Same day at our office works like this. You call (773) 555-0199 on a weekday, the front desk gives you one of the emergency slots we hold every morning, and one of our dentists sees you at 5841 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60634 that same day. The slots go to people who call. We don't take walk-ins, on any day, for any reason.
The $99 covers an emergency exam, consultation and panoramic X-ray. Fees may be adjusted due to complications or unforeseen circumstances. Treatment is priced separately and quoted to you in writing before any work starts.
Same-day appointments · $99 exam + X-ray · Phones answered 24/7 · Se habla español
Call first, then come in
The call is the whole system. It tells us a chair is needed and what to set up before you arrive. Two minutes on the phone.
During office hours, Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 1:00 PM, the front desk answers directly. Tell them what hurts, when it started and whether there's any swelling. They give you a time and ask for your insurance plan name, if you have one, so it can be checked before you walk in.
Outside those hours, the call goes to our answering service, and it's always a live person. They write down who you are, how to reach you and what's wrong, then hold the first opening the next business morning. The front desk sees the note at 7:00 AM.
The three held slots: 8:00 AM, 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM
Every weekday, three appointment times are set aside for emergencies and nothing else. They are 8:00 AM, 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM. Routine visits never go into them, so when you call with a toothache at 7:15 AM, there's a real opening at 8:00 AM waiting.
Call at 7:00 AM when the office opens and the 8:00 AM slot is usually yours. The 11:00 AM slot suits someone who needs a couple of hours to arrange a ride or a shift swap. The 1:00 PM slot is the last of the day and works for a lunch break; the 77 Belmont bus stops along the avenue and parking is on site.
When a slot is already taken, the front desk looks for the next opening that same morning. On a busy day you may be offered the next weekday's 7:00 AM instead. We'll tell you plainly which it is.
What "same day" means here, and what it doesn't
Same day means one of our dentists examines you, takes a panoramic X-ray and tells you what's wrong on the day you call, assuming you call during a weekday morning. You leave knowing what the tooth needs, with a written price for the treatment. Very often the treatment itself happens at that first visit: an extraction, drainage of an abscess, a sharp edge smoothed, a crown re-cemented, a denture repaired.
It does not mean every treatment is finished in one sitting; a remade crown or a new denture takes more than one visit, and we'll say so. It does not mean evenings or weekends: the doors shut at 1:00 PM and stay shut Saturday and Sunday. And it never means walking in.
Calling after 1:00 PM on a weekday
The front desk goes home at 1:00 PM, and the answering service takes over. Call at 2:00 PM on a Tuesday and here's the honest answer: we may be able to see you later that day by appointment. If a dentist is still in the office and can fit you, the front desk calls you back to set it up. If not, you get the first opening the next morning at 7:00 AM.
There's no fixed afternoon time on the schedule, so we don't promise one. The call gets answered and the first available chair is held under your name.
What happens once you're in the chair
Check in a few minutes early. Bring a photo ID. If you're insured, bring that card too. Our dentist examines the tooth and the gum around it, then reads the panoramic X-ray. You hear the diagnosis in plain words, and the treatment cost goes on paper before a thing is done.
Once you agree, the work begins. Most emergency treatment we provide, from a simple or surgical tooth extraction to abscess drainage to a broken tooth repair, is done right there in our office by our own dentists. If a tooth needs something we don't provide here, we explain what the tooth needs and the next step.
Same-day emergency care near you on the Northwest Side
The office sits on W Belmont Ave between N Central Ave and N Austin Ave in Belmont Cragin. From Portage Park it's south on Central and west on Belmont, about 5 to 9 minutes in traffic. From Hermosa, take Fullerton or Diversey west to Central and head north, roughly 7 to 12 minutes. Dunning patients come east along Belmont in 6 to 10 minutes. Riis Park sits within about a mile of us. The service area page lists all eight neighborhoods with drive times.
Frequently asked questions
What about Saturdays? Can I be seen the same day?
No. We're shut both weekend days. Someone still picks up the phone, and a weekend call holds you Monday's 7:00 AM opening. Read our weekend and after-hours page for how to cope in the meantime, and for the signs that mean a hospital instead.
Do I need to call if I'm already outside the office?
Yes. Call (773) 555-0199 from the sidewalk. The appointment has to exist before you come through the door. There's no sign-in sheet.
Will my insurance cover a same-day emergency visit?
For plans we work with, the exam and X-ray are billed to your plan. That covers most PPO plans, many Medicare dental plans and selected HMO plans. Tell whoever answers which plan you carry; we verify it before you walk in. The details live on our cost and insurance page.