This story is shared by GNH Lead Dental Assistant Leah. She had a patient who was beyond terrified of the dentist, and this is her story:
“A 15 year old patient deathly afraid of needles was referred to GNH after going to countless other offices. She had a serious situation where bacteria found its way between one of her molar teeth and her jaw bone. There wasn’t a way to save the tooth and it had to come out.
The patient arrived with her guardian and warned us that our efforts might not be successful because of her fear, but to please try anyway. She was right. With a lot of heartache and an uncomfortable patient, we were unsuccessful and began to put away our tools. She pleaded us to try again, and we listened.
The patient was so clearly terrified, trying not to scream from such a deep fear. One of the doctors who was here specifically for sedation attempted to calm her by walking her through the steps of the process, even using himself as an example. With his help, we were able to calm her enough to get the IV in for her sedation.
Her guardian began to cry and said, “you guys are amazing.” We all appreciate the kind words, but we know in our hearts that the most important part of this was getting our patient the dental care she needed with compassion and grace.“
