I was mistreated in a very unprofessional manner without any respect

Company: Vera Aguilar
Address : 14415 Chase Street, Panorama City, California 91402, United States

I received dental service at Dental Plus California (address: 14415 Chase Street, Panorama City, CA 91402; telephone 818-830-9050) on Monday, June 25, 2007. I went there as this dental facility was referred to me by my insurance company, Delta Care USA insurance. It was my first time to visit this facility where I only expected to receive an initial assessment of my teeth and dental cleaning. But in addition to that I received other additional treatment which I had not expected. During my visit I experienced undue disrespect and the exposure of my private medical information about my medical history and other personal information (such as my employer) by the office manager, Vera Aguilar, in front of my friend, another office manager (Nancy Ballare) and other employees, all of whom did not need to hear about my medical history. Vera Aguilar uttered my personal, medical history more than two times while I asked her about cancelling my dental care plan and stopping of a financial plan by their credit company. Now, please let me explain the reasons why I'm writing this. And I hope that someone will follow up my complaint with proper justice.First of all, I do not feel that their way of treating patients is professional. I arrived at their office for a ten o'clock appointment a little after ten o'clock and had to wait in the waiting room, in the x-ray room and in the procedure room for a long time. I had not planned on staying there for a long time without having the chance to have breakfast and lunch; actually the doctor started treatment after 1pm and I left the dental office at 2 pm with numbness in my mouth and on my tongue, which remained until 5pm though I was told it would wear off in 30 minutes. During the procedure, I noticed that the dentist (Dr. Irina Shahinyan) did not have a well-cooperating assistant. When the doctor assessed the condition of my gums, she had to repeat numerous times the measurements taken around my gums to her assistant who could not record the measurements on the paper. But the doctor did not tell me what she was doing. She kept on poking into my gums repeatedly and hurt me, while her assistant failed to write down the measurement she gave to her. Therefore, the doctor had to get the paper from her assistant and write down the measurements by herself. During this time, papers passed over my face a few times, and the doctor never asked me how I was feeling and if I felt hurt or not while this was going on. Later on, when the doctor numbed my mouth, she didn't have an assistant with her to help her in the room; and so, saliva kept on going down my throat; and thus, I was choking and asked the doctor to do suction right away. Only then did the doctor call for assistance to come and do the suction for me. Then the assistant, Arnold, came and performed the suction, and he left. I began to feel nervous and uncomfortable about the way they treated me as their patient. While I was numb in my mouth, one person came into the room and asked me to sign for financial plan which amounted to $6,525. Due to my nervousness and inability to talk because of the numbness in my mouth, I was not able to think sensibly or ask any detailed questions. I signed where she pointed to on the paper. Then, the office manager (Vera Aguilar) brought other papers to the doctor for clarification of the procedures she was doing on me. She passed the papers over my head to the doctor discussing and asking questions to the doctor without considering my situation while I was lying on the treatment chair.Then, about 1pm, as the doctor was just about to begin the procedure on me, I heard the office manager speak loudly giving direction to the doctor saying that "we are leaving for lunch now; you can go to your lunch after you are done with her.leave everything just like this." I felt disrespected and ignored by such a loud disruption by the office manager while my mouth was fully open; and I was there lying down on the treatment chair.Then, the procedure began, the doctor asked Arnold (her assistant) to fill the irrigation bottle with a specific solution, but Arnold didn't understand the doctor's orders and she had to repeat the same thing three times to him. Then, he brought a white irrigation bottle with some kind of solution in it. When the doctor was doing the procedure I told her "please do not do the antibiotic injection to my gum until I clarify it with my doctor. Simply do a cleaning only today." But previously (before the doctor numbed my mouth) the office manager, Vera Aguilar, told me and briefly explained what I needed to have done on my mouth and teeth as a result of my x-rays and doctor's exam. She said that I needed to fix abrasions and fix two crowns and get the antibiotic treatment on my gums. And she tallied up what the total cost would be, and she told me that I can finance it for 18 months with no interest, and she convinced me to go ahead with it and made me sign without giving me a detailed explanation. I asked her, "Can I just get only a cleaning today instead?" She said without irrigation they could not perform the cleaning. So, I agreed with the doctor and said to her, "do whatever you want to do today except the antibiotic injection until my doctor says okay. During the procedure of cleaning my teeth and irrigation, some fillings on my teeth near gums due to abrasions were performed by the doctor, but I didn't fully understand about this. During the procedure, Arnold assisted the doctor with suction and splashed some water solution on my face and ears and suctioned on my right cheek by mistake but did not apologize respectfully; rather, he chuckled. He did not even wipe off the solution or blood from my face. I endured all these things hoping that everything would finish safely. But to tell you the truth, I was crying while all of these things were going on. It was due to their disrespectful attitude and mistreatment. I was not satisfied with their entire treatment. Before I left, they gave me another appointment time to come in again at the end of the week on Friday. I was barely able to talk due to the fact that my mouth and tongue were fully paralyzed. And I asked them how many times I needed to come back again and how many treatments I needed. They told me two more times for crowns and antibiotic treatment. I was shocked that I had only two more treatments that would amount to the total cost of $6,525. And I left around 2pm. When I came home the numbness in my mouth did not go away and lasted for three hours though the doctor said it would go away within 30 minutes. I called my friend and explained to her about the treatment and cost. My friend said it didn't seem so proper due to such a high cost. I didn't feel well; and I didn't want to go there any more for any more treatment. But I visited that dental office again on the same day around 5pm. to cancel the plan of care and stop the processing of the finance by their credit company for me to pay monthly totally to $6,525. Secondly, they were extremely rude and forced me to pay $1,550 which amounted to the cost of the treatment done on that day (6 partial gum or teeth fillings for abrasions – each cost $195; so $195x6 plus irrigation each quarter side $95x4, which amounted to $1550). If I didn't pay the $1,550 right away, they would not stop the process of finance by the credit company. They told me that if I don't pay I'm just like someone who eats some food but doesn't want to pay for it. My friend and I were asking them to stop finance and to cancel the dental care plan such as the gold crowns and antibiotic injection. The office manager, Vera Aguilar, and another office manager, Nancy Ballare, were sitting with us.Mostly, Vera Aguilar was the one who was talking and explaining what she had done; and she was the one who had received all my signatures as evidence that she did everything right. She kept on saying that because I signed it, I agreed to all treatment and the payment plan. She was very harsh and humiliated me by pointing fingers at me. I was saying to her that I was not fully aware of the cost – item by item, each specific treatment by treatment. And I didn't totally understand about the cost of that day's treatment, because I didn't get an explanation in detail. I only heard that the total cost with insurance was $6,525. I only knew what the office manager mentioned which was the additional cost of the antibiotics; and that was $500. Other than that, she didn't explain to me any specific treatment cost. And I didn't receive any copies of the documents of the treatment plan or treatment performed by the doctor nor a detailed, itemized cost list. I thought cleaning teeth, irrigation and some fillings were covered by insurance, but it was not. I needed to pay all the cost. I asked for copies of the itemized cost list, treatment plan; and they gave me the copies of each one.During this meeting, Vera Aguilar (the office manager) verbally disclosed my personal, confidential information to my friend and other office managers who did not need to know my medical history. And she disclosed this information two times by pointing to my personal information and speaking what was written there on the paper out loud for everyone to hear. It was unnecessary and irrelevant considering the situation; and I felt embarrassed as a result. Anyway, I couldn't agree to the cost, but yet they processed the finance for me to pay the bill. They said I would receive a bill for over $250 on a monthly basis for 6 months from the credit company. Then, they asked me to leave their office right away. But before I left, I got all their names. In conclusion, in my case, what should I do? Is there any possibility of avoiding such a high cost or of having an adjustment made to my bill? Also, how do I forget about their rudeness, disrespect, unprofessional treatment to me? I spent all day long in that dental office and couldn't do anything all day long; and I was exhausted due to the fact that I was starving and in extreme emotional distress. I would like some justice and financial compensation for what has happened.




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