Call us*. We’ll get you out of ‘dental trouble’ – FAST.

We know how sore and worrying a broken tooth can be. When we get you in, it won’t be to just look at the problem**. We’ll make a start on fixing it. In many cases we can repair a trouble tooth at the first appointment.

If a tooth needs removal, we’re up for it. If you have a missing front tooth we can make you a temporary denture, usually within a couple of working days as we have our own dental technician on-site. Alternatively we can often make a temporary bonded bridge in a single appointment.

Broken denture? No problem. Daniela, dental technician at our Nelson Surgery is ready to repair your broken denture.

Lost denture? While you hunt for the teeth the dog ran off with, we can get a new denture (on insurance?) started and finished within a few working days to our normal top quality standard. Again, having our own technician makes it easy.

*Call us early in the day for best chance of same day attention!

**WINZ estimates need to be approved by WINZ before treatment can commence.

We have heard every imaginable fear and worry from new patients. And we have watched those fears dissolve as we take care of problems.

Let me tell you about our philosophy.

At DentalCare Nelson/Richmond our aim is to help you achieve the best oral health possible, while making any treatment as comfortable and affordable as we can.

We see ourselves as “personal health trainers” helping and encouraging patients to make the healthy choices that prevent health problems.

Most regular care is 6 or 12 –monthly.

We get more comments of surprise that our fees are lower than expected, than complaints of high fees.

Sadly we see many cases where patients have procrastinated urgently-needed treatment due to “the cost” only to find the actual cost is far more affordable than they had imagined.

An examination is the best way to find out the cost of your dental treatment.

The greatest cost is usually incurred by delaying treatment.

But the fact remains that many patients will have to choose treatment based on what they can afford rather than choosing some of the wonderful but expensive options that are available.

We take the time to help you understand the treatment options in your particular situation so that you can choose what will work best for you.

Our charges are based on similar hourly rates to other dentist’s and are comparable with health and other professionals. Where we may differ is that we can reduce patient cost by working productively and efficiently to maximise the useful results achieved in each appointment.

I have always tried to improve value to my patients in this way – it can mean combining two treatments in the same appointment resulting in cost savings to you.

At any time you are welcome to ask for an estimate of the cost of treatment. And we only go ahead with treatment with your consent. We operate a ‘pay on the day’ system which helps us keep our fees affordable. Where a number of appointments are needed we are used to working through treatment at a pace that suits your budget, prioritising in order of urgency.

We hear many stories from patients claiming poor work quality in their past.

Some of them are true, though heavily-filled teeth are prone to setbacks and ongoing maintenance needs. And dietary problems can defeat even the best dental work.

In assessing your situation we give you the best information on success-rates for the various treatment options. Where repairs are likely to be less than long-lasting we will tell you up-front. Together we can discuss treatment guarantees and ‘shared risk’ for some of the less predictable situations.

Once the decision has been made to have treatment you can rest easy that you are in good hands. I set myself very high standards of workmanship. It is a matter of pride that most of my patients can get all their dental needs met in my practice.

For the more complex needs I have good working relationships with excellent specialists to whom I can refer.

A good example of this is our teamed approach to implant work. We work with one of the South Island’s foremost implant surgeons who places the implants prior to our fitting the crowns or bridges. In some simple cases I can place the implant myself.

No. Scolding patients is not our way.

Many of my patients are fully aware that they have let things slip and can be quite annoyed with themselves, so there is little point in my rubbing it in.

But we will give very clear information about harmful lifestyle choices that damage health.

In some cases I may decide to be quite blunt to get an important health message across. Generally this is received in the constructive spirit it is meant.

I have contributed to some excellent outcomes where patients have quit consuming harmful amounts of soft drinks, alcohol and caffeine, as well as completely quitting smoking. Hearing patients tell how they have made the effort to improve their health is always a high point in my day.

We know that people can find it difficult to meet a new dentist for the first time, and that the first appointment(s) involve putting a lot of trust into a previously unknown person.

And there is also the issue of personality –it takes a special breed of person to stick with Dentistry long-term. There are as many different personalities in dentistry as there are dentists and not all patients will ‘gel’ with a particular dentist. So we know that we are “on trial” at least to begin with.

So if any aspect of our operation needs tweaking to better suit you please let us know. We are happy to customise our approach, up to a point, and respect that from time to time patients will prefer to try their luck elsewhere – no hard feelings.

I believe the service I provide to be a strongly pragmatic one that gets results in a comfortable, efficient manner, both in terms of time and cost. I rely on my skills and hard work to achieve results rather than surrounding myself with costly Hi-tech gimmicks. I avoid up-selling and pseudo-science so am definitely part of the evidence-based ‘establishment’. I still use all the traditional materials including highly durable silver amalgam fillings as well as the tooth-coloured alternatives that are popular today. I am passionate about the value of health and I get tremendous satisfaction from the role I play in helping people to achieve good health and the happiness that comes with it.

Please ask. Telephone or call in to have a chat with our friendly receptionists. They are happy to take the time to give you answers to your questions. And it seems to make the first visit easier if you already know the staff a bit.

1 Choose location.

We have offices in Nelson and Richmond and I am available at both. You are free to attend either or both to suit your schedule.

Nelson ( 03 or 027) 548 8840. 193 Rutherford Street. Nelson

Richmond (03 or 027) 543 9230. 2 Salisbury Rd . Richmond

Or call tollfree 0800 CROWNME (0800 276966).

2 Telephone or visit the practice to book the appointment. 

You can text us for a call back to arrange your appointment. Most first appointments are 1/2hour. This usually gives enough time for either a comprehensive assessment or alternatively a specific assessment and immediate treatment of eg a broken filling. The cost is likely to be in the range of $100 – $260 . We are happy to give an estimate at any stage in the treatment. If you need an estimate for WINZ or other, please inform the staff when booking.