Parking UPDATE

Perhaps not the most riveting blog post- but an important one!

Victoria Professional Building now as underground parking!  Thank you all for your patience while the construction around us has been taking place.

The building’s pay parking will be open 7am-7pm Mon-Friday and will be operated by Robbins Parking.

The entrance to our parkade is west of our building on Yates St.

Payment terminals will be located in the parkade (utilizing your license plate number)

Rate is $2/hr or $12/day

Entrance to the Victoria Professional Building from the parkade will be via the north building entrance.  Due to some delays in construction- there is a temporary route that requires walking around the building to the south entrance.  We have been told this will be resolved by June 10th.

Note: the previous temporary lot on Johnson St. is no longer available for hourly use.

We are excited about improved ease of access to our clinic for our patients and are grateful for your continued support.

We can’t wait to see you and your smiling faces soon!

-Dr. Linton and the HappyTree team

Fall 2023 Newsletter

November 2023

Hello Everyone,

It has been a while since I have written a newsletter, so much has happened- it is hard to know where to start.

The main sentiment of this newsletter - I want to personally thank you all for your continued trust in our HappyTree team in supporting your oral health. We feel fortunate to do what we love and without you that would not be possible. Your support, patience, and feedback, especially during the practice’s early days has been pivotal while diving into the world of small business ownership.

Hard, yet meaningful things take time.  You have all made this challenge worthwhile alongside my amazing team. I ride my bike in every morning with a silly grin on my face feeling so lucky to be able to do what I do and who I get to do it with/for. So, thank you.

If you have been happy with your dental experience, the practice is currently accepting new patients and we are appreciative of referrals of your friends and family.

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Next order of business: this will be the last email newsletter in your inbox. You may ask, but how will I stay in the loop regarding the current happenings in the practice, the latest in dentistry, or helpful facts to know related to your teeth and health but never thought to ask?  Excellent question!

We recently launched our website and social media accounts.  On our website you can find blog posts, learn about the practice vision, why the practice is called HappyTree (FAQ), or if you are unsure about where to park or the shuttle service schedule from the parking lot. You can check it out at www.happytreedental.ca.

We also launched our Instagram and Facebook accounts that you can follow @happytreedental. It is an easy way to stay informed about current events in the practice, announcements, prize draws, promotions, new services offered, and pictures of the things we love.

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This brings me to the next update: Preventive maintenance & hygiene appointments

As you may or may not be aware, one of our hygienist’s, Samantha, had surgery for carpal tunnel in September.  The surgery went well and she is currently healing so she can return to doing what she loves (pain free) as soon as possible.  We have coverage for Samantha but may need to reschedule some hygiene appointments depending on the availability of coverage and ensuring we maintain a high quality of care.  Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time. If you cannot make your scheduled dental or hygiene appointment, please provide us with 48 business hours notice so we can accommodate other patients. Less than 48 hours notice may incur a cancellation fee.

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Lastly, I wanted to take a moment to discuss dental insurance coverage. Insurance can be confusing and every plan is unique. I want to ensure clarity for our processes.

While dental insurance plans offset some treatment costs, they do not cover all your costs and do not cover the full range of dental treatments available today.  While our team can help you understand your plan coverage and provide an estimate, we are NOT experts on all the details of your dental insurance plan and only your insurance company can provide final costing. This is in part because the details of your plan are protected by the Personal Information Protection Act, this makes it impossible for our team to get all of the information on your behalf. As a courtesy our team will submit your claim and direct bill insurance company at the time of your treatment, please know this is not final invoice. The final invoice will only occur once your insurance company confirms final coverage and each insurance provide has a different timeline for this confirmation.

As such, we highly recommend you take the time to educate yourself on your specific plan, to understand your exact coverage, out-of-pocket expenses to assist you in making informed decisions on treatment for improving and maintaining your oral health.

As a dental care provider, our relationship is with you, not your insurance company and our practice prides itself on ‘patient-centered care’.  We recommend and provide treatment based on what is best for your oral health, not what is best for your dental insurance provider. We are happy to work with you to assist in maximizing your plan benefits and minimizing your out-of-pocket expenses but ultimately it is your responsibility and decision for your oral health. As such, all fees for treatment not covered by your dental plan are your responsibility.

If you have any questions- please feel free to reach out to our team, we are always happy to share knowledge so you can make informed health decisions based on your values, needs and unique situation.

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Thank you again. I am excited about the direction of the practice and want to share (and sometimes overshare) but you will have to stay tuned and check out our website at happytreedental.ca and on social media @happytreedental for future updates.

Have a wonderful rest of your day,

Hilary/Dr. Linton and the HappyTree Team

Summer 2022 Newsletter

June 2022

Hello Everyone,

Wow, it’s June! Well that went by quick.  I have been meaning to send out an update for the past few months and every time I sit down and warm up my newsletter writing muscles/brain cells- something else takes precedent and the office update/communication takes a backseat. For those of you who are or were small business owners, or who have known one- I’m sure you can relate. 

The last 9 months have been incredible and exhausting and I have had the privilege of meeting most of you, if not, I look forward to the opportunity to meet in in the future.  I’m so appreciative of all of you who make what we do worthwhile, you are why we show up everyday and continue to strive be our best.  Your understanding and kindness during this transition while we have navigated through various challenges, changes and updates has been humbling and appreciated. You may have noticed some of these exciting changes including a digitization of our processes, expansion of dental procedures performed inhouse, improvement to sterilization centre to name a few. All the learning over the last 9 months have helped strengthen the practice, our vision, and we can’t wait to share what is to come.  

Every morning as I ride my bike to work, I reflect on how fortunate I am to be living and working in this kind and beautiful city pursuing my dream. Below are a few of the most important things happening in the next few months that we wanted to fill you in on.

Retirement of Dr. Gaucher and Susan

The biggest bit of news is that Dr. Gaucher and Susan are retiring at the end of June. To be able to carry the torch from an amazing legacy of patient focused, compassionate, and high quality dental care is truly an honour. Dr. Gaucher has owned the practice for over 30 years and has created a truly amazing legacy, that all of us at HappyTree Dental are thrilled to be a part of.

Susan has been with the practice for over 13 years. Being the first face you see as you visit the practice, taking care of accounts, and being a truly integral part of the team here are just a few of the things we appreciate her for.

All of us here truly wish them all the best in their future endeavors. And while we may be parting professionally, we look forward to showing them what we’ve done with the practice they’ve helped build in the years to come.

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Letter from Dr. Gaucher

My dear patients,

It has been an absolute pleasure caring for you, knowing you and hearing your stories over our many years together. You are what put the joy in dentistry for me. 

Almost a year has passed since Dr. Linton assumed ownership of the practice and branded it HappyTree Dental. I have appreciated the support you have given both of us through this transition. I’ve shed tears saying goodbye to those I have seen during this time and have been touched by your kind words. 

They always say one knows when it is truly time to end a chapter and for me that time has come. I’m not sure what lies ahead (aside from a road trip with my husband and our dog to Lake of the Woods), but I look forward to the next adventure. 

Again, I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for being such dedicated patients. I leave you now in Dr. Linton’s capable hands and wish you many years of continued dental health. Keep smiling.

Warmly,

Christine                                                                                                          

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New Faces

Zach has joined us as our new office manager. He comes with a lot of experience in business administration and loves being able to work in healthcare again. If you haven’t met him yet, you will find him at the front desk, potentially with his occasional office visitor, Philippe, his two-year-old French Bulldog.

Lauren has joined us as a full time part of our administration team. She has lots of experience working as dental assistant in other offices, but truly loves the patient focused role she’s joined us in.

Natalie has joined us as a part time hygienist. She joins us on Thursdays and brings a lot of experience and passion to her role here at HappyTree. She is passionate about reducing barriers to oral health and providing a stress-free dental experience.

We are so excited about these additions to our team and hope they’ll soon become a standard part of your experience when you visit us.

Search for An Additional Hygienist

It is an unprecedented time in most industries, including the dental industry from a staffing shortage perspective.  As we’ve lost some of our hygiene team, wait times have increased exponentially. We appreciate you bearing with us as we search for a replacement who is the right fit for our team and that can provide you with the level of care we would want for our friends and family. We hope to find someone soon to join us in bringing the excellent level of oral care you are used to receiving.

Summer Closure

Part of our practice vision is to support work/life balance.  The office will be closed for the last 2 weeks of July to give the team a chance to recharge and to allow for some necessary upgrades in the clinic.  There will be emergency coverage over this time but please call us if you would like to be seen before then. We will be open until Thursday, July 14 at 4pm and will reopen Tuesday, August 2nd at 8am.

Music

At HappyTree, we all enjoy music and enjoy an eclectic mix of music daily.  If you are in an operatory and the music is too loud or an 80s power ballad isn’t your favourite and is negatively affecting your experience, please let us know.  We aim to provide a comfortable and positive experience for you and are always open to new suggestions for music. 

Cancellation Policy/Confirmation of Appointments:

We understand that emergencies happen and in the age of covid, viruses don’t care what your schedule is. We request that you please provide us with 48 business hour’s notice to change or cancel your appointment.  This allows us to accommodate other patients who are hoping to be seen. 

Cancellations/no shows within 48 hours will be subject to a cancellation fee.

We also require confirmation/covid form fill out before your appointment. If you do not confirm we will have to reschedule your appointment.  This is to ensure everyone’s health and safely to the best of our abilities.

Payment/Fee Policy

We wanted to clarify our payment policy for all of our patients. Our clinic practices balance billing and we price according to BCDA fee guidelines. Balance billing means that patients are responsible to pay the balance of the treatment fee for the uninsured amount. In order to ensure you understand your personal cost for your visit, please ask us or call your insurance to confirm your coverage. Insurance policies vary greatly in coverage and we are only able to provide you with an estimate of their coverage. 

 Treatment payment is required in full after each visit, unless written financial arrangements are made in advance of your treatment. For major treatment (crowns, bridges, implants etc.) we require a 50% deposit at your first appointment for this treatment. If you have any questions regarding our payment policy, please contact our office manager Zach.

Masks in the Clinic

With the recent announcement from B.C. Ministry of Health regarding wearing masks in shared spaces we wanted to share our policy at Happy Tree Dental to avoid any confusion or concern from our patients. As we are a health care setting, we want to ensure our patients feel safe and cared for during their visits with us therefore will continue to require masks within the office. If you arrive without a face covering, we would be more than happy to provide one for you during your visit. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this policy, please feel free to reach out to us and we would be more than happy to speak with you. 

Parking/Construction Update

We continue to adapt to the curve balls Chard Developments construction throws at us and the impact to our patient parking. For time being, there is free patient parking on Johnson Street with a complimentary shuttle service (complete with a friendly chauffeur-per the building reports) that brings you to the office. Remember to enter you license plate in the building (beside the elevator) once you arrive.   Once construction completes, there will be patient parking under the adjacent building. 

I wish you all a healthy, enjoyable, and sun-filled summer!

All our best,

Hilary and the HappyTree team

Fall 2021 Newsletter

First Newsletter!

I hope this letter finds you healthy and well and possibly sporting your favourite fall sweater and slippers as we start to get cozy for the season. I cannot believe we are a few days into fall already and I have been at the practice for almost a month now. Before I dive in with some updates and information, I want to take an opportunity to congratulate Dr. Gaucher on an amazing 25 years at the helm of an incredible practice and also extend my sincerest thanks to all of you for being so welcoming with the leadership transition. Our team is working hard to make this transition as easy as possible for you and your continued patience with all of our Covid-19 protocols to help keep everyone safe is so appreciated.

Before I started at the practice, Dr. Gaucher told me how wonderful the patients were and everyday I leave the office (sometimes even before 8pm!) feeling energized and grateful because this is indeed the case. I am excited to meet you all in the months and years to come and look forward to being able to continue to positively contribute to your oral health and overall quality of life alongside Dr. Gaucher and the rest of the team.

I have a few things to share about the office in the next coming months:

PARKING—As you are aware, Victoria is growing and you have likely noticed the construction everywhere including near us. Starting Oct 1, the parking lot behind our building (off of Johnson) will be closed due to construction. There is a temporary lot at 1144 Johnson Street. Parking will be free for Victoria Professional Building visitors for two hours so please remember your license plate (or take a picture of it if you are like me) to validate your parking in the building lobby. Additional parking time can be purchased if needed. There is also free 2-hour street parking is located along Yates Street and Johnson Street. The only access to the building will be on the south side off of Yates. We understand this is an inconvenience and will keep you informed with updates/changes as we become aware.

Below is a link from the developer with a map and additional information

Please note that as of October 1, there will be changes to Victoria Professional Building Parking. For more information, click here

INTRODUCING NEW HYGIENIST & REINTRODUCTION OF CAVITRON USE—We are so excited to announce the addition of our new hygienist Samantha to our team. We have been looking for the right fit to join our team and we have found it. Samantha has over 9 years of experience in hygiene and is very excited to be putting down roots in Victoria. She is passionate about helping patients maintain a healthy mouth/body and also enjoys educating patients to help them meet their oral health goals. You may see her adventuring around Victoria on her commuter bike or hanging out with her mini-wiener dog.

This pandemic has been an unprecedented time. We have been hand scaling to keep your teeth and gums maintained while taking additional precautions to make sure everyone stays safe and healthy. Your understanding as we have been operating at a reduced capacity to accommodate additional infection control procedures has been incredible. Myself, Dr. Gaucher and the team have been working hard to determine how to safely reintroduce the use of cavitrons and air polishing with additional infection control measures to allow us to make sure we can perform our jobs to the highest clinical standard. You may notice some modifications to the clinical area over the next month including some plexiglass room dividers, additional air filtration units in each room and high-volume suction adapters for our hygienists. Our priority is your health and our hygienists will be happy to show the changes so you can feel confident and maybe even excited about your next cleaning (I am looking forward to mine).

PATIENT APPRECIATION FALL BASKET—We know this past year hasn’t been easy and to say thank you for being wonderful and adjusting to all the changes in stride. We will be having a fall basket giveaway with some goodies including an electric toothbrush and goods from various local businesses. When you are in for your next appointment please enter the draw- you deserve it!

SEPT 30- NATIONAL DAY FOR TRUTH & RECONCILIATION—We acknowledge and recognize the National Day for Truth & Reconciliation. On Sept 30th our office will be open and we will be wearing orange in recognition of the impact and history of residential schools in Canada. If you have any concerns please contact me at drlinton@happytreedental.ca

LAST, BUT NOT LEAST- HAPPYTREE DENTAL— Another change? Yes. But I think you will like it. The name of the practice will be changing to HappyTree Dental and the brand rollout will be happening over the next few months. HappyTree Dental is a lot easier to say than Dr. Hilary Linton and Dr. Christine Gaucher Family Dental and I think it reflects us both well. So- if you call the office and Carla or Sue mention HappyTree Dental- you are calling the right place! There will be more to come but I wanted to keep you all in the loop.

I think those are all the updates for now. If you have any questions about anything do not hesitate to get in touch with us—we appreciate you and your feedback. Don’t forget, parking changes take effect this coming Friday.

Have a wonderful week,

Hilary, Christine & the Team