Dentist near Ashburton

Victorian Dental Group is a general dental practice at 291 Wattletree Road, Malvern East — about 5 km from Ashburton, roughly ten minutes by car.

We are not in Ashburton. We are the practice a good many Ashburton families drive to, and this page is here so you can decide whether it suits you before you ring.

Book online at any hour · (03) 9088 5808, Monday to Friday, 8:00am–5:00pm

Getting here from Ashburton


Distance	About 5 km
By car	Roughly 10 minutes outside peak
Parking	Free, on site, at the rear — entry via White Street, not Wattletree Road
By public transport	Ashburton is served by the Alamein line and High Street bus services; check current connections to 291 Wattletree Road on ptv.vic.gov.au

The car park is at the rear, reached from White Street off Wattletree Road, then about 180 metres down a cobbled laneway. Prams manage it, though the cobbles are bumpy — if you are bringing more than one child on your own, the Wattletree Road frontage is an easier drop-off and the driver can park round the back. Full directions on parking.

What we are

Registered dentists and oral health therapists providing general dental care. None of our practitioners holds specialist registration — where a case needs an orthodontist, paediatric dentist, endodontist or oral and maxillofacial surgeon, we say so and refer. Check any practitioner by name on the public AHPRA register at ahpra.gov.au.

The practice is accredited against the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards through QIP — voluntary, and independently assessed. See accredited dental practice.

Children, from the first tooth

Ashburton is a family suburb, so this is the section worth your time.

When to start. The current recommendation is a first visit around the first birthday, or when the first tooth appears. Early visits are deliberately short and undemanding — a ride in the chair, a count of the teeth, a look for anything developing. The point is that the first appointment happens before anything hurts, because a child whose first experience of a dental chair is a toothache learns something we then spend years undoing.

Toothpaste, by age. Nothing before 18 months. From 18 months to 6 years, a pea-sized amount of low-fluoride children's toothpaste. From 6, standard toothpaste, pea-sized. Spit, do not rinse. Where we have advised something different for your child, follow that.

Brush for them, then with them. Children do not have the manual control to clean their own teeth properly until well into primary school. A reasonable rule is that you do it for them until about six, and check after them until about eight — the back teeth and the gumline are what get missed.

Fissure sealants are the best value in children's dentistry. The first permanent molars arrive around age six, at the back, behind the baby teeth and often without anyone noticing they have come through. Their biting surfaces have deep grooves narrower than a toothbrush bristle, and that is where most childhood decay starts. Sealing them is quick, painless and does not involve a drill. See fissure sealants.

Mouthguards for sport. A custom-fitted guard for football, hockey, basketball, netball, cricket and martial arts — worn at training as well as matches, because a good share of injuries happen at training. A child's guard usually needs replacing each season as the jaw grows. If your child wears braces, say so; the construction is different. See custom sports mouthguards.

Enamel defects on new molars. More common than parents expect. The teeth look creamy or brown-patched, are sensitive out of proportion to their appearance, and hurt to brush — which then makes everything worse. It is worth having looked at rather than put down to fussiness.

Cost. Eligible children aged 0–17 may be covered under the Medicare Child Dental Benefits Schedule — a capped amount across two calendar years, with any unused balance lost rather than carried over. Victorian government school students may also be eligible for the state Smile Squad programme through their school. See family and children's dentistry.

A practical note: mornings go better than late afternoons, and family appointments can often be booked consecutively — ask reception.

What we provide, and what we refer

Here	Referred
Check-ups, cleans, sealants, fluoride	Comprehensive orthodontics — braces and aligners
Children's examinations and fillings	Young children needing treatment under general anaesthetic
Fillings, crowns, bridges, onlays	Complex or retreatment root canals
Routine root canal treatment	Surgical gum treatment and grafting
Most extractions	Impacted wisdom teeth close to the nerve
Dentures and implant-retained dentures	Biopsies and jaw surgery
Whitening (adults) and conservative cosmetic work	Sleep apnoea diagnosis
Splints and sports mouthguards	—

If something is wrong today

Ring (03) 9088 5808 rather than booking online, so it can be triaged.

A knocked-out adult tooth is measured in minutes: hold it by the crown, do not scrub it, put it back in the socket or keep it in milk, and seek care immediately. A knocked-out baby tooth should not be put back — replanting one can damage the adult tooth forming above it, though it should still be looked at the same day. See broken or knocked-out tooth.

Go to a hospital emergency department — not a dentist — for spreading facial swelling, difficulty breathing or swallowing, uncontrolled bleeding, a suspected jaw fracture, or any loss of consciousness after a knock.

Outside our hours we do not run an on-call service. Nurse-on-Call is available 24 hours on 1300 60 60 24. See dental emergency.

Costs, booking and records

Routine fees are published — see check-up and hygiene, which lists adult, adolescent and child fees. Anything depending on your own mouth is quoted in writing after an examination. HICAPS claims your rebate at reception; Afterpay and Zip are accepted.

Online booking runs 24 hours; appointments are Monday to Friday. Changing or cancelling needs at least two business days' notice, by telephone — an SMS or email does not cancel an appointment unless we confirm it in writing. See attendance policies.

Moving from another practice? Ask us to request the family's records first — see transfer of records.

About Ashburton

Ashburton is a suburb in the City of Boroondara, postcode 3147, bordered by Malvern East, Chadstone and Glen Iris, and built around the High Street shops and the Alamein railway line. It adjoins Malvern East directly, which is what makes the trip a short one.

Questions we are asked

Do I need a referral? No. Book directly.

How old should my child be for a first visit? Around their first birthday, or when the first tooth appears.

Can the whole family be seen in one trip? Often, yes — ask reception about consecutive appointments.

Do you do braces? No — comprehensive orthodontics is referred to a registered orthodontist, and we will tell you when it is worth an opinion.

Where are the reviews? There are none here, deliberately — testimonials are prohibited in advertising a regulated health service. See testimonials.

Victorian Dental Group — 291 Wattletree Road, Malvern East VIC 3145 · (03) 9088 5808 · Monday to Friday, 8:00am–5:00pm · book online

Also serving Armadale, Caulfield, Glen Iris, Prahran and South Yarra.

This page is general information and does not replace advice from a registered dental practitioner about your own circumstances. In a life-threatening emergency call 000. Please see our Disclaimer.

Is Victorian Dental Group convenient for Ashburton?

Yes — the practice is at 291 Wattletree Road, Malvern East VIC 3145, roughly five kilometres from Ashburton, with bus and tram connections and parking nearby. Phone (03) 9088 5808, Monday to Friday 8:00am to 5:00pm.

What treatment is available?

General dental care for adults and children: check-ups and hygiene, examinations and X-rays, fillings, crowns and bridges, root canal treatment, extractions, gum treatment, dentures, implants, mouthguards and night splints, whitening and veneers. Victorian Dental Group is a general dental practice and holds no specialist registration — orthodontics and cases needing a registered specialist are referred.

When should a child first see a dentist?

Around their first birthday, or within six months of the first tooth appearing — earlier than most parents expect. The first visits are largely about looking, counting teeth, and giving you practical advice, so the child becomes familiar with the surgery before anything needs doing. Bring them along to your own appointment beforehand if that helps.

How much toothpaste should a child use?

Under 18 months, no toothpaste — clean the teeth with a soft brush and water. From 18 months to six years, a pea-sized amount of low-fluoride children's toothpaste, spat out rather than rinsed or swallowed. From six years, standard family fluoride toothpaste. Supervise or do the brushing yourself until around age eight, since younger children do not have the dexterity to clean properly.

Do baby teeth matter if they fall out anyway?

Yes. They are needed for eating and speech, they hold the space for the adult teeth coming through behind them, and decay in a baby tooth hurts, can become infected, and can damage the adult tooth developing beneath. Losing one early can cause crowding later. Treating decay in baby teeth is not wasted effort.

What causes decay in young children?

Frequency of sugar more than quantity — grazing, juice or cordial through the day, and sweetened drinks in a bottle or sipper cup, especially at bedtime. Water and plain milk between meals, sugary things kept to mealtimes, and twice-daily brushing with the right toothpaste prevent most of it. Melbourne tap water is fluoridated, which helps.

What are fissure sealants, and does my child need them?

A resin coating bonded into the deep grooves of the back teeth, where a toothbrush bristle cannot reach and most childhood decay starts. They are placed on permanent molars soon after they come through — the first at around age six, the second around twelve — while the grooves are still sound. No injection and no drilling. They are checked at each visit, as they wear and sometimes need repair.

Is children's dental treatment covered?

Eligible children aged 0 to 17 can be treated under the Child Dental Benefits Schedule, which covers examinations, X-rays, cleaning, fluoride, sealants, fillings, root canal treatment and extractions — but not orthodontics. Check eligibility and the remaining balance through myGov or on 132 011, and bring the child's Medicare card. A parent or guardian should attend, as they give consent.

What do I do if my child knocks out a tooth?

If it is an adult tooth, find it, hold it by the crown not the root, do not scrub it, put it back in the socket if you can and have them bite on a cloth — otherwise keep it in milk or their own saliva, never water, and get help immediately. If it is a baby tooth, do not put it back, as that can damage the adult tooth forming underneath. Phone (03) 9088 5808, or attend a hospital emergency department outside opening hours or if there is a head injury, a jaw that will not close, or spreading facial swelling.