A dentist was allegedly intoxicated while performing an oral surgical procedure on a child at a Texas pediatric dental practice, according to police.
A dentist’s office in Sherman called police on Monday, February 16, to report a dentist, identified as Kelly Buck, “was potentially intoxicated while treating patients,” the Sherman Police Department said in a news release issued Wednesday, February 18. The city of Sherman is about a 65-mile drive north from Dallas.
In an update, police said officers discovered Buck, 36, had treated one patient before they arrived and suspected that she was intoxicated when they met with her, according to police.
Pediatric Dentistry of Sherman acknowledged in a statement shared to Facebook on February 18 that the practice “experienced a difficult situation” in reference to Buck, who was described as a “temp dentist.”
Buck was taken into custody on a felony charge of performing surgery while intoxicated, according to police, who confirmed that she was “working in a temporary capacity through a staffing agency at the time of the incident.”
According to a search warrant affidavit reviewed by WFAA, Buck was performing a “filling and crowning” on an 8-year-old boy, whose father called police.
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A technician who was helping Buck “observed behavior by Buck which [led] her to believe that Buck was intoxicated,” and “stopped the surgery mid-course due to the risk that Buck’s intoxication presented to the patient,” the affidavit says, the TV station reported.
Following her arrest, Buck would not agree to give a sample of her blood, the filing states, according to the TV station.
While speaking with WFAA over the phone, Buck shot down the accusations that she had been intoxicated.
“This is absurd,” Buck told the TV station. “I plan on fighting this … it’s doing irreparable damage to my career.”
Buck’s attorney, Matt Hamilton, maintained that she was innocent while speaking with the TV station.
“She looks forward to clearing her name and getting this behind her,” Hamilton said to WFAA.
Buck has been a licensed dentist in Texas since August 2016, according to the state’s online licensing system. No disciplinary actions have been filed against her to date, records show.
According to the Pediatric Dentistry of Sherman, the practice booked Buck for contracted work through Cloud Dentistry, a company that connects dental offices with dentists for temporary work.
The company’s CEO and co-founder, Trey Tepichin, said in a statement to NBC DFW that “Cloud Dentistry cannot comment on the alleged conduct as it’s currently under investigation.”
“All Cloud Dentistry users, including the user in question, have passed a background check,” Tepichin’s statement also said, in part, according to the outlet. “The user in question has been suspended from the platform pending a more thorough investigation.”
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Buck was supposed to perform multiple dental treatments on February 16, according to the Pediatric Dentistry of Sherman.
“During the 1st dental treatment,” a registered assistant noticed she “did not seem herself,” the practice wrote on Facebook.
The assistant alerted an officer manager, who told staff “not to call” Buck “into any additional operative appointments or hygiene exams,” according to the dental practice.
The officer manager ultimately alerted police after contacting several consultants to discuss how to respond to Buck’s alleged, potential intoxication, the dental practice said.
“We are deeply saddened and troubled over this situation, and we are extremely concerned that this negatively impacted a valued patient,” the practice wrote on Facebook.
