Dental Clinic

All dental exam appointments in Fairbanks are given to patients whose names have come from the Dental Wait List. Patients with current dental exams may schedule dental appointments.

Emergencies are seen on a priority/needs basis with elders, young children and patients currently residing in the village given a preference. Appointments for dental services may be made in person or by telephone.

• Dental Examination
  • hard and soft tissue
  • x-rays
  • oral cancer screening
  • periodontal (gum) assessment.
• Dental Hygiene
  • periodontal (gum) assessment
  • cleanings
  • root planing
  • brushing and flossing instruction
  • fluoride
• Operative dentistry
  • fillings
  • crowns
• Endodontics
  • Root canal treatments for most teeth
• Oral Surgery
  • most routine surgical services and extractions

• Children’s Dental Clinic
  • exam
  • cleaning
• Pediatric Dental Clinic
• Orthodontic Clinic (Braces)
• Prosthodontic Clinic (Dentures, partial dentures, crowns, bridges)
• Oral Surgery (Complex Extractions, biopsy)

**Elective esthetic services are not provided at TCC Dental.

What times can I walk in as a patient?

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday: 7:30AM & 1:30PM

Wednesday: 8:30AM & 1:30PM

I checked in first for Dental Urgent Care (DUC), why are other patients being seen before me?

Patients are not necessarily seen in the order they check in. They are triaged and prioritized based upon the nature of their urgency, if they have traveled to town from a village and if they are an elder or a child. Also, keep in mind that some patients are being pulled back for DUC but also for scheduled care. 

 Why is there sometimes a wait for Dental Urgent Care?

In order to balance the need for scheduled appointments and urgent care, we adjust the number of dentists assigned to each clinic depending on the day. If multiple patients check in on a day that only one or two dentists are assigned to Dental Urgent Care, there will be a longer wait until the next dentist is available.

Friday afternoons at 1:30pm, all of our dentists in clinic are assigned to Dental Urgent Care.

Why is there a wait list for exams and why is it so long?

The TCC region serves a large number of patients, and an equal and fair way is needed to manage our patient base so we can provide this service to all of our beneficiaries. The wait list allows us to make this resource available to everyone but unfortunately at this time due to high demand there is a wait involved.

The Dental Team travels extensively throughout the region and when we are in the villages, there is essentially no wait for an exam. If you reside in a village we travel to and are interested, please contact the appropriate clinic to set up an appointment for when we are there. Once you have an exam you can schedule appointments at the Fairbanks clinic if necessary.

The Dental Team works hard each day to decrease the wait time for exams. If you are interested in being added to the Exam Wait List, please reach out to the Dental Front Desk. Also, please reach out with any concerns as we do not expect everything can wait for an exam, the health and wellbeing of our beneficiaries is our top priority.

Why can’t you schedule farther than 3 weeks out?

We have found that limiting scheduling to 3 weeks in advance is the best balance between access to care and minimizing broken appointments.  No matter how far out we are able to schedule, there will always be a possibility of having to call back due to the schedule being full on a particular day.

Why can’t I make an appointment?

We require patients to have a current exam with us before you can schedule an appointment.

A current exam is important for an appointment because at the exam a treatment plan is created, discussed and all questions answered. This is beneficial for when you come to your appointment because a plan of care will already be in place and treatment can start right away. This results in time being used as efficiently as possible and creating more availability for appointments.

We understand that waiting for an exam can be frustrating. Please keep in mind that while you wait for your exam you can always be seen in our Dental Urgent Care for treatment or concerns that cannot wait.

Can I use my current exam from a private dentist to make appointments at TCC?

Due to the large demand for dental appointments and our desire to make access equal to all TCC beneficiaries, we currently only accept TCC dental exams.

Why are there charges for certain services (such as crowns, dentures, braces, root canals)?

TCC has chosen to offer a full range of dental services that exceeds the scope of what the Indian Health Service (IHS) chooses to fund. Since we don’t receive funding for these services, we charge a greatly reduced fee in order to meet the costs associated. Without payment of these fees, we would be unable to continue to offer these extended services to our beneficiaries. 

Additional information

Dental Clinic Hours of operation

Monday 7:30AM – 1:00PM & 1:30PM – 5:00PM

Tuesday 7:30AM – 1:00PM & 1:30PM – 5:00PM

Wednesday 8:30AM – 1:00PM & 1:30PM – 5:00PM

Thursday 7:30AM – 1:00PM & 1:30PM – 5:00PM

Friday 7:30AM – 1:00PM & 1:30PM – 5:00PM

Dental Phone Hours

Phone lines open at 8AM Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday. Except Wednesday they open at 9AM.

During our lunch hour (1PM – 2PM) you can leave a Voicemail, and we will get back to you as soon as possible or call back at 2PM.