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| Arrowhead Dental Associates: Easily the most attractive dental practice I've ever visited. |
Rhode Island Blood Center staff were on hand during Free Dentistry Day
today to collect blood from donors while they were waiting for their free
cleanings, exams, and x-rays. Just another example of the community-mindedness that won Arrowhead Charlestown's inaugural Hometown Hero Award.
By Linda Felaco
Skies were overcast and the grounds were wet from last night’s soaking rains, but at Arrowhead Dental Associates at the end of South County Trail, it was all sunshine and smiles under festive circus tents. For the fourth year in a row, as part of the national Dentistry From the Heart program, the good folks at Arrowhead pledged to treat the first 120 patients who got in line at the crack of dawn to take a number to be given an appointment, plus as many others as could be fit in before 5 p.m. time permitting.
As I passed under the trellis at the beginning of the
walkway to the entrance, a woman behind me remarked about the flowers being
very attractive to hummingbirds. Mandevilla, she said they were called. Remind me to plant some
next year.
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| Arrowhead's hygienists did 120 cleanings today. Whew! Rest your wrists tonight, ladies! |
The word seems to be getting around about these events; we got
there around 6:30, and 85 people had already gotten there ahead of us. So our
appointment time wasn’t till 2 p.m.; last year it was 9:30. But we didn’t have
to wait around once we were given our appointment either. The Arrowhead folks
have got the whole process practically down to a science and are very efficient
about processing people in and out. It’s all first-come, first-served, so they
tell everyone to arrive a half-hour before their appointment time. That way if
there’s been a late arrival or a no-show, you can get in sooner. We did as we
were told and were out by 2:15.
Like last
year, staff and volunteers provided a lavish array of breakfast goodies for
the waiting crowds, including generous bowls full of ripe apples, bananas, and
quartered oranges; bagels and cream cheese; assorted pastry; a variety of cold
soft drinks and Poland Spring water; and Dunkin Donuts and coffee.[1]
Warning: Do not try the new Oreo
donuts. They’re so good they're evil. It was all I could do to keep myself from grabbing a
second one.
And like last
year, there were children’s activities and educational materials, including
the infamous Mountain Dew bottle containing dry sugar equivalent to the amount
that’s in the liquid. It fills a third of the bottle. Truly gross. I thought it would keep me off of soda
forever, but I confess I still occasionally succumb to the allure of a Dr Pepper.
But not now, while I’m still savoring that dentist-clean feeling.
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| All this, and dark-sky compliant, too! |
If you’re uninsured or underinsured, make sure to attend
next year; Free Dentistry Day is held on either the second or third Saturday of
August. Arrowhead doctors provide exams, fillings and simple extractions, and their
hygienists provide cleanings, x-rays, and sealants. If you’re the type who
dreads going to the dentist, don’t. The office is attractive and soothing, with
abundant views of the meticulously landscaped grounds, and the equipment is
state-of-the-art, with flat-screen TVs tilted for optimal viewing while you’re
in the chair. The staff members are very friendly and courteous to a fault. I could never get hired to work there; I’m way too cranky. But it sure is
a nice place to visit once a year.
[1] My
one quibble with the event: No recycling.
And even more items could’ve been recycled this year under the new single-stream
system than last year. Plus all those banana peels could’ve been composted.
Seems like a missed opportunity. I brought my empty bottles home to make sure
they got recycled.