Recently, my tooth broke in half. My dentist concluded, “Unfortunately, ma’am, your tooth needs to be completely removed.” Today, I walked into the Oral Surgery department at a hospital in Rotterdam.
Start of my day
The alarm went off at 6:45 am for a fully scheduled day. But first, I had to take my son to his new daycare center. It was quite nerve-wracking for both him and me. Since last year, he spends half of the week with his father and the other half with me. Right on time, after scraping the frost off the car windows, the three of us set off to drop him off at his new daycare center.
Freezing cold, fog, and heavy traffic
It’s freezing, very foggy, and there is no parking space available. My son takes his time to say goodbye in great detail, but he does it with a smile! Proud and relieved, I join an agonizingly slow traffic jam towards the hospital. I park and enter the hospital at 9:03 am.
12 minutes late
At the reception desk, it turned out that I had to be in the other building. At 9:12 am, I walked up three floors to the Oral Surgery department, even though I had left home at 7:45 am. A very kind lady behind the desk greeted me with a broad smile. After catching my breath, I apologized for being late, explaining that I was on the other side of the hospital and had encountered traffic. After identification and referral letters, she told me, “Technically, I should refer you downstairs because you should have checked in with the insurance on the 1st floor first. But let me see if I can link your insurance to our system.” She wasn’t able to do it, but she kindly assured me that we would take care of it after the appointment with the Oral Surgeon. “Oh, how nice, no hassle or rushing,” I thought.
Radiation detected
I had never been to an oral surgeon before. I didn’t have any dental fears or anything like that, and I expected that this appointment was just to have a look at the tooth and see if it could be extracted properly.
I was quickly escorted by a friendly nurse who took an X-ray of the tooth, and it seemed like she also took a 360° image with the device. I heard the device say, “Radiation detected.” “Why another X-ray now? More radiation? Couldn’t my dentist have sent the X-rays from three weeks ago? That would save money and, most importantly, avoid more radiation,” I thought. But then I concluded, “These must be slightly different images, I guess.“
Meeting the Oral Surgeon was a bit overwhelming!
The kind nurse came to get me to take me to the oral surgeon. He looked at my X-ray. As soon as I entered, he shook my hand and introduced himself personally in a pleasant manner. I was directed to sit in the treatment chair right away. He looked at the X-rays and said that he could extract the tooth and wanted to administer anesthesia. “Anesthesia! Huh? Why anesthesia?” “Um, didn’t I just make an appointment? Wasn’t this appointment mainly, like always, to first make a diagnosis?” Somewhat stuttering, I expressed that I hadn’t expected that. I asked if I would end up with a swollen cheek and if I would experience a lot of discomfort since I had to work today. He noticed my reaction and immediately said it could be done another time. I took out my phone to check if it would work. He mentioned that making people come back was such a waste of their time. Of course, I completely agreed! Wow! I was pleasantly surprised by this approach, which exceeded my expectations. But then…
Did my stress level skyrocket?
After the anesthesia, I returned to the waiting area. Upon entering, I received a friendly nod from the lady across the room. It was clear that she found it nerve-wracking and looked at me with a probing gaze. Next to me sat a boy of about 12 years old with his mother. He was also not entirely at ease. And now, here I was myself. Overwhelmed by the sudden extraction of the tooth. I would rather be rid of it, but I hadn’t expected it. I noticed that I was getting butterflies in my stomach, and since I’m currently experimenting with M-Health applications, I checked my stress level and heart rate. Both were elevated. “It’s remarkable how pulling a tooth suddenly triggers such a physical reaction, even though I’ve never had a fear of dentists. Imagine if I did have dental anxiety!“
Wow, what a difference from the other hospital!
Lacking anything readable, I started reading the news on my phone with a paper cup of tea next to me, which I placed on the adjacent chair (there was no other spot available). Meanwhile, a doctor entered the waiting area and made a joke about the music being too loud, even though it was off, and he turned on the radio himself. He said it would create a cozier atmosphere. The joke brought smiles to everyone’s faces. And the receptionist kindly informed me that she had already taken care of the insurance details. I didn’t need to go downstairs separately! “Wow, how great! A completely different experience from the other hospital I was at last week in Rotterdam.“
A surgical drape with a hole in it
I was called in. I could hang up my coat again, and a resident doctor received me rather neutrally while she was busy with her preparations. There wasn’t much eyecontact. I was asked to sit in the treatment chair. The cheerful doctor entered again. I was asked to lie down, and then things suddenly went very quickly! For them, it’s probably routine work. For me, anything but! I hadn’t even fully laid down, and a blue sheet-like drape was placed over my face. The hole was not meant for my eyes, but only for my mouth. Blinded by the light at first, I now suddenly couldn’t see anything. I also didn’t see what they were going to do, and nobody told me what was going to happen or what they saw. They tested if the anesthesia was working. I quickly noticed that the anesthesia wasn’t completely effective, and they added some more. Of course, I knew that they were going to extract the tooth, but there was very little of the tooth visible. “Was the gum removed first? Or how were they going to remove the broken tooth roots? No idea!” I felt a significant increase and decrease in pressure on the tooth (and it wasn’t entirely painless). “Has the root or part of it been removed now? No idea?“
“Drilling? Is everything going well?“
While I was under the drape, they did ask if everything was going well, and with a nod from under the drape with the hole, I indicated that it was “okay.” I heard them say something, but I didn’t understand what they were saying, though I did hear them asking for the “drill.” “Um, is everything going well? Is this good or bad? If something goes wrong, will there be enough bone left to place an implant? Because I really don’t want a bridge. How silly of me not to have asked exactly what they were going to do…” and so many thoughts raced through my mind. After the drilling, they removed the tooth (or what was left of it).
Extra ride for Ibuprofen
As quickly as I got the blue drape over my face, it was taken off just as fast, and I was blinded again by the lights. When I stood up, I noticed that I wasn’t entirely stable on my feet. They immediately asked me how I was doing. I said I was fine. I asked for a glass of water to rinse my mouth because I thought I had tasted something like sterilization and didn’t want to swallow it. Immediately, they advised me not to rinse too much due to clotting for the sutures. “Sutures? Oh yeah, that must have been necessary,” I thought. They also gave me a prescription for Ibuprofen. I thanked them and realized that if I had known earlier, I could have brought Ibuprofen from my medicine cabinet. Then I wouldn’t have had to drive for it and could have taken it immediately before the anesthesia wore off.
Brochure
Upon leaving, the doctor asked if I wanted information about an implant. He came back with a brochure and a clear and concrete price quote. “How wonderfully specific,” I thought. He briefly and clearly showed me some things.
Since he gave me a brochure, I thought, I’ll give him my brochure too:
‘Improved care by listening to the experiences of our own patients daily.’ I told him how helpful the receptionist was, that I was pleasantly surprised to be attended to immediately, and that I found him to be a very pleasant doctor, although it came as a surprise to me. He looked attentively at my brochure and said he would take a look at it. I’m curious to see if he follows up on it! Upon parting, he said, ‘Try to keep your cheek cool!’
I found my treatment in this hospital to be exceptionally pleasant compared to other hospitals in Rotterdam. If they had used CareRate on-site with dedication, they would have received the following feedback from me:
What is your most positive experience at the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery department?
Answer: Very kind and caring doctor and staff.
What would I like to see differently next time?
Answer:
• Inform patients when scheduling the appointment that the department is not located in the main building. This saves unnecessary time for the patient and prevents delays in the department.
• Indicate when scheduling the appointment that the tooth can be extracted immediately.
• Advise patients to bring Ibuprofen instead of prescribing it.
• The music was playing! Great! It would be nice to have more reading material available, as well as a table for placing tea or coffee.
• Inform the patient when the drape with a hole is placed over their face.
• During the tooth extraction, explain what will be done, even during the procedure.
• While waiting three times in the waiting area, provide patients with information on things like not rinsing and keeping the cheek cool, such as using ice cubes in a cloth.
• Could an optional ice pack (for the journey) be offered right after the procedure?
• Is it possible to send an informative brochure by email after scheduling the appointment?
What is your overall rating on a scale of 1-10?
Answer: 8
How likely are you to recommend the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery department to friends and acquaintances?
Answer: 8 (with potential for a solid 9!!)
