Welcome!
If you’re considering entrusting your child(ren) to Lancaster Pediatric Dentistry, please know we are honored you’re here, and we would warmly welcome the opportunity to answer any questions you have.
We know it can be stressful when selecting health providers for your child, so please don’t hesitate to reach out. We also encourage you to take a few minutes to look into the following:
NO INSURANCE? Don't Worry...
Well’ Take 20% off dental procedures!
We Offer serveral payment options - including payment plans!
Getting Started as a New Patient
If you have already researched our practice and believe we’ll be a great fit, then we thank you for choosing our team! We are passionate about helping children, and we think you’ll see our team members’ compassion and kindness firsthand when you join us for your first appointment!
In the meantime, we’ve included a few things here to review and complete before your first visit.
Preparing for the First Visit
First impressions are important. Our doctors look forward to meeting your child to establish years of positive dental interactions throughout their childhood and the rest of their life. It’s understandable that a child would have some anxiety surrounding their first visit with the dentist. We want to work in partnership with parents to make a child’s first visit as comfortable as possible.
Here are some things you can do to prepare your child for their first visit:
Explain the importance of dental health to your child. Here are a few of the things we encourage parents to share as benefits of good oral health: Avoiding future painful cavities and infections; having strong teeth that can easily chew and enjoy many types of food up until you’re a grandma or grandpa; and taking care of our overall bodies includes a healthy mouth and teeth.
Be sure to share the doctor’s name and even show him/her a picture on our website. This can help them feel familiar with the doctor and build trust through recognizing a familiar face when they come in. You can even share any details from the doctor’s bio that your child could relate to.
Ask your child if he/she has any questions about what will happen and encourage him/her to ask questions to you or our helpful staff.
Use positive words they’ll understand – some of our favorites include: “speedy vacuum straw” for the suction straw; “princess tooth” or “superhero tooth” for a cap, crown or filling; “zoom stick” for vibrating tools like drills or polishing tools; “scuba mask” for nitrous oxide mask; etc. The key to pediatric dentistry is to make every aspect as fun as possible for the child.
Avoid using negative or frightening words like yank, shot, needle, painful, cut, drill, etc.
Give them choices. Children love feeling in control, especially when they might be in a new situation that makes them feel vulnerable, so we build as many choices as we can into each visit. Examples include letting them pick what flavor of fluoride they’d like and what special reward they’ll get at the end of the visit. Some examples you can implement while you wait include:
“Would you like to open the door to the dentist office, or have me open the door?”
“Which book would you like to look at while we wait for our turn?”
“What special toy would you like to hold on your visit to the dentist's office?”
There’s always a special surprise for children at Lancaster Pediatric Dentistry. Depending on your child’s age, we will have a reward for him/her following each visit. Explaining this to your child may help give them something positive to look forward to!
If your child expresses anxiety about coming to the dentist, let us know in advance how we might be able to help him/her feel at ease. We specialize in pediatric dentistry, so adapting to each child is part of what we love about our jobs!
What to Expect During the First Visit
Our goal is to make every visit to our office a positive experience so your child will always be excited to come back! We’ll take extra time to talk through each part of the process with the child to ensure he/she understands what is about to happen and will be at ease. For example, we’ll put the polisher on the child’s fingertip so he/she won’t be scared when we place it on the teeth.
Each appointment is personalized to your child, but will generally proceed as follows:
Your pediatric dentist will start by getting to know your child to make him or her feel at ease.
We’ll take any necessary X-rays.
One of our specialized pediatric dentists will conduct a complete, but gentle, dental exam.
If your child is young, you may be able to hold him/her during the exam to provide comfort.
If your child is an infant, we’ll sit together and lay him/her across your legs and ours to create a safe and comfortable place for the exam.
One of our specialized pediatric dentists will conduct a complete, but gentle, dental exam.
Plaque removal using a metal or water jet pick. This should be relatively painless. Some patients will experience slight bleeding around the gum line, which is normal and expected. It resolves very quickly, and it’s likely your child won’t even see or know.
A polishing tool will be used next with flavored polish paste. This process conditions and polishes the teeth. During the polishing treatment, the suction straw may be used to remove excess saliva and water in the mouth. The mouth is then rinsed.
We’ll take the time to teach your child a “healthy teeth” routine you can follow at home.
If necessary, we will talk to the parents/guardians about any issues we find and make recommendations for the child's daily oral care routine and/or required treatment.
Continuing Dental Care at Home
Educating our patients about daily home dental care is essential to lifelong dental health. We’re happy to teach you and your child the best practices when it comes to keeping mouths healthy and strong.
View Oral Hygiene Tips & Reminders for Kids
Our pediatric specialists can help!
Whether you’re experiencing a tooth emergency or are looking to schedule a preventive check-up, our team of pediatric dental specialists will be standing by to help! Give us a call to schedule your appointment and know we’ll be happy to answer any questions you have. Lancaster Pediatric Dentistry is dedicated to making dental visits easy, fun and enjoyable for kids of all ages.
Book Appointment