phoned me last week and said this appointment would have to be cancelled as the dentist was now on leave. Next available 2 hour slot is the end of January. I was not happy but took the appointment but am now wondering If I should cancel and find someone else. He gains to earn a significant amount of money from this procedure and on the one hand maybe he’s that good he’s worth waiting for, but on the other hand if he doesn’t want my business he can poke it and i’ll find someone who does! What do you think? Oh and if anyone can recommend a cosmetic dentist in the City/East London or south Essex areas please let me know!

I thought long waits was the norm. Very high demand for few people with appropriate skills.

Private or nhs ?

Private! It it was NHS I’d wait.

DD had to wait about six weeks for teeth whitening at a cosmetic dentist in Leeds, and that was the start of the procedure for the teeth cleaning, gum shields etc by the time it was completed it was about three months. Cost her £600 private. It was worth it though, they were amazing! I suspect he is good at what he does.

I'm having quite a lot of dental work done myself at the moment (privately) and in my case I would definitely wait for my dentist to be available. She is fantastic and I really trust her to do the work, which is more important to me than the timescales.

It sounds as if you would rather get the work done, which I can completely understand, and January is a long time to wait to even get things off the ground. I think in your shoes I would shop around a bit and see if you can find another implant surgeon that you click with, and of course ask some questions about lead times for the work - as you may find it is normal and therefore you're better off hanging on for your current surgeon.