Selznick Oral Surgery: Jay K. Selznick, DMD, Md

Gloria Rivera

5 months ago

⚠️ My Traumatic Experience at Selznick Oral Surgery – Please Read I want to share a very upsetting experience my family had at Selznick Oral Surgery because I would never want another parent—especially one with a special-needs child—to go through what we went through. I took my 5-year-old autistic daughter in for a simple procedure, and although everything seemed fine at first, things became frightening very quickly. When the doctor attempted to place her IV, he missed the first time. Instead of trying her other arm, he went straight to her hand. I calmly asked if there were other options because the hand can be very painful. His response shocked me: “She won’t feel it because of the tourniquet. Just worry about being a mother, not a doctor.” My husband stepped in and said there was no reason to be rude and that we’re allowed to ask questions. The doctor responded: “No, you’re not. Not while I’m working. I’m the doctor.” At this point I was already shaken and in tears. My daughter had fallen asleep from the medication and was laying on me in the operating chair. The doctor asked us to leave the room, but after the way he was behaving, I did not feel safe leaving my daughter alone with him. I mouthed to my husband to record. The doctor then forced the mouthpiece into my sleeping daughter’s mouth aggressively, and my husband called him out for it. The doctor replied: “Well, this is what you wanted. You wanted to stay.” After removing her tooth, he said: “See? I did it perfectly because that’s my job. And I’ll take out her IV while she’s asleep because I’m a compassionate person.” At that point I was overwhelmed and told him to stop speaking to us so rudely. He then claimed the entire procedure was being recorded. My husband and I asked for a copy, and the doctor said nothing else. When we requested the video at the front desk, we were told there is no recording. The assistant in the back also confirmed there was no recording and apologized repeatedly for the doctor’s behavior. She was kind, gentle, and the only reason I didn’t completely break down. When the doctor returned to the room and tried starting casual conversation, I told him I did not want to talk. He insisted I “had to.” He then tried waking my daughter by pinching her neck, which was horrifying to witness. I told him not to touch her, and he became confrontational again. I genuinely felt unsafe at that point. My husband went back up front to request the footage again, and again we were told no recording exists—even though the doctor insisted earlier that “everything is recorded.” We are respectful people and have never had issues with anyone in our community. This entire experience was traumatizing, unprofessional, and completely unacceptable. Thankfully, my husband has an audio recording of the incident, and we are taking the necessary steps to report this. I am sharing this because I would never want another child—or parent—to go through something like this. Please be cautious if you are considering taking your children here. I am still emotional and in disbelief over what happened.