Accepting New Patients
Accepting New Patients
When you walk into our Culver City office, you’ll notice it doesn’t feel like a lot of dental offices. Part of that is the people — but part of it is how we work. The tools we use directly affect how accurate our diagnoses are, how comfortable your child is during treatment, and how quickly we can get you the information you need to make good decisions.
Dr. Ray Klein and Dr. Hayley Botwin stay current with advances in pediatric dental care because that’s what being a board-certified pediatric specialist means in practice, not just in title. Here’s what that looks like in our office.
We use digital X-rays rather than traditional film — and there’s a real reason for that beyond just keeping up with the times. Digital X-rays expose your child to significantly less radiation than conventional dental X-rays. We’re talking about a fraction of what older systems used, which matters a lot when you’re talking about a child who’ll be coming in for check-ups for years.
The images also come through immediately on a screen right next to the chair. That means Dr. Ray or Dr. Hayley can show you exactly what they’re looking at — in real time, zoomed in, with clear detail — instead of holding a film up to a light. Parents find that a lot easier to understand, and we find it easier to spot early-stage issues before they become bigger problems.
Per the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, dental X-rays for children are recommended based on individual risk factors, not a fixed schedule. We follow that same approach — your child gets X-rays when they need them, not as a routine checkbox.
Dental exams used to be mostly verbal — “there’s something starting here, you’ll have to trust me.” We use an intraoral camera, a small wand with a tiny camera at the tip, to show you exactly what we’re seeing inside your child’s mouth. The image displays on the screen in the room so you can see the same thing we do.
This changes the conversation. Instead of describing a small area of concern, we can show you. Instead of recommending a treatment and hoping you understand why, we can walk you through the actual image. For parents who want to be informed and involved in their child’s care — which is most of our families — this makes a real difference.
Every instrument that comes near your child’s mouth is sterilized in an autoclave between every single patient. Autoclaves use high-pressure steam to eliminate bacteria, viruses, and spores — it’s the gold standard in medical and dental sterilization and we take it seriously.
We use disposable items wherever possible and follow OSHA and CDC infection control guidelines. This isn’t something that gets cut for convenience. If you’ve ever wondered how seriously a dental office takes this kind of thing, feel free to ask us — we’re happy to walk you through what happens between patients.
Screens in every operatory. A waiting room that doesn’t feel like a waiting room. An environment that was designed with kids in mind, not adapted from an adult dental practice. These are deliberate choices, and they’re part of how we make appointments easier.
Anxious kids are harder to treat well. A child who’s comfortable and distracted during their exam or cleaning sits better, which means we can be more thorough and more precise. The “soft” technology — the environment — is real technology in a pediatric dental practice.
Yes. Digital X-rays use significantly less radiation than conventional film X-rays — estimates vary, but the reduction is meaningful. We also follow ALARA principles (as low as reasonably achievable), meaning we only take X-rays when they’re clinically necessary for your child’s specific situation.
It depends on your child’s individual risk factors — their cavity history, how their teeth are spaced, and how their oral health is tracking. Some children need them once a year; others less frequently. We follow AAPD guidelines and make that call based on your child’s specific situation, not a blanket schedule.
Yes — that’s the whole point of the intraoral camera and digital X-ray display. The images show up on a screen in the room so you can follow along with exactly what we’re looking at. If you have questions about what you’re seeing, ask. We’d rather explain it than leave you guessing.
Not currently. We focus on digital diagnostics, infection control, and the tools that most directly affect the safety and accuracy of your child’s care. If that changes, we’ll make sure our families know about it. We’re not interested in technology for its own sake — only what genuinely improves outcomes for kids.
Dr. Ray Klein is a board-certified pediatric dentist and Fellow of the American College of Dentistry. Dr. Hayley Botwin completed her pediatric residency at USC and passed the written board exam for the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry. Together, they’ve built a practice in Culver City that combines clinical precision with the kind of environment that actually works for kids. We accept most PPO plans and are in-network with Aetna, Delta Dental, Cigna, MetLife, and many others.
If you have questions about any of the tools we use — or anything else about how we practice — we’re straightforward about it. Reach out and we’ll give you a straight answer
Mon-Fri: 9am – 5pm
