Handling an Emergency Dental Patient Not in Pain

2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

How should I handle an emergency patient who isn't in pain? Pain comes first, always. If there is physical pain, your job is to eliminate it before anything else. But when an emergency or new patient shows up and they are not in pain, you owe them a choice, not a sales pitch for full-mouth work. Think about it from their side. They did not walk in that day having decided to be evaluated for something big. So that is not what they want to be sold, and pushing it triggers exactly the defensive responses that wreck good decision-making. What you [...]