Medically reviewed by Dr. Ali Fatemi, DDS, FAGD, MAGD, FICOI, MaCSD — Fatemi Family Dentistry, Gaithersburg & Lexington Park, MD.
The most useful question when choosing a dentist isn’t “are they good?” — it’s “what happens when I need something they don’t do?” A practice that handles everything in-house saves you the referral runaround that most people don’t think about until they’re in it. Here’s a practical checklist for choosing a family dentist in the Gaithersburg or Lexington Park area, including the questions people usually forget.
Plenty of general dentists send you elsewhere for implants, oral surgery, or sedation. Each referral means a new office, a new set of paperwork, and a new bill. Ask up front which procedures are done in-house. At our offices, implants, surgery, sedation, and routine care are all handled by the same team, so your records and your care stay in one place. We’re also fully digital with our own in-house lab — we make our own crowns, print our own surgical guides, and 3D-print night guards and dentures on site, which usually means tighter quality control and fewer visits.
“We’re gentle” is not a plan. Real anxiety support means options: nitrous, oral sedation, or true IV sedation for patients who need to sleep through treatment. If dental fear is why you’ve avoided care, this is the single most important thing to confirm — and worth asking whether the dentist administers sedation personally or brings in an outside provider.
Ask how after-hours problems are handled before you have one. Some offices leave you with a voicemail until Monday. Ask specifically: if I crack a tooth on a Saturday, what do I do? Our emergency page spells out exactly what we do and do not offer: an after-hours message emailed straight to Dr. Fatemi, who answers personally as soon as he can, and a clear instruction to go to an ER if it cannot wait. That is the kind of straight answer worth asking any practice for.
The best dentist is the one you’ll actually go to. For families spread between Montgomery County and St. Mary’s County — including the Patuxent River area — having two offices (Gaithersburg and Lexington Park) means care closer to where you live or work. Check that the hours match when you can realistically come in.
Beyond the dental degree, ongoing training signals a dentist who keeps learning. Fellowship (FAGD) and Mastership (MAGD) in the Academy of General Dentistry, for example, require substantial continuing education beyond the minimum. For sedation or implant work specifically, it’s fair to ask what training the dentist has in that area — a Master of the College of Sedation Dentistry (MaCSD), for instance, is awarded by examination.
A good practice shows you a written plan with itemized costs before treatment, takes your insurance or explains payment options plainly, and doesn’t pressure you into same-day decisions on big treatment. Vague answers about money are a fair reason to keep looking.
Call and ask two of these questions. How the front desk answers — patiently and specifically, or vaguely and rushed — tells you a lot about how you’ll be treated in the chair. You’re allowed to interview a dentist before committing.
See everything we handle in-house at our Maryland offices →
Ready to start? Contact our Gaithersburg or Lexington Park office and ask us anything on this list.
General information to help you choose a provider. Please confirm all clinical content against your practice’s regulatory and compliance requirements before publication.
The numb-face, drooping-lip feeling after the dentist isn't inevitable. How computer-controlled, single-tooth numbing targets only the tooth being treated. Reviewed by Dr. Ali Fatemi, DDS, FAGD, MAGD.
Read article
Leave a Reply