Luckily, my friend had a recommendation. Someone she had met referred her to a dentist near my husband's office (and just a short walk from where we both lived in temporary housing right after moving here). She had taken her daughters and was very pleased with the office. I decided to take a leap of faith and made an appointment.
I reviewed their website and felt comfortable making the appointments. The dentists weren't US trained, but they trained all over the world and specifically mentioned preventive care as an important aspect of their office. When I called, they answered in Japanese but quickly switched to English. It was no problem to schedule appointments for me and my son.
During the week between appointments, I was reviewing my dental exam experience with one of the park moms when I realized I might have a problem. I had already used my dental insurance to pay for the first appointment. I was going to have to pay out of pocket for another cleaning in such a short amount of time. When I said this to my friend, she laughed and asked "what are you talking about?" I explained about insurance in the US only paying for one appointment per 6 months without explicit approval (and usually a lot of work proving it is needed by the dentist) by the insurance company. She shook her head and put me at ease by informing me that I could go as many times as I want or need. Insurance would pay and I would only be responsible for the copay. What a concept!
Today my son and I trekked to Minato (right next to Roppongi Hills and Azabujuban). It took us just over an hour to get there. We entered, removed our shoes and put on the office slippers. I completed forms very similar to the ones I had completed just the week before. The kind looking hygienist came and asked if we wanted our teeth cleaned at the same time or one right after the other. My son said "mommy first, then me." It was no problem. They had a chair in the exam room for him to sit in while they cleaned my teeth.
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| Photo courtesy of: http://www.hills-dc.com/en/index.html |
I sat in the dental chair and laid back. She took a quick peek and then explained what she was going to do. At that point, another hygienist came in and casually asked my son if he wanted to go brush his teeth with her. He happily replied positively and they left the room together. I wasn't surprised. My son just needed a few minutes to get comfortable and they gave him that time and space. My hygienist got to work cleaning my teeth. For the next 40 minutes, she kindly cleaned and told me about my teeth. She asked if I was having any sensitivity and accommodated me accordingly.
As she was wrapping up, my son came back into the room. He told me he was all done. He didn't have any cavities. His hygienist followed him in and repeated what he had told me, adding that he had been such a good patient. Then he told me he was going to the play room.
At that point, the dentist came into the room. He immediately told me how well my son had done in the chair and that his teeth looked great. He then reviewed what my hygienist told me and looked at my teeth. We discussed a few things. I was so impressed with how he (and his staff) explained everything.
The dentist then took me up to the front desk. He gave me his email address so I could have our US dentist forward him our records. Then he tallied up our bill and helped me make appointments in February. Just like my friend said, my bill was only ¥2,850 ($25!!!). Insurance had covered my cleaning and paid for my son's appointment in full.
After exuberant thank yous, my son and I headed out the door. We walked to the bookstore (his reward for being such a good patient) elated with our experience and clean teeth. My son immediately wanted to text Otousan (daddy) to tell him how happy we both were.
If you ever find yourself in need of dental care in Tokyo, I cannot recommend Dr. Jun Suzuki at Motoazabu Hills Dental Clinic enough. Taking care of your teeth is so important and he (and his staff) are wonderful.
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