Office Policies

How Appointments are Scheduled

Our office attempts to schedule appointments at your convenience and when time is available. Missing school can be kept to a minimum when regular dental care is continued.

What About Payment?

Full payment for professional services is due at the time dental treatment is provided. Every effort will be made to provide a treatment plan which fits your timetable and budget, and gives your child the best possible care.
For your convenience, we accept cash, Visa, and MasterCard. We do NOT accept American Express or any personal cheques.
Direct Deposit, or electronic funds transfer (EFT) is also available for dental treatment under General Anaesthesia or Intravenous Sedation. Please contact our office for details. Confirmation of payment is required by emailing us at reception@specialistkidsdentist.com.au

Payments for General Anaesthesia (GA)

For procedures carried out under General Anaesthesia (that is in a hospital setting), full payment for both Dental Fee and Anaesthetist Fee is required in advance at least 2 weeks prior to the operation in order to confirm such a procedure.
Hospital Day Stay surgery is at City West Day Surgery (Westmead). This fee is payable on the day of the operation at the hospital. Please contact the hospital for payment methods. For non-insured patients and patients with private health insurance, please contact City West Day Surgery or your health fund for details of your fees and rebates.

Payments for Intravenous Sedation (IV)

For procedures carried out under Intravenous Sedation, 1/3 rd of dental fee is required at least 2 weeks prior to the operation in order to confirm such a procedure.
NOTE: Emergency bookings for GA and IV will be dealt with on a one-on-one basis.

Private Health Insurance

Your dental insurance plan is a contractual agreement between you and your insurance company. As a result, we are unable to influence the terms of your insurance policy. Treatment recommendations are provided free of bias of your insurance coverage and are catered purely to the needs of your child.

Payment Plan

Some of our patients have used the following finance options below to make their treatment more affordable. If these options are not suited to your circumstances, please contact us directly to discuss further options.

Gem Visa Credit Card (1300 630 977)

GE visa card offers 0% interest for 6 months on any Visa purchase over $250 or 0% interest for up to 55 days on purchases under $250.
Only apply if at least 18yrs of age and a permanent resident of Australia.
Please apply online at https://www.gemvisa.com.au/credit-card-features/ and carefully review all the terms and conditions. It should take less than 10 minutes.
You will need: 1. Drivers licence, passport or proof of age card 2.Details of your income, assets and liabilities 3. Employer’s contact number.
In most instances, you get a response in 60 secs. If application is approved, GE will let you know your credit limit. Credit limits vary from person to person based on information supplied in your application.
In some instances further information may be required to process an application. If further information is required GE will inform you during the application process.
It will take approximately 5-10 working days from your approval for you to receive your card.
Annual fee =$99. Applies after your first purchase, and on the anniversary of that first purchase every year afterwards.
Interest rate 24.99% pa. The same rate applies to interest bearing balances, such as cash advances and outstanding retail purchase balances, after the 0% interest promotion period expires.

MacCredit

Streamlined application through MacCredit website link https://www.maccredit.com.au/ or by calling Direct line 1300 884 355 . No need for face-to-face meetings.
Loans from $4,000. Finance all or part of your procedure with the doctor of your choice. No deposits or upfront payments. MacCredit fund into the customer’s nominated account.
Repayments terms from 18 months to 7 years
MacCredit minimum criteria is – Customer must be an Australian resident, able to show a proof of income with no current adverse credit history. The following proof of income is accepted: Full time / part time / self-employed / casual / Centrelink as primary source of income (single parent A & B / carer / disability/ old age / self funded-retirees) / business VISA 457(to VISA expiry date). Once proof of income has been received, the customer will generally be conditionally approved within 24-48hrs.

Cancellation Policy

Since appointed times are reserved exclusively for each patient we ask that you please notify our office 24 hours (working day) in advance of your scheduled appointment time if you are unable to keep your appointment. Another patient, who needs our care, could be scheduled if we have sufficient time to notify them. We realize that unexpected things can happen, but we ask for your assistance in this regard. We reserve the right to bill for appointment cancellations with less than 24hrs notice.
As availability for hospital operating time is limited, a cancellation fee will apply if you cancel your General Anaesthetic booking with less than 5 working days notice from the scheduled date.
A cancellation fee will also apply for intravenous sedation booking with less than 5 working days notice from the scheduled date.
In the case of cancellation due to a medical reason, provision of a medical certificate is required in order to avoid charges.
If you have elected to pay a deposit (i.e. payment made in advance for a procedure not yet performed) by credit card and subsequently you request a refund for whatever reason(s), a 1% surcharge fee will be deducted from the initial amount paid (as credit cards payments incur merchant fees to our business).