RUSSIAN           

    To Minister of Health Department of the Russian Federation,
 
I am asking you to put attention to the activities of famous american dentist, doctor Konstantin Ronkin, D.M.D. / L.V.I.F. / MICCMO / FICCMO / FIACA.
He is currently leading few professional dentists’ assosiations, including ICCMO Russian section,  being a Chairman of the section "Neuromuscular Dentistry" at StAR (stomatology association of Russia), widely practices in Russia and conducts numerous educational activities.
 
     On the top of that power position he intentionally scoffs on his patients, take no responsibility on his mistakes and publicaly ignores his patients, his colleagues and his students.
 
    Doctor Ronkin is a founder, a president and an owner of «Boston Institute of Estetic Medicine» (BIEM) LLC at Moscow and St. Petersburg (Russian Federation), Boston (USA) .
His self-presentation for american patients is much more modest, that the one for russian society.
 
In Russia Doctor Konstantin Ronkin and his partner, Doctor Ivetta Swartsman, are actively promote themselves in various and most popular Russian journals, such as RBK, Aeroflot, Instyle, Tatler, Elle etc. :
«Professional doctor: golden head and golden arms», «Impeccable service»,
«experienced doctor must seemore than just not beautiful», «Treatment without pain», «Taking care of the main thing. To whom entrust your health.» etc.

Completely opposite to above promises, doctor Ronkin demonstrated negligent (arrogant, devoid of all respect and attention to someone), cruel and irresponsible attitude for me, his patient. Below is the story that happened to me.

   On 21st of february 2017 I signed the contract for medical treatment with BIEM.
Purpose – comprehensive restoration of the oral cavity, including occlusion, chewing function and two "rabbit" front teeth (they were much bigger than the side ones, and shifted toward lips, but they were simmetrical and of the same size and shape. This note is important to understand the whole situation).

   At BIEM dr. Ronkin proposed to recover overal funcional health together with «hollywood» smile. That smile supposed to be done by super thin ceramic crowns – crystal veneers by Aurum Ceramic.
Both producer and clinic declare, that those veneers require minimum to none teeth grind.

In fact, which I discovered later in treatement process, around 50% of teeth were grinded.  By the way, Doctors dont show grinded teeth to the patient.
They do even insist not to open mouth in frount of the mirror, when patient goes to toilet in the pauses of long procedure.
 
       I’ve decided to get complete and complex oral treatment and all my teeth restorated, because dr. Ronkin explained all those negative influences of improper bite and occlusion: it causes headaches, neck pain, jaw joint pain, nervousness or insomnia, postural problems and others, which I had.

 So, I’ve made a choise to invest to my overall state of health and beauty on the top.
 
  On 6th of November, 2017, I’ve made a full prepaiment (according to their rules) at around 25 000 US$ for preparation and installation of veneers on all tooth of upper jaw.
  On 18th of November Dr Ronkin himself grinded all teeth of lower jaw, and applied crowns and venners on all teeth of upper jaw, which was already prepared by him a month in advance.
      However, he applied veneer crookedly on the key for the smile tooth #8 (upper front).
I could see it even right after the 4 hour long treatment. It was obvious and immediately noticable once I’ve opened my mouth in front of mirror, which dr. Ronkin kindly gave me.
The veneer was turned by two axis toward the other teeth – forward and side.

It was shoking.

I’ve asked famous and expirienced american doctor Ronkin: «What is this?»  And got the brilliant anwer:  «In nature there are normally crooked teeth. Its more natural like this.»
Such answer was even more shoking, than the fact of his mistake and silent ignorance of it.
Back at home all my family and friends immediately noticed my brand new, but crucked smile.
 
At the same day I wrote to the BIEM chief doctor – Nelly Volchek written claim with the request to explain me the reason of crooked veener: wheather it is a producer lab’s mistake or installation doctor’s mistake. The chief doctor accused me of being subjective.

On 22nd of December, 2017, I’ve came back to the clinic again for planned 2 month in prior visit to dr. Ronkin to install crowns and veneers to all teeth of lawer jaw.
Unfourtunately, there was already no way back, since all teeth were grinded by thier measures according to the whole previously done for 8 month of preparations and treatements.
 That visit was also prepaid in around 25 000 US$ for material and work of american exprerienced doctor. Please note, that work of russian doctors at the same clinic 3-4 time cheaper.

Assisting to dr. Ronkin russian doctor Staennaya, prepared my teeth as always: made anestesia shots, took off temporary constructions and went to call dr. Ronkin. 

He was at the clinic. But dr. Ronkin did not come to my fully prepaid and prepared visit. Silently without any explanation or prenotification, simply like that.
 
    Dr. Statennaya looked discouraged, as she was suddenly for herself forced to install all the crowns and veneers instead of Dr. Ronkin. She knew the theory, but theoretical knowledge was not reinforced by practice.

I did not beg dr. Ronkin to come, because understood that he was just showing his power and full control on the patient and doctors of his clinic. I decided to trust to Dr. Statennaya.
I couldn’t think of another better way, laying in dentist chair with anesthesia and a bare lower jaw. As already said, all my teeth were already grinded and prepared by their measurements for crowns.
 
      Installation/treatment procedure is very painstaking and lasts 3-4 hours. Thus the proper effective anesthesia is essensial part of it. In the middle of the procedure, anesthesia stopped acting. Dr. Statennaya injected another 5-6 injections. Without any effect.

All my teeth were grinded and became very sensitive. Even airflow was causing extreme pain in all teeth at once. But the acids and other special glues, which were applyed to the teeth without enamel dugged by millions of needles at the same time into the body and mind, paralyzing consciousness and will.

  After installing of 3d crown in such state on naked nerves, and there still were remaining 5 to apply, I was barerly able continue to endure such hellish pain and was in a hysterical state of mind near to jump out of the chair and run away from the clinic with the grinded remnants of teeth without crowns.
But I’ve continued to endure, realizing the hopelessness of my position.
Dr. Statennaya and her assistant were the first to withstand my pain and silently jumped out of the cabinet. They left me alone with bare nerves in the form of ground teeth without anesthesia, without explanation.
     I stood up from the chair and become walking throght the cabinet, where I was left, to get my thoughts. I even did not know why they left and when would return, but I did not want to call for a help and demean myself in front of them. I was enduring and waiting in the empty cabinet for around 15-20 minutes in increasing pain and obscurity.

   Finally, doctor Ronking himself came in and asked me with a smirk: “Well, have all your doctors abandoned you?”
I could only mumble. Jaw and tongue were unable to move, consciousness was exhausted with aching, sawing, stabbing pain.
He made one single shot. I felt the needle deep in the bone.
After 3 minutes, the pain disappeared and the anesthesia worked for the rest of the procedure. His experience and three minutes was enough to stop this torture, which he subjected me.

  It turns out that Dr. Ronkin consciously and deliberately made me, his patient, suffer torment for an hour to show his qualifications and power. After all, even when Dr. Statennaya and his assistant fled behind him, he did not come right away.
By my own experience I know that he runs between his patients back and forth in normal situations to save his time (not the time of patients).  This one was extreeme, which he created himself and he made a decision to come only after 15-20 minutes. For this time ambulance come in Moscow with it huge traffic jams. But the doctor was in the next cabinet.

Moreover, I paid for expirienced ‘american’ doctor, as he calls him himself. And he himself must have been installing all crowns and veneers. Doctor Staennaya is only his assisting russian doctor, who helps doctor Ronkin to prepare patient: put on/off/fix temporary constructions, fix orthotic etc.
According to explanation of doctor Ivetta Swarstman, only American expirienced doctors do install ceramic veneers to the patients in their Russian clinics BIEM to achieve sufficient quality.
It means only dr. Ronkin, dr. Shwartsman and dr. Sherman.But reality greatly differes.

I was suffering throught the pain to save my self-esteem in front of famous doctor Ronkin, whom for my first 25 000 US$ made me crooked smile instead of ‘hollywood’ one, and for the other 25 000 US$ ignored me and subjected me to suffer torment.
 
   But I still had a hope that professionalism and common sense would eventually outweigh his strange ‘pride’. However, after the shot he left the cabinet and never came back.
The installation procedure was completed by dr. Staennaya.
On the final stage – occlusion overall balancing, my visit on 25thof December, he had not shown again, even to control the final results.
Doctor Ronkin, my attending doctor, resigned from all responsibility for the results of complex oral restoration according to his treatment plan, and demonstrated to all his colleagues how to behave with "uncomfortable" patients and escape from responsibility for own mistakes.

So the final veneer’ polishing and final grinding  were also made by doctor Staennaya.
  After an hour of grinding my teeth still were not biting properly and fully. And I am forced to bite only by few countacts mostly located on one side.
Thus, I prepaid full expensive prize for the medical service of highly qualified professional american doctor - doctor Konstantin Ronkin, (D.M.D. / L.V.I.F. / MICCMO / FICCMO / FIACA)

But, in fact, veneers were installed by slightly to non-expirienced in this particular area doctor Staennaya, while dr. Ronkin self withdrawed from my treatement after his own mistake and made me feel in full the qualification and expirience difference by extreem pain.

New ‘hollywood’ smile is croomed, bite is skewed.
Influence on overall health unidentified.
No personal apologies, no personal corrections, just indifferent disregard.
I wrote official claim to the clinic’ asministration with the request to

1. admit their mistake; 
2. personally apologize by Dr. Ronkin for his immoral actions against me; 
3. correct the defects.  

Chief doctor, who is fully under control of the owner, dr. Ronkin, accused me that I did not notified dr. Ronkin immediately! And that they will fix the front veneer, if “I don't like its form”.
 
This means that they legally don't admit their mistake. Moreover in my medical documentation they’ve made the note, that I dont have any claims on quality, although I’ve said immediately in the chair at the day of installation to dr. Ronkin himself and doubled the claim by email.
Instead BIEM clinic made me subjective.

I continued my correspondence with the clinic, appealing to the norms of moral and ethics, high standards of modern international service and value of reputation. 

But they had only one answer to everything - I am the only one to blame.
 
  Another ‘insteresting’ thing was the whole description they’ve made in my medical process documents.
In original treatment plan i’ve signed there were crowns and veneers on all teeth, including #8. It was still there mentioned in the bills.
But in medical treatment decriptions, there is nothing about #8 at all.
There is still a note about me being unhappy with the shape of veneer #9.
This means, that they’ve created documentation as if there were no veneer #8 actually applied.
It is known, that Russian court accept official documentation only as admissible evidence.
That means that BIEM made the whole bunch of preparations to cover themselves in the court.
No veneer – no problem. ‘Subjective’ patient vs ‘objective’ documentation.

   With the aim to solve the situation and achieve justice I decided to attend the 2018 Dental Salon conference where Dr. Ronkin and his colleagues were giving lectures in dentistry.
I came to the beginning of his lecture, which was attended by dentists from all over the country.
 
   Seeing me, Dr. Ronkin violently pulled out the microphone. Sharp mettalic cracky noise cut the silence. He jumped up to me and said with hatred in his voice that he would not start the lecture untill I am here. And then he ran out of the audience. No one gave any explanation to the doctors who were waiting for him. For 20 minutes the audience was just waiting for Dr. Ronkin, who never came back. Finally, his partner and employee, Dr. Levon Snegiryov, began another lecture to fill the void, although his lecture was originally scheduled at the other time and on another topic, and the visitor-doctors came to the lecture and lector which were originally scheduled.

  Such behaviour clearly demonstrated that dr. Ronking allows himself to desregard morality, etics and virtue. Emotions and ambitions outweigthed even public shame.
Doctor Ronkin ignores patients and frames his colleagues.
And this is not an accident, but already a system.
 
During the conference, the administrative staff of the clinic approached me with complaints, threats and persuasions. One even accused me being a consumer terrorist. And this is after they actually tortured me.

I explained once again that I demand Dr. Ronkin to personally make apologies for the pain, physical and moral suffering, his disrespectful and dismissive attitude.
I thought and believed that its already became natural and common sense for any high-level responsible professional in modern developed world to accept his/her mistakes at once, apologyze and fix.
 
However, doctor Konstantin Ronkin (D.M.D. / L.V.I.F. / MICCMO / FICCMO / FIACA)
could not find conscience in his mind for his patient. Neither he found courage, common sense or care for his own, his clinic’s and all those associations’ reputation to do so.

He widely perform educational practice, he has authority posts in various dentists associations both in Russia and USA, he has influence in medical world. And from that position he still publicaly and silently left his students at a big conference, being unable to handle the situation with the patient which he previously created by his own immoral and unprofessional actions.
 
After 2 days, his assistant, Anna Vilesova, sent me a letter in which on behalf of dr. Ronkin she asked me to take back the letter to ICCMO and remove my expirience descriptions from internet.
I again replied that it all shall be started from the appologies first.
There was no answer. Silence. Complete disregard.

Physical pain passes with times, but the shock and psycho-emotional trauma that Dr. Konstantin Ronkin and his chief doctor Nelly Volchek inflicted on me are only intensified.
 
They actually humiliated and trampled me for my money, which I paid them in full and on time.
I even had to go to a psychotherapist to relieve extreme stress with therapy and anti-depressants.
 
This is the story in short, there were much more actions made and words said and heard.

                     Primum non nocerum. (First do no harm)  Hippocrates
 
The profession of a doctor implies a double responsibility to their patients, high moral and ethical principles, kind attitude and dedication to serve the people.

Everyone in their life being a patient. The patient relies on the doctor, trusts him initially. 

And some doctors use the trust as a privilege and mislead patients with various excuses and ‘beautiful’ or too specific to understand words said to patient with modified state of mind, while laying in the chair under Nu-Calm (relaxation system) or anestesia.
Some doctors forget oath of the doctor completely and use their trusted position to make own profit.
 
P.S. Clarification for those, who is not familiar with modern Russian medical and legal world.
In Russia there is no mandatory doctor professional insurance yet, and generally doctors are not responsible for the harm made by their mistakes or inprofessional actions.
 
The moral damages compensation institutions are still very weak. In fact usually 100-200 $ only can be compensated via legal process, which itself will cost much more time and money, not to mentioned nerves.
So in such current state of affairs and legally expirienced clinic with numerous connections and the whole bunch of legal preparations they’ve already made I have no efficient way to influence them and achieve legal justice.
 
That is why I’ve created and addressed this Petion to the Head of the Health Ministry of Russian Federation and ask to put in place working mechanism/institution to professionally and independently investigate patients’ claims and make the doctors acountable and responsible for their work.
 
I also want to warn all others from such traps with the most valuable asset of every person: health.
 
By not being silent we can influence.
Such doctors shall surely know, that cruel, hamst and dishonest ‘treatment’ in any meaning, inhumanity and immorality will not be passed unnoticed by society.