Accessibility & Accommodations

Global Smiles Dental is committed to providing respectful, accessible, and inclusive dental care for patients, families, and visitors. We strive to make our office, communication, website, and patient experience usable for people with disabilities and patients who may need additional support during their visit.

If you need an accommodation, communication support, accessibility assistance, or help preparing for your appointment, please contact our office before your visit whenever possible. Advance notice helps our team make reasonable efforts to support your needs.

Our Commitment to Accessible Dental Care

Global Smiles Dental welcomes patients of all ages and backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, religion, language, insurance status, or any other classification protected by applicable law.

Our goal is to provide dental care in a way that respects each patient’s needs, dignity, privacy, comfort, and ability to participate in decisions about their care.

Requesting an Accommodation

Patients, caregivers, parents, guardians, and companions may request reasonable accommodations before or during a visit.

Accommodation requests may include help with mobility, communication, forms, appointment timing, sensory needs, anxiety concerns, caregiver involvement, or other access-related needs.

To request an accommodation, please call our office or speak with a member of our team. We may ask questions to better understand the request and determine how we can reasonably assist.

When possible, please contact us before your appointment so our team has time to prepare.

Physical Access and Office Accessibility

Global Smiles Dental makes reasonable efforts to provide access for patients and visitors with mobility needs.

Depending on the patient’s needs and the office environment, this may include assistance with arrival instructions, appointment planning, treatment room access, seating needs, and coordination with caregivers or companions.

If you use a wheelchair, walker, cane, mobility device, or need help navigating the office, please tell our team before or at the time of your visit so we can assist where reasonably possible.

Communication Support

Clear communication is an important part of safe dental care. Global Smiles Dental works to communicate with patients in a way they can understand.

Patients may request communication support if they are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, have low vision, have speech-related needs, have cognitive or developmental disabilities, or otherwise need assistance understanding dental information.

Communication support may include written communication, reading assistance, larger-print materials when available, additional explanation, use of a support person when appropriate, or other reasonable communication assistance.

For certain needs, such as sign language interpretation or other auxiliary aids, advance notice may be required so appropriate arrangements can be considered.

Language Assistance

Global Smiles Dental serves a diverse patient community. Our team may be able to assist patients in multiple languages depending on staff availability.

If you or a family member prefers communication in a language other than English, please notify our team as early as possible. We will make reasonable efforts to help with communication so you can understand your care, treatment options, and next steps.

Language availability may vary by staff schedule and appointment time.

Support Persons, Caregivers, Parents, and Guardians

Patients may need help from a family member, caregiver, parent, guardian, or support person during a dental visit.

When appropriate and consistent with patient privacy, safety, clinical needs, and office policies, Global Smiles Dental allows support persons to help patients communicate, understand treatment, complete forms, provide transportation, or participate in care planning.

For minors, a parent or legal guardian is generally required to provide consent and participate in care decisions unless otherwise allowed by law.

Service Animals

Service animals are welcome at Global Smiles Dental as required by applicable law.

A service animal must remain under the handler’s control and may be subject to reasonable safety requirements in clinical areas. Pets, therapy animals, emotional support animals, or comfort animals may be treated differently from service animals under applicable law and office policy.

If you plan to bring a service animal and have questions about your visit, please contact our office in advance.

Dental Anxiety, Sensory Needs, and Comfort Support

Many patients experience dental anxiety, sensory sensitivity, fear of dental treatment, difficulty with sounds or lights, or discomfort with certain parts of the dental visit.

Please tell our team if you are nervous, sensitive to certain sensations, have had a difficult dental experience in the past, or need additional time or explanation.

When possible, our team may help by explaining each step, allowing breaks when clinically appropriate, adjusting communication style, discussing comfort options, or planning treatment in a way that supports the patient’s needs.

Medication or sedation options may be discussed when clinically appropriate, but they are not suitable for every patient and require provider evaluation.

Medical, Cognitive, and Developmental Considerations

Patients with medical conditions, cognitive disabilities, developmental disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, dementia, neurological conditions, or other needs are encouraged to notify our team before treatment.

This helps our doctors and staff plan the appointment, understand communication needs, review medical considerations, discuss caregiver involvement, and provide care as safely as possible.

Please provide current medical history, medication information, allergies, physician instructions, and any relevant care considerations before treatment.

Forms, Paperwork, and Digital Communication

If you need help completing forms, understanding paperwork, reviewing treatment plans, or using digital systems, please notify our team.

Our staff may be able to assist with forms, provide additional explanation, review instructions, or help coordinate next steps.

Patients are responsible for providing accurate information, but our team can help make the process easier when support is needed.

Website Accessibility

Global Smiles Dental strives to make our website accessible and usable for patients, caregivers, and visitors.

We aim to support accessibility features such as readable text, clear navigation, keyboard usability, descriptive links, mobile-friendly layouts, appropriate color contrast, and compatibility with assistive technologies where reasonably possible.

Website accessibility is an ongoing effort. If you experience difficulty accessing information on our website, using online scheduling, submitting a form, reading content, or navigating a page, please contact our office so we can assist you and review the issue.

Online Scheduling and Digital Tools

Global Smiles Dental may use third-party tools for online scheduling, forms, maps, reviews, payment options, or other digital services.

While we work to provide accessible digital access where possible, some third-party tools may be outside our direct control. If you have difficulty using an online tool, please call our office and our team can help with scheduling, questions, or next steps.

Emergency and Urgent Needs

If you have a dental emergency and need an accommodation, please tell our team when you call or arrive.

Global Smiles Dental can help with many urgent dental concerns, including tooth pain, swelling, broken teeth, dental infections, and other dental problems. Same-day care may be available depending on the schedule, provider availability, and the type of treatment needed.

If you are experiencing a life-threatening emergency, difficulty breathing or swallowing, uncontrolled bleeding, severe facial swelling, major trauma, chest pain, or another serious medical emergency, call 911 or seek emergency medical care immediately.

Limits on Accommodations

Global Smiles Dental will make reasonable efforts to provide accommodations and communication support consistent with applicable law, clinical safety, patient privacy, provider availability, and office operations.

Some requests may require advance notice, may not be immediately available, or may need to be modified if they would create a safety concern, fundamentally change the nature of dental care, or prevent our team from providing appropriate treatment.

Our team will work with patients in good faith to identify reasonable options whenever possible.

Patient Privacy

Accessibility and accommodation requests are handled with respect for patient privacy.

Information shared with our team may be used to help plan care, support communication, complete scheduling, document patient needs, and provide treatment. Protected health information is handled according to applicable privacy laws and our Notice of Privacy Practices.

How to Contact Us for Accessibility Help

If you need accessibility assistance, an accommodation, communication support, or help using our website, please contact Global Smiles Dental.

Global Smiles Dental
8028 S. Emerson Ave., Suite A
Indianapolis, IN 46237

Phone: (317) 648-5527

When contacting us, please tell us the type of assistance you need, the appointment or service involved, and the best way to reach you.

Ongoing Accessibility Efforts

Accessibility is an ongoing process. Global Smiles Dental may update this page, office procedures, website features, and patient support options over time.

We welcome patient feedback about accessibility barriers, accommodation needs, communication challenges, or ways we can improve the patient experience.

For questions about accessibility or accommodations, please contact our office.