More critics of suspended dentist come forward
By Austin L. Miller
Staff writer
Published: Saturday, September 7, 2013 at 9:03 p.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, September 7, 2013 at 9:03 p.m.
Days after state authorities suspended the license of a local dentist who allegedly mistreated a young patient, critics of Dr. Michael Addair Tarver continue to go public with their own stories.
One of those people is Kristina Pate, a dental assistant who worked at Tarver's Polliwog Dental for two months before she was terminated, she said, for speaking out about Tarver's methods.
Pate said every child who came into the practice received nitrous oxide, or laughing gas. She estimates roughly 75 percent of the children seen by Tarver also were given Demerol ???.
Some of the children, she said, were strapped onto boards to keep them still. If Tarver felt they were misbehaving in any way, they were threatened, she said.
Those on Medicaid were treated much differently from those who paid out of pocket, she said.
Pate said those who paid up front or had insurance were treated quickly and sent on their way. Medicaid patients, she said, had to wait longer. Parents of those on Medicaid had to wait about three hours before their child was finished.
