Terms and Conditions of Treatment at Brisbane Smiles

All patients of Brisbane Smiles are required to agree to our Terms and Conditions of Treatment.  If you are unsure or have any questions regarding the terms and conditions, then please contact our practice staff to discuss your questions and concerns before accepting a treatment plan or commencing treatment.

Privacy

Privacy is important and is governed by the Practice Privacy Policy.  For privacy of our staff and practice, and safety to avoid interference with our equipment, we require all recording devices, including phones, tablets, laptops, video cameras to be turned off in the surgeries.   Communication regarding patient treatment and appointments can only be made with the patient or guardian and it is our policy to not respond to treatment related matters via email.  For treatment related matters, direct consultation with our Dentists is required face to face.

Charter of Patient Rights

The Brisbane Smiles Charter of Patient Rights relates to patient access, respect, communication, participation, privacy and comment. View our Charter of Patient Rights.

Appointment Confirmation

Brisbane Smiles provides patients with appointments to meet individual treatment needs, and we appreciate patients notifying the practice as soon as possible when agreed appointment times cannot be met.  Appointment times and length of appointment, and on certain days, are reserved just for the patient, and cannot be reassigned to other treatments or another person.  Once a time has been reserved in our system, it is reserved for you unless you notify us otherwise. Whilst we usually message to remind you prior to an appointment, if you do not receive a message or call from us to remind you, this does not constitute a reason for your non-attending an appointment.

If an appointment is not confirmed, the appointment may be rescheduled without notice.

Appointment Cancellation

There are no cancellation fees in instances when 2 business days notice is given.  If you are sick or ill (including any covid symptoms) then please let the practice know as soon as possible to avoid any cancellation or missed appointment fees.

‘Late Cancellations’ occur if less than 2 days notice of cancellation is given prior to the appointment time. The late cancellation fee is $100 for appointments less than 2 hours and $250 for appointment of 2 hours or greater. Any deposits or account credits may be forfeited or used towards the late cancellation fee.  Two or more late cancellations will require a 100% appointment fee as a non-refundable pre-payment before booking future appointments.  Any professional discounts or package discounts will be forfeited in the instance of 2 or more late cancellations. Additional cancellation fees may apply for Medical Anaesthetist and other external providers as per their policies.

Missed Appointments

Missed Appointments occur when a scheduled appointment is not attended by the patient. All appointments are considered firm regardless of confirmation in the leadup to the appointment.

If an appointment is missed, a missed appointment fee for $100 for appointments under 2 hours or $250 for appointments of 2  hours or longer will apply.  Any professional discounts or package discounts will be forfeited in the instance of 2 or more missed appointments.  Any deposits may be forfeited or used towards the missed appointment fee.

If a patient has a missed appointment, the practice may decide to offer appointments on the same day only, meaning appointments will by available only on the same day as booking.  Or the practice may require a full non-refundable pre-payment before booking any future appointments.  Or, at the practice’s discretion, the treating relationship with the patient may also be ended meaning no future appointments offered. If the treating relationship has been ended by the practice, the practice will provide full co-operation to transfer the patients records to the patients new dental practice subject to payment of all outstanding accounts and any missed appointment fees.

Professional Fees

Our practice is committed to providing our patients with the best treatment outcomes and we charge what is usual and customary for the service.  You will be informed of fee estimates before treatment commences.  It is your responsibility to discuss any financial concerns before your treatment is commenced.  All fees are considered an estimate until such time treatment is performed and additional fees may occur throughout treatment.  Treatment Estimates are valid for 30 days from time of treatment estimate and are not able to be negotiated.  Any professional discounts or packages will be forfeited in the instance of late cancellation or missed appointments.

Our practice utilises the Hicaps/Tyro system to process Health Fund Claims on the spot at the time of your appointment, and the remainder will become your full immediate responsibility.  We accept payment for our services by cash, hicaps, eftpos, Visa, Mastercard, Amex, direct transfer, cheque. Payment via Direct Bank Transfer must be made three days in advance of payment due date and must be received in the practice’s account prior to treatment.

Treatment will not proceed should accounts not be paid at the time of treatment.  Any Gap Payments or Shortfalls due to Health Fund non-approval of claims need to be paid on the day of treatment, and a receipt will be provided for patient to claim back direct from the Health Fund.  The relationship between you and your health fund is between you and them.  We have no association with any health insurer, and their terms and conditions and the level of rebate you receive from them is a matter between you and them.  The ADA and AMA recommend reviewing your health fund arrangement annually and one comparison service we recommend to our patients is Fair Health Care Alliance.

You will receive an invoice at the time of treatment.

Unpaid Invoices after 30 days will be referred to a debt collection agency, and if we do so you must pay any costs that we incur in connection with the recovery of the unpaid invoice including the agency’s fees, any legal fees and interest.  The practice may decide to end the treating relationship with all family members of the patient.

Complex Treatment

Complex treatments are those which involve Treatment Plans over $10,000.  Pre-payment deposits may be required before appointments are reserved. Payments will be required as scheduled and appointments will be cancelled if payments are not made on time. In this instance, pre-payment deposits will be forfeited.

Deposits will cover any laboratory preparation work and are non-refundable upon laboratory work commencing.

As multiple appointments are involved, and in instances that other Medical Professionals are involved in the appointments: late appointment cancellation or missed appointments can have large fees and be subject to terms and conditions of the other Medical Professional.

Warranty

We offer dental treatments which are personalised to each patient’s individual needs.  An absolute warranty of guarantee cannot be given due to patient variables and that there is no dental treatment that will succeed in each and every case.  We do however commit to providing a high quality of dental care and in instances where material failure occurs within the first 12 months then we will assess and undertake to assist with correcting the concern where failure of the material or treatment directly relates to technique or material, and only in instances where the patient has completed the full treatment recommended, and returned for 6 monthly check-up, review and cleaning appointments.

Whilst we make every effort to plan for expected dental treatment and costs, there are times where additional costs are required. This for example may occur when an old filling or crown is removed from a tooth, and the root canal has been damaged. It may then become necessary to undertake a root canal treatment or even extraction of the tooth.  This additional treatment would be at additional cost to the treatment estimate along with any subsequent treatments like new fillings, crowns, veneers, root canal treatment, dental implants, extractions.

Transfer

Dental Records hold valuable dental and medical information and the transfer from dentist to dentist of these records is important.  A signed form of release is required for the practice to receive and to release a patient record. You should be aware that dental record transfer is usually performed via email, and email is not a particularly secure medium. If you are concerned you need to make arrangements to pickup and deliver the records in person or arrange registered post. This is in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

The Dental fees quoted by our practice are for treatments within our practice only.  Sometimes, dental treatments will be referred to another Dental Practitioner.  We will share your Dental Record to Specilaist should referral be necessary. The cost of such referred treatment will be detailed by the other Dentist Practitioner.