Honest about what you need. Gentle about how we get there.
That's my promise to every patient: the truth about your teeth, even when it's "let's wait," and care that treats you like a person, not a schedule. Here's how I make decisions.
Most people dread the dentist. I take that personally.
Almost everyone who sits in my chair has a story: the lecture, the surprise bill, the shot that hurt. I've spent my career trying to retire that, one visit at a time.
- Injections you barely notice. Topical first, then slow and steady. Patients tell me it's the part they don't remember.
- Nothing happens before you understand it. Your scan and X-rays on the screen, explained in plain language.
- A written plan, at your pace. Take it home. Get a second opinion. I'll still be here.
A few things most people assume before they sit down.
Years of bad experiences have taught patients to expect certain things from a dental office. Most of them don't hold up. Tap a card to see what's actually true.
The pattern: good dentistry is usually less treatment, explained better.
Four principles behind every recommendation.
Your enamel has to last the rest of your life.
Every time a tooth is drilled it gets a little weaker, and dentistry can't put enamel back. So we remove only what is damaged and leave the rest. That is why we reach for an onlay instead of a crown when the tooth allows, even though it takes more time and precision.
- What I remove
- Only the decayed or broken part
- How it feels for you
- A longer, more precise appointment
- Down the road
- More of your own tooth left for the future
- When I choose it
- My default when the tooth allows it
Illustrative. Some teeth genuinely need a crown, and I'll tell you when yours does.
Corporate chains are built around production. mend is independently owned.
Most dental offices today belong to corporate groups that measure dentists on production per hour. mend is one office, owned by the dentist who treats you. That changes how the schedule is built, what goes in your mouth, and who you see each visit.
I learned in the chair, not just the lecture hall.
I trained at the University of the Pacific's Dugoni School of Dentistry, the only three-year D.D.S. program in the country, which puts students in the clinic earlier and for more hours than most. Since then I've kept going: I'm certified in Supragingival Minimally Invasive Dentistry through the Los Angeles Institute, the approach behind everything on this page.
Meet me and the team →