Any thoughts on Aspen Dental?

I am considering a hygiene position at Aspen Dental and would appreciate any input you can offer.

My advice......RUN....... dont walk and whatever you do dont accept a position there. HORRIBLE company. They lie about everything( hours and money) and neither patient care OR employee relations are important to them! Turnover is unbelievable, management is unqualified(especially upper management) Doctors employees and patients are all miserable. BAD ENVIRONMENT! Hope you get this in time....and goodluck.

what did they do? cut your wages and shorten your hours? They dont give you time for proper cleanings? Why do people quit all the time? Is all aspen dental offices the same? Please explain.

If you want to have nothing good said about you and your profession. Work for Aspen. They rip people off, they come up with outrageous bills even before they do the work. They TX plan pat's w/ pockets of 4mm that they need NSRP. I went in for an interview, and it was more of a product pusher than a Hyg.job. My office takes in all the people that were smart and walked out on them. All I hear is complaints. They need to be turned into the better business bureau in my area.

I am seriously considering working for Aspen dental. Times are tough and I need full time hours. Has anyone actually worked there that can tell me what you think of the place???

PhilRDH in Endicott, New York said: If you want to have nothing good said about you and your profession. Work for Aspen. They rip people off, they come up with outrageous bills even before they do the work. They TX plan pat's w/ pockets of 4mm that they need NSRP. I went in for an interview, and it was more of a product pusher than a Hyg.job. My office takes in all the people that were smart and walked out on them. All I hear is complaints. They need to be turned into the better business bureau in my area.

I don't want to give out too much information here in this public forum, but I am looking for former employees from Aspen Dental for an investigative TV segment. The forum won't let me post my phone number so please email me: <removed contact information> Thank you.

Please do not post your contact information on the forums. Please create a profile if you need to share contact information.

journalist in New York, New York said: I don't want to give out too much information here in this public forum, but I am looking for former employees from Aspen Dental for an investigative TV segment. The forum won't let me post my phone number so please email me: <removed contact information> Thank you.

Please do not post your contact information on the forums. Please create a profile if you need to share contact information.

How can I contact you?

i am not a hygienest but a da i work in a private practice and the other day we had a patient come who went to aspen dental and in his hand he had a 6 page treatment plan- i have never ever seen anything like this- they basically scared the you know what out of him and gace him the impression that if he did not sign on the dotted line to get all this work done his teeth would fall out before he got to is car - the totqal was for over 6000.00-- alls; he needed was a cleaning and 4 fillings-- they told him his teeth were hopeless and to get full upper and lower dentures-- i was in awe rading this plan-- this is not the first time we had patients come in from places like this--i am still shaking my head over that treatment plan- who in there right mind would sign anything like that--can not they practice like this-- any comments

I lovt it at Aspen, the pay ,benefits anf people are excellent!

I am an extremely dissatisfied "patient" of Aspend dental. After reading through hundreds of complaints which echo mine, I am going to make it my mission to bring their fraudulent and unethical practices to light and bring them down. Anyone with ANY inside info or complaint, please post it!

i don;t work for aspen but where i do we have a few of their patients come to our office for as you would say second opinions-so now they are ours--seems everyone i talk to is very unhappy with aspen-- what was your expierence there-- seems they dont; explain why you need this or that done just sign on the dotted line -seems they have alot of unhappy people going there or used to go there as well as there epployees- i worked for a large group like aspen and seems they are on concerned for making the daily projection- most big-big groups don;t seem to the patients best interest at heart-at least some

Considering a position with Aspen. Is it salary (guaranteed) PLUS a bonus? Interviewing tomorrow. Are benefits good? What kind of schedule is there? What happens if you have a no show, still paid for the time?
Thanks, any info is helpful!!

alsamcon3 in Columbus, Ohio said: Considering a position with Aspen. Is it salary (guaranteed) PLUS a bonus? Interviewing tomorrow. Are benefits good? What kind of schedule is there? What happens if you have a no show, still paid for the time?
Thanks, any info is helpful!!

Hi, These are all good questions for you to ask the person interviewing you. Have your questions (with space) to write down what info. is given to you! Ask if there is anything that you have to sign other than the W-4 ? Be ready for a very tight schedule...I worked as a temp. in one of their locations and they seemed happy to have me. Have other offices to temp. at if possible. P.S. Do they have a review of you after 3 months? (Good ? to ask)....GL

It looks like the base is 925 per day. If you make 725 one day and 1125.00 the next day, are you paid a bonus for the day you made an extra 200 dollars or does the 200 dollars go tword the day you only made 725.00? if this was the case you would get no bonus. Where can i get a copy of the bonus program?

thank you

I just had my teeth pulled and got Dentures. I found the staff very helpful, caring people, from the Dentist right down through the ranks to the receptionist I have the temporary dentures yet. In fact I am still sore,and can't eat solids yet,so I don't qualify as an expert on the subject,so far.
My question is: Is it illegal to say the location of the office? What I am hearing is Aspen Dental is not a good place for employees or patients. Maybe it is just one office, with a bunch of crabby people. I know it's worse than that, but my point is: If you want to say something,incriminating and say Aspen Dental, that would be slanderous just as much as saying the location. People are giving Aspen Dental a
bad name, and like I said, it could be one or two offices that are like that. My Dentist is with Aspen Dental in Salem-Kaiser. I found all of them are nice, caring, and good at their job. So OK enogh. I'm through.

bees in Lebanon, Oregon said: I just had my teeth pulled and got Dentures. I found the staff very helpful, caring people, from the Dentist right down through the ranks to the receptionist I have the temporary dentures yet. In fact I am still sore,and can't eat solids yet,so I don't qualify as an expert on the subject,so far.
My question is: Is it illegal to say the location of the office? What I am hearing is Aspen Dental is not a good place for employees or patients. Maybe it is just one office, with a bunch of crabby people. I know it's worse than that, but my point is: If you want to say something,incriminating and say Aspen Dental, that would be slanderous just as much as saying the location. People are giving Aspen Dental a
bad name, and like I said, it could be one or two offices that are like that. My Dentist is with Aspen Dental in Salem-Kaiser. I found all of them are nice, caring, and good at their job. So OK enogh. I'm through.

Hi, With your temp., soreness will occur for a little while...Make sure you go back for "relines" because the tissue will resorb (shrink) and you want to make sure the temp/ and when you receive your permanet Denture(s) fit properly! P.S. Even though you have Dentures (any teeth of your still remaining???), make sure to brush then soak them daily, after breakfast and dinner , minimum! You still can get tarter, so please take care of the dentures to make them last a longtime! Make sure that you rinse your mouth, even brush with a soft "tooth"brush , your palate(roof of mouth), cheeks and tongue. GL

Does anybody understand the Aspen Dental Bonus program for Hygienists? If so could you please explain. Thank you

sarah said: Does anybody understand the Aspen Dental Bonus program for Hygienists? If so could you please explain. Thank you

Hi, Have you asked Aspen about their bonus program? They may have a hardcopy that details what's involved...ask and if no answer...how badly do you want to work there? Many offices don't offer any ben's , so it's your call...talk to administrative, etc...Hope it all works out for you. How much are they offering as hourly rate and in what state?

bees in Lebanon, Oregon said: I just had my teeth pulled and got Dentures. I found the staff very helpful, caring people, from the Dentist right down through the ranks to the receptionist I have the temporary dentures yet. In fact I am still sore,and can't eat solids yet,so I don't qualify as an expert on the subject,so far.
My question is: Is it illegal to say the location of the office? What I am hearing is Aspen Dental is not a good place for employees or patients. Maybe it is just one office, with a bunch of crabby people. I know it's worse than that, but my point is: If you want to say something,incriminating and say Aspen Dental, that would be slanderous just as much as saying the location. People are giving Aspen Dental a
bad name, and like I said, it could be one or two offices that are like that. My Dentist is with Aspen Dental in Salem-Kaiser. I found all of them are nice, caring, and good at their job. So OK enogh. I'm through.

You may be very fortunate, and do have a decent office where you are. I'm sure they are out there. If you walk in many of these corporately owned offices, you will notice they are staffed with young, out-going, but inexperienced (and I'm not saying they aren't qualified, just inexperienced) professionals. There is a reason for that.
And the reason they are "dogged" across the board is because they have corporate policies, not individual office policies.
Now I'm not gonna give my opinion one way or another, but I've got 30 yrs. experience, and have filled in a few times on my day off for corporately owned offices(not Aspen, though). I'll just stick with private practice, thanks. :)

I would also add that it has been my experience (I admit limited) working for corporate is a different ballgame. Everyone in the office works for the corporation, even the doctors. So they are no longer your bosses but they still act like it. You have less bargaining power in a corporation than private practice and we all know how narrow that margin is to start with. The corporations have higher production goals to meet also. If anyone does interview ask what their turnover rate is, how many hygienists have they hired in x number of months. We have an Aspen here and they have an ad pretty regularly for an asst. They also had a contract with one of the assisting schools and the students refused to work there so the school cancelled the contract I have subbed there and it was ok for a day. I was treated with respect and friendliness.

It is interesting and a bit scary to see corporate dental offices squashing the little-guy dental practices. Almost like Walmart coming in to squash local merchants, Aspen Dental strikes fear in the hearts of smalltime practice owners. Still, the smart 'little guys' can differentiate themselves enough too retain their markt share - by establishing a more personal long-term relationship between the doctor, the hygienists, staff and the patients. I would imagine that working in a corporate office would definitely be more impersonal, and you'd never get to experiene the joy of seeing, better understanding, and helping the same patients over a long period of time. Further, like most franchise/chain store businesses, corp offices are by necessity run with very rigid systems (so corporate can retain control and profitability) which give clinicans less control over their methods of practice. We have a few dentists who own up to 15 offices, but not on the scale and organization detail of Aspen Dental. Like all things American, it inevitably will trickle up into our neck of the woods. Maybe half of us will end up as employees of a dental megacorp in 20 years?

The only thing good about corporate dental offices is that they offer benefits. In Va there are alot of small dental offices that don't offer insurance, retirement, or even holiday pay. They follow the laws about who does what. Hyg do all the cleanings even if they are pedo offices. Alot of offices here have DAs doing hyg work and no cares!!

i worked for a large corporate office-- offices in a lot of states- they did offer health insurance but it was way way to costly-i woould have been handing them my pay check every 2 weeks -we got paid bi-weekly and that is what it amounted to- crazy--- there reason for it being so high because we got dental work for free but that also changed then they started charging us for everything-hmm thanks but no thanks- and then the hours where getting so crazy-ridiculous long- 11 hour days mon to thurs and 8 hours on fridaya and half saturdays and they expected us to work that- there were nuts- i left- work 4 days and make more- and only 32 hours aweek-geez don;t some of these places think we have lives- guess not--

Jacqueline RDH in Ledyard, Connecticut said: I am considering a hygiene position at Aspen Dental and would appreciate any input you can offer.

Aspen is a wonderful company to work for. New hygienists are offered extensive training and Aspen practices ADA protocols. I have worked in private practice settings with Dentists that don't treat periodontal disease. You have a company and the ADA backing what we consider to be our Standard of Care. If you are offered a position, I would consider yourself fortunate.

seasonedhygienist in Indianapolis, Indiana said: Aspen is a wonderful company to work for. New hygienists are offered extensive training and Aspen practices ADA protocols. I have worked in private practice settings with Dentists that don't treat periodontal disease. You have a company and the ADA backing what we consider to be our Standard of Care. If you are offered a position, I would consider yourself fortunate.

It all depends on the Regional Director, the Regional Manager and the Office Manager. The Excecutives at Aspen are sincere but it does not always translate down. I worked for Aspen for 9 mos., they have the "model" which is the business plan to make the practice's work. It would work if the Office Manager, Regional Manager and Regional Director would follow them but in an effor to maximize profits they "tweak" with it and mess it up. Mind you the hygienist can be one of their greatest assets and one of their greatest profit centers, if the patient's accept the treatment plans but if they set a quota to have no cases less than $2500, not the average of cases being $2500 but no case less than $2500, it is hard for me to believe that the patient's best interest is a heart. It is a business and in order to remain open it must show a profit but not at the expense of quality of care and over treatment for the sake of $.
Furthermore, there are two agendas that Aspen has 1. to make a profitable practice and 2. to get the dentists to buy in on the corporate practice thus building Aspen's assets. It is a good business but better for some than others and should not exist while sacrificing quality of care.

I agree! Which locations is everyone talking about?? I recently went to Aspen Dental in Danbury CT. I have to say right away, the bathroom is disgusting and the "offices", which are not really offices, but just one big room separated by furniture is dusty and dirty. I am concerned about this because a dental office should be very clean! Other then that, I have no idea how their work is or anything else. The only complaint I have is their cleanliness and because of that, I will continue looking for the right dentist for me.

seasonedhygienist in Indianapolis, Indiana said: Aspen is a wonderful company to work for. New hygienists are offered extensive training and Aspen practices ADA protocols. I have worked in private practice settings with Dentists that don't treat periodontal disease. You have a company and the ADA backing what we consider to be our Standard of Care. If you are offered a position, I would consider yourself fortunate.

Just curious, how long do you get for recall prophy's on adults. I was just told today 30 minutes each at their Bloomington, IN office. Is that the norm with Aspen? Thanks.

If you are or were an employee of Aspen Dental and know what they do is unethical and would like to help educate the people about what they are REALLY getting themselves into. Please get in touch with me.

~a concerned CT resident

SpeakUpTv in Waterbury, Connecticut said: If you are or were an employee of Aspen Dental and know what they do is unethical and would like to help educate the people about what they are REALLY getting themselves into. Please get in touch with me.

~a concerned CT resident

speakuptv
at
ymail

alsamcon3 in Columbus, Ohio said: Considering a position with Aspen. Is it salary (guaranteed) PLUS a bonus? Interviewing tomorrow. Are benefits good? What kind of schedule is there? What happens if you have a no show, still paid for the time?
Thanks, any info is helpful!!

you will regret working there i promise you that if you accept a job with aspen dental

How do I get a dentist that does not make the hygienists like a car dealer service writer. I think that is why I am looking for a dentist now. My present dentist seems to want to do all kinds of work that my previous dentist who just retired didn't need to do

Ron in Temperance, Michigan said: How do I get a dentist that does not make the hygienists like a car dealer service writer. I think that is why I am looking for a dentist now. My present dentist seems to want to do all kinds of work that my previous dentist who just retired didn't need to do

Hi Ron, Are there any DH programs near where you live? If so, maybe have them take the necessary x-rays, etc...or a Dental school. In most cases you will be thoroughly examined including areas that need to be addressed: new fillings and or replaced and your tissue and tarter levels...bring any recent x-rays with you to compare...they may need to take new FMX or BWX....GL, it seems that many offices/Dr.'s are looking to fund their new houses, vaca's...not all but some...

SpeakUpTv in Waterbury, Connecticut said: If you are or were an employee of Aspen Dental and know what they do is unethical and would like to help educate the people about what they are REALLY getting themselves into. Please get in touch with me.

~a concerned CT resident

Worked for Aspen for about 2 years. Will never work there again. Discourage everyone from going there.

Former worker in Pawtucket, Rhode Island said: Worked for Aspen for about 2 years. Will never work there again. Discourage everyone from going there.

Speakuptv...are you legit? I googled you and nothing came up. What type of company are you?

journalist in New York, New York said: I don't want to give out too much information here in this public forum, but I am looking for former employees from Aspen Dental for an investigative TV segment. The forum won't let me post my phone number so please email me: <removed contact information> Thank you.

Please do not post your contact information on the forums. Please create a profile if you need to share contact information.

Please email me. I need former employees also for an investigation for a class action lawsuit.

Thanks,

Nancy

SpeakUpTv in Waterbury, Connecticut said: If you are or were an employee of Aspen Dental and know what they do is unethical and would like to help educate the people about what they are REALLY getting themselves into. Please get in touch with me.

~a concerned CT resident

Please contact me regarding Aspen Dental's procedures.

Former worker in Pawtucket, Rhode Island said: Worked for Aspen for about 2 years. Will never work there again. Discourage everyone from going there.

I see you are from RI. I am a PI starting a class action lawsuit against Aspen Dental and need your statement of the business procedures they operate by. They have scammed people all over the Country, and have to be closed down. Please email me so I can speak with you.

Thank you.

Nancy

Privateyegirl in Scituate, Rhode Island said: Please contact me regarding unnecessary dental work that Aspen Dental is doing on patients.
I am in the process of starting a class action lawsuit, and would appreciate your statement.

We stated we did not want fluoride treatments because with city water service, it's not necessary for adults. While my husband was in the chair, tipped back and eyes closed, they had time swish and spit and before he knew it, they did the fluoride. They didn't tell him though, and we were sure surprised when that $35 showed up on the bill. We don't have dental insurance so we paid up front before we left and paid the entire balance, so we thought -- a month later we received a bill with the fluoride treatment on it!

Thanks for your input. We are trying to stop this franchise from unlawful business practices. I am a PI and consumer advocate against consumer fraud, and your help is appreciated.

dub in Circleville, Ohio said: you will regret working there i promise you that if you accept a job with aspen dental

You were probably not intelligent enough to handle it. Have you heard of punctuation marks?

Privateyegirl in Scituate, Rhode Island said: Please contact me. We need your help with a class action lawsuit against them.

We are talking about a company that has over 250 offices. Please be careful not to categorize one bad experience with an entire company. I have worked in many settings and have found there is no perfect dental office, no perfect dentist or hygienist....corporate or private practice. I know many people who are perfectly happy with the treatment they have received from my office, but happy people don't rave on the internet. All you hear about are the bad experiences and I don't know any dentist or hygienist that has never pissed off a patient. You people need to grow up and get a life~!

Some of us just don't like being charged for services we specifically requested NOT to receive. We are you so angry about that?

alm in Indianapolis, Indiana said: We are talking about a company that has over 250 offices. Please be careful not to categorize one bad experience with an entire company. I have worked in many settings and have found there is no perfect dental office, no perfect dentist or hygienist....corporate or private practice. I know many people who are perfectly happy with the treatment they have received from my office, but happy people don't rave on the internet. All you hear about are the bad experiences and I don't know any dentist or hygienist that has never pissed off a patient. You people need to grow up and get a life~!

I have 1,200 complaints and I assure you the law firm, as well as myself, are well aware of the task ahead.

As for me "getting a life".....this is my life. Helping the public who are robbed by fraud.

ttd in Indianapolis, Indiana said: You were probably not intelligent enough to handle it. Have you heard of punctuation marks?

I worked for Aspen for more than 3 years. I needed a job and that is the only reason I remained with them for such a long time. The problem starts with upper management putting pressure on the Office Manager to produce more this month than they did last month. STM1 and STM2 (soft tissue management)are presented to patients in a way where they believe that the Rotadent toothbrush($125) and Arestin($25) are all necessary to have done. A tooth can have more than 1 site of Arestin placed and this can add up very quickly. Rotadent can be found online at a cheaper rate, which isn't a very high quality mechanical toothbrush. I don't have any good sentiments towards Aspen, the company. I thoroughly enjoyed working with the main dentist, but again you should be wary. I wouldn't go to an Aspen unless I knew someone who had a good experience with the dentist. Ultimately, whatever work you have done will be permanent and sometimes bad dental work cannot be undone. I have also worked with a dentist who if they saw the filling was going to be a little big they would start doing what should have been a filling only to perforate the nerve and force the patient to decide right then and there if they wanted to proceed with a root canal(plus post, core and crown) or take out the tooth. This is a large consequence to have to deal with if the dentist isn't looking out for your best interest. Basically forcing you to lose the tooth or pay close to $3000 for root canal treatment, post & core, and crown. If you need dentures that is what they are good at.
If you can avoid working for Aspen, you should!

privateyegirl in Coventry, Rhode Island said: Please email me. I need former employees also for an investigation for a class action lawsuit.

Thanks,

Nancy

It was also a customary practice to cancel out patients who were scheduled for inexpensive fillings and replace them with more expensive procedures like crown preps. I also heard that their electronic scheduling system has been programmed to not allow the user to schedule more than 1 or not sure if it's 2 patients per day for a filling procedure. I wasn't front desk but one of the front desk persons told me. I was shocked, but not really since we're talking about Aspen.

I would really like to talk to the person who worked at Aspen for 3 yrs. Your user name is not showing here. We would appreciate your contact information. Please email me at researchpartners@verizon.net.

Thank you.

Can you email me at researchpartners@verizon.net

Thanks.

Nancy

dub in Circleville, Ohio said: you will regret working there i promise you that if you accept a job with aspen dental

Did you work there? If so, can you email me at researchpartners@verizon.net I need your feedback. There is a potential lawsuit in the making.

journalist in New York, New York said: I don't want to give out too much information here in this public forum, but I am looking for former employees from Aspen Dental for an investigative TV segment. The forum won't let me post my phone number so please email me: <removed contact information> Thank you.

Please do not post your contact information on the forums. Please create a profile if you need to share contact information.

How can I contact you? I have info and would like to speek to you. You can email me at reasearchpartners@verizon.net

Mistyped my email. It is Researchpartners@verizon.net.