Dental Malpractice Defense and Licensing Board Representation

The dental practice remains unique in all of healthcare. In most dental practices, the dentist is not only the provider of clinical care but is also responsible for running the business, making employment decisions and watching the bottom line. With the many responsibilities placed on the dentist, malpractice lawsuits and state dental board investigations are disruptive and costly. POLING understands dentistry.

Advanced dental treatment options and improved technology have led to more complex procedures and, correspondingly, greater scrutiny by the public and the profession. This has led to an increase in dental malpractice lawsuits. It is important to have someone on your side who understands the clinical practice of dentistry and the wide range of treatment modalities from the most common to the most complex.

Our attorneys regularly lecture on clinical risk management with the Ohio State University College of Dentistry and to dental societies throughout Ohio and Kentucky. We have successfully defended malpractice lawsuits involving everything from restorative treatment to implants to wrongful death surgical cases. We vigorously defend these cases with the goal of protecting the dentists’ most important asset – their reputation. We are well aware of the stresses of the litigation process, but we focus on shifting that stress away from the dentist so that there is no disruption in the practice.

As with malpractice lawsuits, dental board investigations and administrative actions are disruptive and stressful. Dental board actions must be taken very seriously as the risk is not financial exposure but, most critically, the ability to maintain licensure. POLING has worked for over a decade in assisting dentists with dental board investigations, resolving disputes and, when necessary, defending dentists in administrative hearings. It is critical to be proactive at the earliest stage of dental board investigations in order to achieve the best results.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. This is true in the treatment of patients and in serving the interests of dental professionals. POLING regularly offers dental risk management seminars to individual dentists, practices and dental organizations. The goal is to improve practices within the dental office so as to reduce the risk of litigation and board intervention. We provide consulting services in almost all regulatory matters ranging from infection control to advertising. In addition, POLING assists in resolving patient disputes so as to prevent litigation.

We are dedicated to focusing on your legal challenges so that you can focus on your practice.