Terms and Conditions of Treatment
Brisbane Prosthodontics
Suite 5, 158 Graceville Avenue, Graceville. QLD 4075
Once you have visited Brisbane Prosthodontics for your consultation, you will be provided with a written treatment plan listing out the dental treatment recommended for you. The following Terms and Conditions of Treatment apply to any dental treatment undertaken at Brisbane Prosthodontics. Please read the following information so that you are aware of the terms and conditions for provision of Dental treatment at Brisbane Prosthodontics. If you are unsure of the meaning or have any questions of any of the information presented in the treatment plan or the below-listed terms and conditions, then please contact our Reception directly to discuss the matters before accepting the treatment plan proposed and commencing treatment.
1. Professional Fees
Prosthodontic treatment plans are frequently complex and protracted in duration and may involve complete rehabilitation and reconstruction of a patient’s dentition. Professional fees are determined on a fee per service basis (ie: per crown, implant, filling, etc.). The fee for each service is in turn calculated as a measure of the clinical time, instrument and materials costs involved in the provision of the professional service as well as the other overheads of the Practice. Professional fees quoted in a written treatment plan are inclusive unless otherwise stated. Whilst every attempt is made to plan for all possible treatment stages, sometimes unforseen additional treatments become necessary (for example when an old crown is removed, it may only then become obvious that a root canal treatment or a new core build-up is then required for that tooth). In other instances, it may become necessary to alter the treatment plan mid-treatment if for example a tooth proves to be un-restorable and must be extracted, and this may alter the overall treatment plan. In such circumstances, the costs of these procedures must be additional and passed on to the patient. Occasionally a treatment plan may make reference to approximate professional fees for the provision of services by other dental practitioners or specialists. When other practitioner’s fees are listed, the fees are estimates only, to assist our patient in planning for the overall anticipated costs of treatment. Actual fees quoted in a treatment plan letter are for professional services provided by Brisbane Prosthodontics only. The fees are valid for treatment commenced within three months from the date of the treatment plan letter and are not able to be negotiated.
2. Payment
Payment for professional services may be made by cash, Eftpos, Visa, MasterCard or American Express. Acceptance of the written treatment plan indicates your acceptance and agreement to pay all professional fees in full. For new patient appointments and for some larger treatment plans involving multiple appointments, a deposit payment may be required to reserve this amount of clinic time in our appointment book just for you. If such a deposit is required, it will be indicated in your treatment plan letter or communicated to you in advance by our Reception. Due to the inherent cost of certain dental laboratory or implant procedures, installment payments will be requested and must be made as treatment progresses, with any remaining balance of payment to be made in full at the time of initial placement of the final prosthesis. This will be irrespective of any review or adjustment phases planned for a defined follow-up period. A list of the progress payments required will be advised to you by the Practice Clinical Coordinator. A final prosthesis may not be placed if the account outstanding is not paid in full and a fee may be charged if an appointment must be cancelled because of such an occurrence.
3. Attendance for Appointments
Appointments will be made for you to have your dental treatment performed at Brisbane Prosthodontics. The times reserved for you may be short or long appointments, and will be made at times that coincide with the relevant laboratory stages associated with your overall treatment, or made to coincide with relevant healing times following dental surgery. In the event that you have to reschedule an appointment with Brisbane Prosthodontics, then at least 48 hours notice must be provided to us or a fee will be charged to cover the cost of the lost clinical time. Appointment times are reserved for the correct length of time and on the right day, just for you and hence cannot be easily reassigned to another person. Whilst we will usually call or text you 24-48 hours before your appointment as a courtesy reminder, if we do not call or text you or you do not receive a message from us to remind you, this does not constitute grounds for your non-attendance. Once the time has been made in our appointment system, it is permanently reserved for you unless you notify us otherwise. On occasion, we may experience unforseen delays in receiving back technical work from our dental laboratories and this may necessitate our re-scheduling your appointment. In such an unusual event, we will always endeavour to provide you with as much notice as possible and also reappoint you as soon as possible so as not to delay your overall treatment plan.
4. Health Insurance Cover and Rebates
If you have private health insurance with dental cover, you may be eligible for a rebate from your insurer on the cost of your dental treatment. Please note that rebate amounts are determined by your insurer and may have little relevance or correlation to the actual professional fees incurred. The association between you and your health insurer is yours alone and whilst our staff may attempt to help with the processing of your health insurance claims, we have no association with any health insurer. Your policy with any outside insurer and their terms and conditions, and the level of rebate you receive from them, is a matter between you and your insurer. Failure of your insurer to provide you with any anticipated or actual rebate is a matter between you and your insurer and does not constitute grounds for failure to pay your account with Brisbane Prosthodontics.
5. Tax Deductible Treatment
Taxation rules change periodically, but there has in the past been provision for people to claim health expenditure (such as dental treatment) on their Income Tax Return. We do not offer financial advice and recommend that you consult with the ATO, its website, and/or your Financial Advisor to determine the availability of such a rebate in your particular instance.
6. Warranty on Dental Treatment
The prosthetic treatment provided is warranted for replacement at little or no out of pocket cost should a failure occur under the following conditions. Failure constitutes technical and construction faults only and does not include recurrent decay due to poor patient oral hygiene; overload failure due to patient non-compliance in wearing a prescribed night splint for grinding habits (if applicable); failure due to accident or injury; failure due to wilful or habitual damage (eg. nail biting); failure due to a change in the patient’s perception of the aesthetics of the final case after completion of treatment or failure due to loss or damage whether or not due to negligence on the patient’s behalf. Other dental professionals may be involved in the provision of services in complex treatment plans. Failure of treatments performed by other practitioners is not warranted by Brisbane Prosthodontics. Denture relines and adjustments or replacement of worn, expendable attachment components as part of a normal maintenance procedure also do not constitute a failure. Should a failure occur, Brisbane Prosthodontics will replace the prosthesis or arrange provision for replacement by another practitioner at little or no out of pocket cost to the patient. The warranty period is for 5 years from the date of initial placement of the prosthesis, and is only valid if the patient returns for annual review appointments. These appointments are to review and check the prosthesis only and may include its cleaning, however they are not a substitute for regular recall examination and tooth cleaning services provided by your referring or other General Dentist. Whilst the warranted period extends to 5 years, this does not mean that your prosthesis will not last longer if well maintained. In extreme rehabilitative or reconstructive cases, the dentition may be so compromised that even complicated, high quality prostheses may have a guarded or poor long-term prognosis. In such cases a normal warranty cannot be provided. If a normal warranty cannot be applied, it will be indicated during your consultation or in your treatment plan letter.
7. Discontinuation of Treatment
Once you have commenced treatment, you agree to accept all responsibility for ensuring completion of the treatment in a timely manner. Should you elect to cease treatment, pro rata payment must be made for professional services to that point. Brisbane Prosthodontics accepts no responsibility for the state or maintenance of your oral health from that point onwards. If requested by the patient, or if treatment discontinuation results from an unavoidable geographic relocation, Brisbane Prosthodontics will endeavour to provide the name(s) of a practitioner to refer you to. In circumstances where treatment is discontinued, no warranty exists on treatment.
8. Acceptance of these Terms and Conditions of Treatment
When you receive your written treatment plan, and make appointments to commence treatment, it will be assumed that you have also followed the link to this document and read and understood the conditions of treatment herein. If you have any questions about your treatment or these terms and conditions of treatment, then we encourage you to contact us as soon as possible to discuss your questions.
Our aim at Brisbane Prosthodontics is to provide you with the very best possible standard of dental care, tailored to meet your specific needs, and to do this in the most timely manner and with the utmost of comfort for you. We want you to have a very positive experience with us, and gain the best treatment outcome. Your adherence to these preceding terms and conditions of treatment will allow us to provide the best care for you that we can.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Michael N. Mandikos
