DeWayne Smith was awarded $275,000 after a jury found Steven Nguyen, DDS, and Western Dental liable for wrongfully removing all of Mr. Smith's teeth, according to ABC 15.
Here are five things to know:
1. Back in January 2015, Mr. Smith scheduled an emergency appointment at a Western Dental in Phoenix. He reported having severe pain in his right upper wisdom tooth.
2. At his first ever visit to the dentist, Western Dental employees and Dr. Nguyen found Mr. Smith had serious dental issues that would lead to him needing all of his teeth removed.
Mr. Smith was under the impression, at this appointment only his tooth causing serious pain would be removed. He agreed to undergo a long-term treatment plan to have all of his teeth removed.
3. During the procedure, Mr. Smith was sedated, and his mouth was packed with gauze after the surgery. Without knowing his teeth were removed, Mr. Smith came home to find all of his teeth were extracted. Mr. Smith was also sent a $7,000 bill for the procedure.
Wester Dental employees testified Dr. Nguyen left immediately after the surgery. However, the dentist testified he had a direct conversation with Mr. Smith, who told the dentist he wanted his teeth to be removed during the procedure.
4. Wester Dental provided Mr. Smith's procedure consent forms that had Mr. Smith's signature. However, Mr. Smith's attorney argued the consent forms were falsely created after the procedure.
A Western Dental employee described in her deposition and at trial Mr. Smith made it clear he did not want his teeth removed the day of the procedure and he only wanted one tooth removed. She went on to describe the bonus incentives dentists have for treatments.
5. Western Dental disputes the three-year-old allegations. In an emailed statement to ABC 15, Western Dental said, "This case stems from dental work delivered over three years ago. The fact is the patient both approved and signed the consent forms for all dental work performed. Given the facts of this case, we were surprised and disappointed by the jury's decision in January."
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Here are five things to know:
1. Back in January 2015, Mr. Smith scheduled an emergency appointment at a Western Dental in Phoenix. He reported having severe pain in his right upper wisdom tooth.
2. At his first ever visit to the dentist, Western Dental employees and Dr. Nguyen found Mr. Smith had serious dental issues that would lead to him needing all of his teeth removed.
Mr. Smith was under the impression, at this appointment only his tooth causing serious pain would be removed. He agreed to undergo a long-term treatment plan to have all of his teeth removed.
3. During the procedure, Mr. Smith was sedated, and his mouth was packed with gauze after the surgery. Without knowing his teeth were removed, Mr. Smith came home to find all of his teeth were extracted. Mr. Smith was also sent a $7,000 bill for the procedure.
Wester Dental employees testified Dr. Nguyen left immediately after the surgery. However, the dentist testified he had a direct conversation with Mr. Smith, who told the dentist he wanted his teeth to be removed during the procedure.
4. Wester Dental provided Mr. Smith's procedure consent forms that had Mr. Smith's signature. However, Mr. Smith's attorney argued the consent forms were falsely created after the procedure.
A Western Dental employee described in her deposition and at trial Mr. Smith made it clear he did not want his teeth removed the day of the procedure and he only wanted one tooth removed. She went on to describe the bonus incentives dentists have for treatments.
5. Western Dental disputes the three-year-old allegations. In an emailed statement to ABC 15, Western Dental said, "This case stems from dental work delivered over three years ago. The fact is the patient both approved and signed the consent forms for all dental work performed. Given the facts of this case, we were surprised and disappointed by the jury's decision in January."
More articles on dentists:
CDC warns dentists on dangers of IPF – agency doesn't know what's causing the diseases
Biolase secures $6M line of credit: 3 things to know
Drs. Steven Baxter, Angela Cotey & more: 5 dentists making headlines