First 24-Hour Dentist Offices Open In North Texas

DALLAS, TX — Cost, anxiety, lack of time and trouble finding doctors who accept various insurance plans are the main reasons people avoid going to the dentist, the American Dental Association reports. But two North Texas 24 Hour Dental Care offices are making most of those concerns a thing of the past.

Located in Mesquite, with an Irving office slated to open in August, 24 Hour Dental Care clinics are the first true emergency dental care facilities in Texas to provide affordable dental treatment 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Focusing on convenience and affordability, the clinics employ dentists who work around the clock, even on holidays, to perform common emergency procedures, such as extractions, root canals and crowns, immediately and often for less cost than a traditional dental office.

Justin Moody, DDS and owner of the Mesquite and Irving locations told Patch access to all-hours dental care is prudent when considering the hours a typical dentist works.

"There are 168 hours in a week, and the average dentist works something like 31.2 hours a week. So there's only access to what we've known as traditional dentistry 18 percent of the time," Moody said.

After adding a typical waitlist period to the equation, Moody suggests "access to dental care in the U.S. is, in my opinion, probably less than 10 percent of the time."

But the 24 hour clinics, equipped with state-of-the-art equipment such as dental CAT scans, will give non-traditional patients like night-shift workers, bartenders and those without insurance a new level of access to dental care.

And while the clinics perform emergency procedures, their doctors also conduct routine dental work like cleanings, checkups and cavity fillings. (Subscribe to your local Texas Patch for real-time news alerts and informative newsletters delivered straight to your inbox.)

In addition, the clinic accepts nearly all major dental insurance plans as well as offers a discount plan for patients without dental insurance. This discount plan reduces treatment fees through an annual membership by 40-60 percent. And unlike other facilities, treatment costs do not surge during atypical hours.

“Many dental offices claim to provide 24-hour care, but that’s not really the case,” Moody said. “Our business model is the first of its kind and truly provides patients with walk-in, emergency dental care at any time, every day of the year.”

Through offering affordable and accessible dental care at all hours, 24 Hour Dental Care also aims to reduce the number of emergency room visits related to dental disorders, which is currently one of the top three causes of avoidable trips to the emergency room. Over the past 15 years, emergency rooms nationwide have noticed the dramatic rise of patients seeking treatment for dental pain, which have taken a toll on the effectiveness of time-sensitive medical treatment. However, this is because emergency departments may be only choice to treat painful oral health issues.

Fortunately, by opening more locations nationwide, 24 Hour Dental Care will help reduce the number of tooth-related emergency room visits, freeing hospitals to treat an additional two million patients annually and saving the healthcare system nearly $1.6 billion in costs.

“Emergency rooms are not equipped to treat dental concerns, so patients typically leave with nothing more than a pain medication prescription and a referral to a dental practitioner," Moody said. “What results is a vicious cycle as patients typically return with further complications due to the inability to seek immediate dental treatment elsewhere. Now, with 24 Hour Dental Care, those suffering from tooth problems can receive walk-in emergency dental care at any time and at an affordable price.”

24 Hour Dental Care opened its first location in Indianapolis in 2015, which was the first true 24/7 dental office in the United States. The location experienced tremendous patient demand and expanded its offering with its second and third locations in Indianapolis in 2016 and 2017. The new locations – which are located at 2030 North Belt Line Road in Mesquite, Texas, and 2644 North Belt Line Road in Irving, Texas – make up nearly half of all true 24/7 dental offices in the nation.

"We had people coming in day one," Moody said of the Mesquite clinic. "...There were a lot of toothaches, but there was a gal who drove over from DFW [airport], and she worked at one of the rental car companies. Her shift didn't end until 3 or 4 in the morning... She Googled and found us, and we fixed her tooth."

24 Hour Dental Care is fully-staffed with dentists, dental assistants, and a front office team 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including weekends and holidays. For more information, please visit 24hourdentalcare.com.

"I think [people] just need to know that if you're in those areas, you now have access to care. You've got access to seeing a real dentist — not a dental assistant, not a dentist who is going to get up out of bed and drive in. You have a real dentist to take care of your real problem."

From 24 Hour Dental Care

As the first and only all-hours emergency, walk-in dental clinic, 24 Hour Dental Care currently operates five locations nationwide in major cities like Dallas and Indianapolis. Always open and always affordable, 24 Hour Dental Care’s business model focuses on convenience and affordability. Its clinics employ experienced dentists to perform common emergency procedures, such as extractions, root canals and crowns, immediately and often for less cost than a traditionaldental office. 24 Hour Dental Care clinics accept nearly major dental insurance plans, as well as offer a discount plan for patients without dental insurance. All 24 Hour Dental Care clinics are fully-staffed with dentists, dental assistants, and a front office team 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including weekends and holidays. For more information, please visit 24hourdentalcare.com.

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