Last year, Dr. Senan Ziadeh, an orthodontist, started seeing a patient at Rodeo Dental & Orthodontics who, in her father’s words, never smiled.
“Just seven months into the treatment, he took me aside and he said, ‘I’ve never seen my daughter taking selfies, smiling to her friends, and doing FaceTime. I’ve seen her smiling to the camera for the first time just last week,’” Ziadeh recalled. “He almost cried. That was a touching moment for me.
“Creating a beautiful smile for a patient is a big impact for a lot of people.”
Ziadeh is one of many dedicated and talented orthodontists who make up the team at Rodeo Dental. Orthodontics addresses both the aesthetics and health of a smile in patients of all ages, tackling issues like teeth crowding, crooked teeth, damaging bites, and more.
“It gives better self-confidence and just promotes the overall health of their mouth and body,” Dr. Suliman Salman said of orthodontics.
Now, in 2020, Salman added, there are many options for straightening a smile. Traditional silver metal braces are still among the choices, but clear and gold brackets are also on the table. Rodeo orthodontists also offer Invisalign — a series of clear plastic trays designed to slowly realign teeth. All these options are effective treatments, though patients can remove Invisalign trays to eat and brush their teeth. Traditional braces stay on for the duration of the treatment.
Salman was careful to make the distinction between receiving Invisalign through a trusted professional like the orthodontists at Rodeo versus mail-order aligners.
“Doing it with a doctor, you’re actually getting a treatment,” he said. “Mail orders, you’re buying a product. A doctor who is overseeing your treatment is not just looking to straighten your teeth. They’re looking at your overall health of your mouth and your body.”
Patients who go through an office like Rodeo Dental & Orthodontics for their aligners have the opportunity to talk to their doctor throughout the treatment. They can have any concerns addressed, provide input on the process, and decide if they’d like something different. Patients have a chance to develop a genuine relationship with their orthodontist at Rodeo, whom they will see typically on a monthly basis during the process.
“That’s the fun part,” Rodeo orthodontist Dr. Russ McCracken said. “Every visit, we continue to ask how the progress is. We like to get feedback from the patient and see if there’s any customizations that they want in particular.”
Ziadeh agreed.
“We like to keep every single visit memorable for them to make it fun,” he said. “We always joke around with each other, we joke around with the patient. We’re doing our work, we’re delivering the best treatment we could do to the patient, but at the same time, we’re here to have fun.”
That commitment to making visits fun is what sets Rodeo Dental apart from other practices, Salman said.
“We’re looking to change the way that we’re providing care for patients so it’s not just about treatment, it’s about making going to the dentist or the orthodontist a fun experience,” he said.
That fun comes from waiting rooms full of things to do, balloons and goody bags, pop spirit celebrations, and a special orthodontics-themed spring break bash in March.
“We have a lot of festivities going on. We also have a lot of good discounts, as well,” McCracken said. “It’s a good time for the kids and the families to come in and take advantage of that.”
Patients aren’t the only ones having fun at Rodeo Dental & Orthodontics.
“Every day is enjoyable. It’s the fact that we get to treat patients and they want to come in they want to fix their smile and we’re able to deliver that,” McCracken said. “Everybody enjoys being around each other. It’s basically very much a team effort and you see that from start to finish when you walk in the doors.”
The entire Rodeo team enjoys coming to work every day, contributing to an excellent company culture.
“I can tell you the environment we have here, the culture we have with Rodeo, could be one of the best environments you could work,” Ziadeh said. “It’s always been fun.”
That culture means that patients can expect some of the highest quality care available whether they’re children or adults.
“I’m most passionate about making orthodontics accessible to everybody in the community,” Salman said. “I like that every single person that comes into Rodeo seeking orthodontics is actually able to afford it — the best care you can get.”
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