Dr Wayne Horne

Good dentistry reveals itself in how a practitioner handles the grey areas—when a tooth is borderline restorable versus extraction, or when crown work requires coordinating with your medical aid's coverage limits. Experience shows in asking the right questions upfront about your dental history and medical background, not rushing into treatment without understanding your actual needs. Watch for someone who explains options clearly rather than pushing the most expensive solution, and who manages the technical side competently: proper anaesthesia so you don't feel pain, precise work so fillings and crowns actually fit, attention to detail in bite alignment. You'll notice it in how they handle complications too—if something doesn't settle right after treatment, whether they stand behind their work and fix it without argument. That's what separates someone who learned procedures from someone who genuinely practises dentistry.