05/13/2026
Today we celebrate the faces of Yaya Smiles, our receptionists. The first people you see when you walk through our doors, the voices that call and text you about appointments, the people reading through pages of insurance breakdowns, submitting claims, reviewing financial arrangements, coordinating care with specialists, keeping our flowers and plants alive, and handling a million little things behind the scenes to keep every day running smoothly.
Our receptionists work tirelessly to make sure your experience is excellent from “hello” to “see you next time.” They are also the people keeping us clinic people on track. If we’re ahead of schedule, they move patients up. If we’re behind, they communicate with patients, help clean rooms, seat patients, and jump in anywhere needed to keep the day flowing. If they can help, you can bet they will.
Beyond the collective importance of their role, each of them brings something uniquely special to our office.
Melinda is thorough, detail-oriented, and charismatic. She knows just about every patient, makes sure we balance at the end of each night (which is no easy task!), handles collections, schedules our hygiene columns, writes our special occasion cards, and even helps the hygienists with perio charting. She’s also the one cleaning out the office fridge, making sure the lights are turned off, and checking that the doors are locked at the end of the day.
Rilee brings serenity to the office. Nothing rattles her, and she always has a smile on her face no matter the situation. She coordinates with specialist offices to make sure patients receive the next steps of their care in a timely manner and handles the majority of our follow-up calls to check on patients after treatment. She also keeps our plants alive and beautiful… minus our love fern that’s currently hanging on by a thread.
Paige is a master with words and speaks so eloquently. She is dependable, an excellent listener, and has a killer sense of wit. Paige is usually on the phone with insurance companies trying to proactively gather information on out-of-pocket costs for patients, or calling other offices for X-rays and chart information. Right after lunch, Paige spends her favorite 30 minutes of the summer watering the outside flowers. Ever since Paige joined us, our garden beds have never looked better!
Isabella is our newest and youngest addition. I admittedly pick on her the most out of all of our receptionists — but don’t worry, she stands up for herself just fine and gives me a run for my money too. Isabella recently earned her radiology license with a perfect 100% on her test so she can help us take X-rays whenever needed. When I randomly bought a dental insurance book on a whim, she was the first one to sit down and read through it. She is always eager to learn and help wherever she can.
Thank you ladies for everything you do every single day. Our office simply would not function without you, and we are so lucky to have such hardworking, caring, and hilarious people representing Yaya Smiles from the very first interaction. Happy National Receptionist Day! 💐