I had the worst experience of my life with oral surgery at Gentle Dental on Benjamin Holt Dr. in Stockton, CA. I have gone there for years having routing exams and cleanings with no problems. I guess Gentle Dental does not have a resident oral surgeon. I was diagnosed with a fractured tooth and was told it needed to be extracted.

They only have one oral surgeon who comes into their office one day a week so I gather he has his own practice elsewhere. A search shows an office in Belmont, CA but not sure. IF YOU HAVE ANY ENEMIES, SEND THEM TO DR. PATRICK DUFFY, DDS, ORAL SURGEON. I am not a complainer but feel I must warn other people so they do not suffer as I did.

It was supposed to be a routine tooth pulling. Dr. Duffy talks with you briefly prior to the procedure then wants to rush you along to get it done. He comes across very rude and his staff also was in a hurry to get started on me. They said they had a full schedule and needed to get going. Now, mind you I am very difficult to numb. You can give me Novocain but it takes awhile for it to take effect. My usual dentist will give me a Novocain shot then work on someone else then come back to me. I’m usually more numb when I leave than when I’m in the chair.

I am escorted to the patient’s chair where they put a towel on you, etc. I also asked for nitrous oxide to help me relax (which unfortunately didn’t work). Dr. Duffy walks in, says to open wide and jams and I mean jams two shots of Novocain into my mouth. OUCH BIG TIME!! I told him several times that I am hard to numb and he needs to wait before proceeding. Less than a minute later he starts working on me. My mouth is stuffed with gauze and I can’t talk well but I kept saying I’m not numb, I’m not numb. Dr. Duffy didn’t believe me and said “oh, you’re just nervous”. Finally he stops briefly and jams more Novocain in my mouth. It doesn’t matter how much you give me you still need to wait. He only stopped for a few minutes and began working on me while I was yelling I’m not numb. I feel like he literally butchered me. I felt everything!!! He never waited long enough for me to get numb. I am crying but he didn’t care and did not stop.

Afterwards, they said you can go. I said I still felt a bit dizzy so they sat me in another room by myself. I was in that room for awhile and no one and I mean no one came to check on me. I walked out of his office without anyone seeing if I was ok. To make things worse no one bothered to do a follow-up call to see how I was doing.

I had to stay home for 10 days because I was in so much pain. I went back to my own dentist for a follow-up and Dr. Duffy didn’t even write any comments on the procedure in my chart so that my dentist could read it. He only wrote that he did not pull but had to surgically remove the tooth. I asked my dentist why no one told me afterwards that the tooth was surgically removed vs. pulling as it is a more serious procedure and healing time is much longer. Dr. Duffy also took way too much gum tissue that I now have a hole in my mouth that could fit two teeth vs. one. My dentist said it will not grow back. I told a couple of friends about him and they both said they did not hear good things about him. SO PLEASE THINK TWICE BEFORE GOING TO DR. DUFFY. I hope this helps someone else not go through the pain I did.