The Hard Road Led to a Great Team Asset

Why is everything getting harder as Emily gets older? I thought things would get easier. Why is finding caregivers harder? Why is finding medical providers harder? Why is finding a dentist harder? These are the recurring thoughts that cycle through my head. I have loudly shared the long saga of trying to get a new wheelchair for Emily. (She has yet to receive it as of this writing.) I have been silent in the parallel journey to find a new dentist and get Emily’s teeth cared for.

Emily had her teeth cleaned last November. The pediatric dentist we have seen for years (and love) informed us that Emily had at least one wisdom tooth emerging, and we would need to seek a new dentist to address the issues. I remember calling my husband on the way home in shock. “Of all the things that I worried about us dealing with as Emily aged, wisdom teeth were not even on my radar!” We work hard to care for Emily’s teeth the best we can. As she has aged, teeth care has gotten harder too. Why is everything harder?!?

Her pediatric dentist referred us to a dentist that sees patients with intellectual disabilities. We made an appointment and saw her in January. She was great and was willing to do the work, but for some reason, her office was unable to coordinate the anesthesiologist. We kept going back and forth, and then the office quit responding to my emails or calls. (I think I was ghosted.) I was pretty bummed because this dentist seemed fantastic, and her bedside manner with Emily was incredible.

I discussed the issue with Emily’s PCP in January, and he gave us authorization for a dentist that insurance would cover. Because Emily would need anesthesia, we must use the dentist they authorize for coverage. I reached out to the dentist, and he would not see Emily. Okay, now what? I began my search for a dentist. Every time I mentioned Emily has intellectual and physical disabilities, we would hit an impasse. If they were willing to see her, they wanted X-rays first. Well, we cannot get those without sedating her. We were repeatedly referred to teaching hospitals. I called Loma Linda, UCI, UCLA, and St. Joseph. All had a 2+ year waiting list and were not even taking patients.

After 26 rejections, I found Dr. Daryn Nishikawa’s Family Dentistry in a Google search. (Did I mention it was now June?) It had been 7 months since Dr. Worden informed us that she needed X-rays and work done. I picked up my phone and called his office. I was prepared for rejection. My search had been fruitless, and my frustration and disappointment were hard to mask. Veronica answered the phone and listened to our needs, and then she said that Dr. Nishikawa would see Emily. She mentioned they even had an opening in August with the anesthesiologist if we could get everything processed in time. 

The following week, Justin, Emily, and I drove to Torrance to meet with Dr. Nishikawa. He listened to our concerns. He even knew the dentist I hoped would do Emily’s work. (Before her staff ghosted me.) Because I had Emily’s labs, physical, and paperwork ready, Dr. Nishikawa scheduled Emily for August 2nd. Because Veronica helped me get everything in order, Emily got the first appointment of the day. 

We arrived bright and early at the office. The dentist, anesthesiologist, and staff were ready for us. The anesthesiologist was gentle with Emily. When she protested the IV, he decided to use the mask to give her calming medication orally before starting the IV. This was not his first choice, but he adapted to make Emily more comfortable. Once the IV was started and Emily was sedated, the staff took a full set of X-rays. It looked like only one wisdom tooth would need to be removed. Dr. Nishikawa removed the tooth, packed it with collagen, and stitched her gums. He cleaned her teeth and then noticed a part of another wisdom tooth was catching. He shaved that one down. (There are fancy terms for all these procedures, but I cannot remember much.) Close to 4 hours later, we left the office with a cavity-free and groggy girl.

It has been a few days since the work was done, and Emily is recovering nicely. The swelling was the worst on day 3, and icing it was challenging. Emily has an aversion to being touched and fought us each time we got the ice near her cheek. She couldn’t gargle with salt water, and applying heat was not successful either. We have just rolled with Emily because fighting her increases her agitation and anxiety.

Next week we will go back for a follow-up, and the dentist will let us know if she is healing properly. I am grateful that Veronica said yes after so many other offices said no. I am thankful that Emily saw an incredible dentist. While we waited for Emily’s procedure, we read articles posted in the waiting room. Dr. Nishikawa has been part of the dental team for several sports teams, including the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, and the MLS Los Angeles Football Club. His credentials are impressive, but what impressed us the most was he treated Emily with dignity, compassion, and respect.