Bellaire Orthodontics/Dr. Wadler had decent reviews online, so I thought I would give them a shot. I have been out of braces for several years, but still occasionally wear my retainers at night. The wire to my bottom retainer broke, and I wanted to get a replacement made. \r
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I found it a hassle to make an appointment. They were courteous but Dr. Wadler's hours are pretty limited for someone who has a full-time job. I was told first that I had to come in for a consultation. While Dr. Wadler and his staff were polite, I felt like they weren't really listening to me. They quoted me $375 to replace the bottom retainer, though I had shown Dr. Wadler that my top retainer was also pretty loose and had lost a spring attachment. \r
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When I came in for the actual appointment to get my teeth molded, Dr. Wadler sat down and asked me what we were doing today. I found it off-putting. Is it not his responsibility as the orthodontist to take a minute to read my file and refresh his memory on what services I was coming in for? I told him again that I wanted to replace the bottom retainer, which had a broken a wire, and that my top retainer had lost a spring. He looked at my teeth and told me ""Well see we can't really even properly make your bottom retainer because your top bite is a little off since that spring broke."" Why didn't he bother to make this observation when I had come in for my consultation? Then he off-handedly quoted that the top retainer could be made for $50-$100 more. Except of course when I went to pay for the services, the receptionist told me it was $150 more.\r
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When the dental hygienist was making molds of my teeth, I noticed that she shifted and the mold for my bottom teeth more than once. I was worried this could be an issue since it could compromise the integrity of the mold. Oh, it did.\r
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After getting the molds made, and leaving my pocket $425 (375 + 150) emptier, I was told it would take about a week to have the retainer ready. However, a few days later I got a call asking me to rush to the office that day since the mold for my bottom retainer was unusable to make a mold. I was told if I could come in that day, they could still possibly finish the retainers on the targeted date. \r
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At this point my opinion of the office tanked. I explained that I didn't have time to keep going back and forth, and if possible, I would just like to terminate all services and get my money back since they weren't going to deliver the promised product on time and, in my opinion, exhibited gross incompetence. The receptionist suddenly changed her attitude and told me that I would still be charged $200 for ""records."" Records of what? The receipt and all documentation I received never stated any charge of ""records"" so I was upset that they did not properly issue me a full refund since they had already wasted almost one full workday of my time. Later they followed up saying they would only charge me $150 for ""records"" and implied with their tone that I should be so grateful to freely give them $150 for wasting my time and energy.\r
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When I tried to email and explain how I did not agree with Dr. Wadler's approach to business, he ignored me. He continued to ignore me after repeated calls and emails to his office, and to this day has never bothered to have the decency to respond to my query.\r
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I would NEVER recommend this doctor to anyone. \r
Pros: Kudos to their use of computerized check-in system.
Cons: Everything else
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