FORGET THE DRILL (cont.)

Columbus Holistic Dentistry Now it's time for the warm comfort of a paraffin wax hand treatment, applied just prior to the dentist coming in.

When all the dental procedures are completed, the patient is given a bottle of mouth rinse and a hot towel for wiping their face. Flavored balm is applied to chapped lips as a finishing touch.

Anyone who comes for a particularly long treatment can order form a menu of protein drinks and fruit smoothies for the drive home.

"With all the relaxing elements they've built in, you actually forget that your teeth are being drilled on," says patient Debbie Messner, you lives in the Victorian Village area.

Patient response

Schindler and her husband, Mark (who handles the business side of the clinic), decided three years ago to transform their traditional dentistry practice into a dental spa. Inspired by ideas Sharon gleaned form her postgraduate training at the Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studios, they began with small changes and waited to see how their patients responded.

The overwhelming positive feedback with each step they tool eventually convinced them to immerse themselves and the fully in the spa concept.

"Patients are becoming more interested in fewer visits of longer duration for getting major dental work done. But these longer sessions can be very stressful, so the amenities we offer really help take the edge off," says Mark Schindler.

Dental spas are a growing subgroup within the medical spa trend, according to the Lexington, Ky. based INternational Spa ASsociation. It estimates 2.8 million people visited medical spas in 2001, and that the niche grew, 143 percent percent between 1997 and 2002.

The Chicago Dental Society this year became the first major trade group to offer a course on spa dentistry during its winter convention.

Sharon Schindler, in spite of her commitment to the dental spa concept and her plan to continue to add more perks in the future, is quick to point out that high-quality dental service is still the most important thing.

"It's always about the dentistry. The spa amenities are great, but they won't keep bringing people back if the quality care isn't there," she says.

Dr Sharon Schindler DDS, Holistic Dentistry - Providing services in cosmetic dentistry to the communities of Columbus and Powell, Ohio.