License revoked months after sudden closure of Independence dental office

INDEPENDENCE, Mo. — The Missouri Dental Board confirmed to FOX4 on Tuesday that Brian Jenkins' dental license was revoked last week.

When his practice in Independence Wright Dentures and Implants shut down without warning in May , patients started calling FOX4 Problem Solvers with concerns about unfinished dental work and money lost.

FOX4 made numerous attempts to contact Jenkins and his staff but were never able to get someone to pick up the phone.

"I needed a bridge put in my lower teeth, and I had paid him $3,000 to do that four days before him closing up," said Wayne Burnam, a former Wright Dentures and Implants patient. "So actually, the day I went down there and met you, I was coming down there to get work done, and he was gone.

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Burnam said that after the sudden closure, he received a letter from Jenkins stating that he could no longer be his dentist without explanation.

In the letter, Jenkins listed recommendations for other practices in the area.

"I wrote him back a letter and said he should do the right thing and either find someone who would finish his work, do the work himself, or give me a refund. He sent me a letter back saying, I know I owe you a partial refund. I'll get a check in the mail. But he never did."

"The worst slap in the face to me, more so than the money, was he sent me a letter saying, If you want your dental records, send me $25. I had paid him $7,000 for work that he hadn't finished, but he was still trying to get $25 from me," Burnam said.

Since Wright Dentures and Implants closed, around a dozen patients have filed lawsuits.

The law firm representing some of those people in court talked with FOX4 about one case in particular.

"So the gentleman that we represent is having us investigate whether or not the dental board has any responsibility in the way this all shook out," Paemon Aramjoo said. "Our curiosity is that there's an overseeing governing body, the dental board, who has a responsibility to make sure that practitioners in the state of Missouri are doing what they should be doing to make sure that people safely and appropriately get the dental treatment that they hope to receive."

Aramjoo believes that the Dental Board's decision to revoke Jenkins' license is a step in the right direction.

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"It shows me that the dental board is taking this seriously," Aramjoo explained. "It shows that they're trying to do something moving forward, but it doesn't answer the question as to why it took so long."

The Missouri Dental Board told FOX4 Tuesday that It is unable to provide an interview. This case is still pending litigation, and once it is final, the Board will place an order on its website.