By Chris Schulz
Investigative Journalist | Kaipūrongo Whakatewhatewha
An Auckland dental company has been placed in liquidation following multiple customer complaints alleging they had been misdiagnosed or ripped off.
A Consumer NZ investigation found Dr Jacob Goldenberg, Total Health Dentistry’s company director, was still seeing patients despite having his licence suspended.
A notice on the Companies Register shows Total Health Dentistry, which occupied a large office space on the corner of Ponsonby Road and Jervois Road, was placed in liquidation on 11 April, six days after the publication of our story.
Consumer spoke to patients who claim Goldenberg had seen, assessed and advised them of necessary dental work, including tooth extractions and expensive implants, while under suspension.
In some cases, he offered patients a discount if they paid upfront. Excuses like illness, staff shortages and software upgrades were used to delay the work. Refund requests by some were refused.
One person Consumer spoke to said she took her husband for an assessment after he suffered ongoing tongue pain, and was told by Goldenberg that he needed two teeth extracted and replaced with implants. The couple paid $7,798 for an appointment the following week.
Her husband’s pain got worse, so she took him to an emergency doctor who found his condition was caused by neuralgia, not dental issues, meaning he didn’t require any tooth extractions at all.
She managed to arrange a refund through her bank via a chargeback, because she’d paid by credit card, but others haven’t been so lucky.
Another customer told Consumer she paid $3650 for an implant in November and is still waiting for the work to be done.
Goldenberg's licence was suspended by the Dental Council on 21 March last year, pending an investigation by the council’s Professional Conduct Committee into multiple complaints.
"The Dental Council made the suspension order because, in its opinion, the alleged conduct poses a risk of serious harm to the public," chief executive Marie MacKay said.
The Health and Disabilities Commissioner told RNZ 49 complaints had been received from patients of Goldenberg so far.
The Dental Council confirmed Goldenberg’s suspension meant he was not allowed to carry out any work related to dentistry, including assessing patients.
At the time of Consumer’s investigation, appointments with Goldenberg could be made exclusively via text. When Consumer texted his number, he returned our call 9 minutes later and offered an appointment later that day.
When confronted with the allegations made by some of his patients, he replied, "Its [sic] not accurate", then ceased communications.
A spokesperson for Total Health Dentistry told Consumer they had tried and failed to find out why the Dentist Council’s investigation had taken so long. They confirmed the business was now in liquidation.
Anyone who has been treated by Goldenberg and has issues with his work, or is seeking a refund, is asked to lodge a complaint with the Dental Council and seek redress through the Disputes Tribunal.
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