1. Give us a brief history of your organization.
Lafayette Pediatric Dentistry has been serving the Acadiana community for over 40 years. Formerly Dr. William Keaty’s practice, Dr. Anita Gouri joined as his associate in 2008 and took over when he retired. Since 2017, Lafayette Pediatric Dentistry has cared for patients starting in infancy through the teenage years, including those with special needs, and has developed a strong presence in the community by being involved as sponsors for local organizations such as The Lafayette Mom, Maddie’s Footprints, Junior League of Lafayette, and the Children’s Museum of Acadiana. Dr. Anita Gouri is also one of the area’s recommended providers for laser release of tongue and lip ties, and collaborates with several local professionals to optimize care for patients suffering from speech, feeding, and breathing disorders related to tongue ties.
2. What would you tell the rest of Acadiana makes you special?
Fundamental to our boutique-style practice is the belief that your child is an individual and deserves dental care tailored to their specific needs, as well as addressing your concerns and expectations. We are proud to have staff members who are highly-trained to make things understandable to a child, even those with strong dental fears. We take our time with children, and work as a team to connect with each patient in a comforting and positive manner. We include parents in every visit and all aspects of their child’s dental care, and invite you to join your child in the clinical treatment area. We are trained to monitor your child’s oral developmental milestones, such as feeding and speech, as well as the growth and development of their mouth, face, and airway. We are trained to offer a variety of services, including minimal sedation, laser dentistry, and hospital dentistry.
3. What are you most proud of?
Successfully helping children who have had previous negative experiences at the dentist overcome their fears and begin to love the dentist—that’s the most rewarding thing we do.
4. Where do you see your organization in 10 years? What are your plans for the future?
We plan to expand our availability and our services to the children of Acadiana. We have recently taken on a new pediatric dentist, Dr. Allyn Clause, and we built a brand new building on Camellia Boulevard to accommodate our rapidly growing practice! Additionally, in order to provide comprehensive care to our little ones with oral motor difficulties, we now have an in-house therapy group, Hope Therapy, whose services to our patients in need of occupational therapy for feeding, speech, and breathing disorders are more accessible. We hope to grow in the coming years as a comprehensive care facility for those that we treat for tongue/lip ties, oral motor deficits, and those with special needs. We also collaborate monthly with Red Oaks Coping to host a sensory friendly dental clinic. This experience helps children who are more challenged by dental visits get acquainted with our office and our tools when it is less crowded and prior to an actual dental visit.
5. 1A is making an impact as we take an active role in improving the community we live in. Our members are making an impact, too! – What does impact mean to you? How is your company making an impact?
As you can see, children’s biannual visits with us aren’t just about checking for cavities. They are about total oral health, education on preventative home care, monitoring for oral motor milestones and airway development, and making children not fear coming to the dentist! Our overall approach to care for children is multifaceted, so that we can give them a healthy start in life, and equip them with the knowledge necessary to transition into caring for themselves!