Spa Doctor
By Johanna Piazza
Special to New York Resident
A few months ago, a new patient wandered into Dr. Paul Tanners’ Madison Square Avenue office. Her current dentist did great work, she told him, and her teeth looked beautiful, but there was something missing ‘ a bedside manner. Her dentist was just too ‘procedure oriented,’ she said. She dreaded visits to his office and put off invasive procedures to avoid the displeasure. Tanners couldn’t help but smile: The woman was his target market, and he was ready to serve her.
Bridgework and a Backrub, No Waiting
Sue Woodman
ACROSS THE COUNTRY, DENTISTS ARE trying to remove the dread associated with their practice by offering patients an unexpected perk: ‘spa’ treatments. Imagine a relaxing foot massage to accompany a root canal, or herbal eye masks and paraffin-wax hand treatments to enhance a cleaning. ‘It’s a combination of high touch,’ explains Dan King, chief operating officer at the Atlanta Center for Cosmetic Dentistry, where patients-greeted in the waiting room with the aroma of freshly baked cookies (if not actual cookies) receive pillows and virtual-reality glasses and are treated in pastel rooms scented with aromatherapy candles. ‘It turns a dental office from a torture chamber into a pleasant, pampering experience,’ he adds. ‘Our patients love the luxuries, and they refer their friends.’
Youth Will Be Served
By LAN N. NGUYEN
DAILY NEWS FEATURE WRITER
Catherine Davis has never liked her nose. For a long time she’s wanted to get it fixed. Nothing too drastic: Just thin out the tip and straighten the bridge. After months of research and interviewing seven surgeons, she finally entrusted the job to Dr. Mokhtar Asaadi last year. Read more