About Our Portland Children’s Dental Office
A Long & Outstanding History of Helping Growing Smiles
The “Dr. Pike” in our name originally referred to Dr. Steven Pike’s father, Dr. Allan Pike, who both founded our practice as well as formed the unique approach we take with children’s dentistry.
After starting his dental career in the 60s and practicing according to the standards of the time (which involved the dentist taking a more authoritarian approach with kids), Dr. Allan decided there had to be a better way, one that would ensure a child has a positive dental experience at every single visit.
This led to the creation of the method we use today that has already helped thousands of kids overcome (or avoid entirely) dental anxiety. Now under the leadership of Dr. Steven Pike and Dr. Suher Baker, we continue to define how children’s dentistry should be done, and we literally have research that shows how effective our process is!
Our Goal is to Create Positive Experiences
Many children step into the dental office already afraid. Maybe they’re naturally cautious, or maybe they’ve had a bad experience in the past. We take this seriously, which is why we offer Anxiety Reduction Appointments.
This is a distinct appointment that involves slowly and gently desensitizing a child to the sights, sounds, and feelings of dentistry, all while making sure they feel empowered and can make everything stop if they feel uncomfortable. That way, we are able to show them firsthand that a trip to the dentist is nothing to worry about.
Compassionate, Positive Care That Makes a Big Difference
We do things quite differently compared to other children’s dental offices, and it’s the reason why we’re the focus of an ongoing study about how successful it is! It stems from five core steps:
- Mindset: Our team is primed and focused on giving every child a positive experience.
- Observe: We keep a close eye on the child and parent’s body language so we can spot signs of anxiety early and intervene right away.
- Desensitize: The process of desensitizing a child to dental care is different from patient to patient, but we always go at their pace.
- Empower: Every child is told that if they raise their left hand, we’ll stop whatever we’re doing immediately—they are always in control!
- Communication: The dentist constantly checks in with the child to see how they are doing and reinforces that they are in the driver’s seat.
Holistic-Minded Children’s Dentistry
Even though we’re a children’s dentistry practice, we know that your child is more than just their teeth and has an entire life outside the walls of our office. That’s why we take a “big picture” approach. We have found it helpful to look at the root cause of dental issues and we are often able to treat dental problems through lifestyle changes
This goes a long way in educating and further empowering the child (and parent!) so they can take great care of their smile at home, drastically reducing the risk of dental issues over time.
Children with Special Needs Have a Home Here
We want our practice to always be a warm and welcoming place for children, especially those who have mental, physical, behavioral, or sensory special needs. Dr. Pike, Dr. Baker, and our team have helped hundreds of children overcome these obstacles to get the healthy and happy smiles they deserve, all while enjoying calm and cool appointments at the dentist. Just give us a call ahead of your child’s visit, and we’ll make whatever accommodations are necessary to keep them comfortable and happy.