What should I book?

It is not always obvious which appointment type you need. This page sorts it out in a minute, and then lists every treatment we provide so you can read about it before you ring.

Start here

When you are due for your check-up and clean

Go ahead and schedule a Check-up and Clean. If you are a new patient, check our promotions page first for any current new patient offer.

If you also have an interest in a particular treatment, raise it at this appointment — your practitioner can assess it and put a treatment plan together for you.

You have not been to the dentist for a while

First of all — it is okay. We are humans too. Life gets busy and we tend to leave ourselves to last. What matters is that you are here now, and together we can get your oral health back on track.

Book a Check-up and Clean. People arrive here having not seen a dentist for ten or fifteen years; it is common, there is no lecture, and the useful conversation is about what you would like to do from here.

If the reason for the gap is anxiety rather than time, say so when you ring — see dental anxiety, and the section below.

You have a specific interest in a treatment

If you want a particular treatment — whitening, veneers, implants, a splint — and you have not been here before, start with a general dental exam.

This is not a gatekeeping exercise. An assessment and diagnosis is what makes it possible to tell you whether the treatment suits you, what the alternatives are, what it will involve and what it will cost. A quote given without an examination would be a guess, and a treatment planned without one would be worse.

At that appointment you get a written plan to take home.

You are experiencing a dental emergency

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

Go to a hospital emergency department instead — do not wait for a dental appointment — if there is facial swelling, difficulty breathing or swallowing, fever with dental pain, uncontrolled bleeding, or a facial injury.

Full guidance, including after-hours options, is on our dental emergency page.

If you are anxious

Tell us when you book, not on the day. With notice we can allow more time so nothing is rushed, and a first appointment can be a conversation with the chair upright and nothing in your mouth at all.

Booking online? Put it in the notes. Something like "very anxious, long time since my last visit, would like to talk first" is all that is needed, and it will be on file before you arrive.

Everything we treat

A full index, so you can read about something before you book it. All of these are provided at a general practice level; anything needing a registered specialist is referred.

Prevention and routine care

• Check-up and hygiene — the routine visit: examination, clean, fluoride
• Dental examination — the diagnostic appointment and how findings become a plan
• Dental X-rays and OPG — what each image shows and when it is taken
• Fissure sealants — sealing the deep grooves of new molars against decay
• Family and children's dentistry — from the first tooth onwards

Gums

• Gum care and periodontics — treating and maintaining gum disease
• Bleeding and swollen gums — the earliest sign, and what it means
• Gum recession — why roots become exposed and what can be done
• Bad breath — causes, and the ones that are not about brushing

Repairing teeth

• Fillings and tooth restoration — what a filling involves and how long one lasts
• Crowns and bridges — rebuilding or replacing a tooth
• Dental bridge — filling a gap using the teeth on either side
• Root canal treatment — saving a tooth whose nerve is infected
• Full mouth restoration — staged rebuilding of a heavily worn or damaged mouth

Replacing missing teeth

• Dental implants — what is involved, and who they suit
• Dentures — full and partial
• Implant-supported dentures — a denture anchored rather than resting

Appearance

• Teeth whitening — in-chair and take-home, and what it will not do
• Veneers — including the part that is irreversible
• Full smile makeover — how combined cosmetic treatment is planned

Surgery and wisdom teeth

• Dental surgery — extractions and minor oral surgery
• Wisdom teeth — when they need removing and when they do not

Pain, jaws and grinding

• Toothache — what the pattern of pain tells you
• Dental abscess — and why it is urgent
• Face and cheek swelling — when it is an emergency department, not a dentist
• Jaw pain and TMD — clicking, locking and muscle pain
• Night guards and occlusal splints — protecting teeth from grinding

Protection and emergencies

• Custom sports mouthguards — fitted, for every contact sport
• Broken or knocked-out tooth — first aid, minute by minute
• Emergency dental care — including what to do after hours

Other

• Laser dentistry — what lasers are genuinely used for in dentistry
• Dental anxiety — how appointments are paced differently

How long each appointment takes

Your first visit to VDG: what to expect

1. Warm greetings and registration

Our front desk team will welcome you and help you complete any necessary paperwork. As we are a largely paperless clinic, you can fill in your forms before your visit — you will receive a link by email or SMS. Doing it beforehand means your appointment time goes on your teeth rather than on forms.

2. Comprehensive dental examination

One of our dental practitioners examines your teeth, existing restorations, gums and periodontal measurements, bite, and the soft tissues of your cheeks, tongue and palate. Radiographs are taken where they would change what happens next, and not otherwise — we have on-site digital X-rays and an OPG.

3. Personalised treatment discussion

Your practitioner explains what was found, with the screen turned towards you. If anything needs attention you will get the options, what each involves, the benefits and limitations, and the cost — including, where it applies, the option of monitoring rather than treating. You receive a written plan and take it home. Nothing is decided in the chair.

4. Professional dental cleaning

If you booked a Check-up and Clean, your appointment also includes a professional clean — removing plaque, calculus and surface stain, followed by fluoride.

What to bring

• Your health fund card, for on-the-spot HICAPS claiming
• Your Medicare card, if a child may be eligible under the CDBS
• A list of your medications, including anything over the counter
• Any recent radiographs from another practice — or arrange a records transfer in advance, which can save repeating them
• Your questions, written down

What things cost

Routine fees are published: check-ups and cleans, whitening, splints and mouthguards.

Anything that depends on your own mouth — fillings, crowns, extractions — is quoted in writing after an examination, because a figure given without looking would be a guess. Payment, claiming, Afterpay and Zip are covered on payment options.

Still not sure?

Ring (03) 9088 5808 and describe what is going on. Reception books this every day and will put you in the right appointment — it is a much better use of a minute than guessing from a dropdown.

Victorian Dental Group is a general dental practice and holds no specialist registration. Where treatment is better provided by a registered specialist, we will tell you and refer you.

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

See also check-up and hygiene, our team and payment options.

This page is general information and does not replace advice from a registered dental practitioner about your own circumstances. Please see our Disclaimer.