Dental Council of New Zealand assessing dentist’s breach of Health and Disability Code
A report by the Health and Disability Commission sent to the Dental Council of New Zealand found that the dental treatment received by a New Zealand teacher, named as Mrs. A, amounted to about $29,000 since 2006 and was found to be of low quality.
Investigation by the acting Health and Disability Commissioner revealed that the dentist, named as Dr. B, breached standards in dental treatment and also neglected to document the recommended treatment which breached terms of the Health and Disability Code.
Although Dr. B had diagnosed Mrs. A with chronic periodontitis requiring full upper and lower arch crown with bridgework, and consent forms for the treatment were signed, Dr. B did not complete the section on what Mrs. A had consented to. After experiencing severe oral discomfort, Mrs. A obtained a second opinion from another dentist that advised her, her dental issues were not related to periodontitis, but to malocclusion or “improper bite” instead, and that most of her treatments were unnecessary. The reports indicates Mrs. A paid Dr. B $28,805 in total for treatments and that Dr. B did refund her apologising for “the pain and suffering, both physical and emotional, that (she) has gone through”.
When presented with the information of the second opinion, Dr. B suggested that the improper bite misdiagnosis occurred as a result of Mrs. A’s sedation during treatment making bite readings impossible to determine and that the error was “unavoidable.” In light that Dr. B has compensated Mrs. A, the Commission is considering whether to further penalise.
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