Dr. Alexandre Balaci was raised in Binghamton, NY, and completed his undergraduate studies at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, NY, where he obtained a bachelors degree in chemistry. For the first two years after residency, Dr. Balaci was an associate surgeon in Binghamton, NY. Dr. Balaci opened his private practice office in Lebanon, PA, and has continued to participate in the medical and dental communities of Lebanon, Hershey, and Wyomissing in a private practice limited to the full scope of oral and maxillofacial surgery.
Dr. Balaci is a founding partner of Balaci Oral and Facial Surgery, P.C. He is also part of the team at Good Samaritan Hospital and St. Josephs Medical Center. His clinical interests lie within the fields of facial aesthetics and dental implant reconstruction.
After completing his undergraduate studies at Hobart College in Geneva, NY, he entered dental school at Fairleigh Dickinson School of Dental Medicine in 1983. Upon graduation, Dr. Balaci obtained multiple awards in science and surgery and received a DMD degree. Completing his training, Dr. Balaci attended a residency program in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, NY.
Dr. Johnson has always had a passion for helping others. With a patient-first belief system and a passion for excellence, Dr. Johnson enjoys perfecting her skill set and educating her patients on their oral health to achieve amazing results. She goes the extra mile to understand her patients, explain treatments in detail, and addresses any concerns to ensure they feel as welcomed and as comfortable as possible.
Dr. Johnson comes to Balaci Dental Group after practicing general dentistry in Greenville, South Carolina. Originally from Youngstown, Ohio, Dr. Johnson moved to Pennsylvania to be closer to family. She feels honored to serve her local community and offer the most current dental care available. Ultimately, Dr. Johnson believes helping patients achieve a beautiful smile is truly the most rewarding experience.
Dr. Johnson has made great efforts to strive for high scholastic achievement, having received numerous academic honors and even won the state title for Oratorical Interpretation during her junior year at Cardinal Mooney High School. Dr. Johnson graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in biology from Youngstown State University in 2012. She went on to receive a Doctor of Dental Medicine Degree from Medical University of South Carolina School of Dentistry, graduating in 2016.
Dr. Chang was born and raised in Taiwan and has lived in California since he was a teenager. He attended undergrad at the University of California, San Diego, and graduated from dental school at the University of Pennsylvania in 2018. Dr. Chang went into dentistry because he was interested in a career in healthcare and participated in a dental clinic program during his undergrad, where he volunteered as a dental assistant and provided free dental service to those in need. After that, Dr. Chang knew he wanted to go into the field of dentistry.
He attended school with Dr. Balacis daughter and when he visited Balaci Dental Group, he saw the amount of care that Dr. Balaci delivered to his patients. Dr. Chang believes the most rewarding part about being a dentist is being able to help people. He wants patients to know he is approachable, kind, and likes to put them at ease when visiting the practice.
Dr. Mary Chen-Huang was born in Venezuela and was raised in Los Angeles, CA. She joined Balaci Dental Group at the end of April 2020 and has enjoyed every minute of serving the patients and community. One of her favorite aspects about dentistry is seeing the transformed smile she can give patients, and how her patients want to show off their smile more often.
Dr. Chen-Huang achieved her bachelors in dental hygiene from Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, USC in 2009. Following that, she earned her DDS in 2016 from the same university. She is a certified Invisalign provider.
Reviews
Rating 4.4 out of 5 based on 78 reviews
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newest oldest highest lowestdianne snavely
a year ago
Dr. Rana and Jess were amazing today! Had to have an emergency visit and they were super calming to my apprehension. Best bedside manner. Would recommend in a heartbeat.
Kaitlynn Reitenbach
a year ago
I have been a patient for years but since they switched from Silvermans, things have drastically changed and not for the better. After my final appointment for my implant, I will be taking my service else where. I am extremely disappointed & appalled at how rude some of the staff members are. I work in Healthcare & if I ever spoke to a patient that way I would no longer have a job. I understand the Healthcare is short staffed & stressful but that is not a good excuse to be rude.
Lori Jasper
a year ago
I highly recommend Dr. Rana and her assistant, Jess. I was scheduled for a crown replacement, but I broke the temporary one in the meantime, so it turned into an unexpected emergency visit. Fortunately, the new crown had already arrived, and they made room for me in their schedule the very morning I phoned them. Dr. Rana and Jess are wonderful and do everything they can to make a patient feel comfortable and at ease. They are skilled and knowledgeable, and I trust them completely!
Derek
2 years ago
I think the fact they don't reply to the numerous negative reviews tells you all you need to know.
Christina Reynolds
2 years ago
I've been a client with Balaci Dental, formerly Silverman Dental, for almost 20 years. This place has racially ignorant staff and is NOT family friendly location that has gone downhill in recent years. I've noticed for years their dentists are frequently changing and I should have taken it as a sign to jump ship then. They keep losing dentists. My husband and I took our then-4-year old to our appts so she can become acquainted with the process. He is white. I am not. The dental hygienist had the nerve to ask during casual conversation if our daughter is adopted. It is never appropriate to ask this in casual conversation and we know full well it is because she looks different than he does. It might be a newsflash, but biracial couples exist and biracial children can be procreated from such relationships. After that, I pegged the experience as the staff member being ignorant and started scheduling her appts with me instead. Those appts have been rescheduled multiple times in the two years and we have yet to have an appt kept since early 2021. The first time the hygienist had an emergency. The second time a hygienist was on maternity leave. Each and every time the office rescheduled office, it pushed out months. I spoke to someone else in the office and they told me it is MY FAULT because I schedule appts for myself and my daughter together and the best they could do was reschedule another 6 months out in November. I ended up going to another dentist office in the interim since we hadn't been seen since the year prior. We had a wonderful experience there, despite Balaci Dental not honoring our forms and request to send our records to the interim dentist office. Unfortunately, my daughter now needs four crowns and four fillings spread across 4 visits. Her last check up prior to this was completely clear. I squarely blame this need for aggressive treatment on Balaci Dental office's inability to hold a schedule and keep patients on a routine schedule for cleanings and check ups that would have picked up on this issue sooner. Now they called to reschedule our already rescheduled appointment in November, not even two months after they last called me to reschedule it, and I told them to just cancel it. I'm done giving them the benefit of the doubt. Don't waste your time here if your schedule and kids have meaning to you, because it doesn't to them. I dropped the rating to 2 stars instead of 1 star only because I do appreciate how clean the place is and they did well with COVID precautions.
Chris
2 years ago
So I have been going to this place for a long time. Always have had no issues up until now where I'm in pain and need a crown for my tooth and they will only give me an appointment if i out almost 600 down. It's unfair that all the money I've put into this business and they can't give me an appointment and give me some time to pay it. Thanks Balaci.
G Sina
2 years ago
I need a permanent lower partial, priced $2500, 2nd price $1900 their cost $1300....
Kieran Drexler
2 years ago
My 3 year old son had his first dental appointment here and it was a horrible experience! He was understandably nervous and they were not compassionate at all. At the end of the appointment they usually give a token to get a prize. They said he didn't earn the prize and would not give him a token. He was so sad when we left; I told him "you did such a good job" and he said to me "no I didn't". He's 3, and they made him feel like that. It broke my heart. We will NOT be returning!
Kristie Waldron
2 years ago
I have taken my children to Silverman Dental for years- we loved it back then. However, since Balaci took over, it has gone downhill. Hour long waits are now the norm rather than the exception, staff is disorganized and rarely seem to know what they are doing. Case in point- my son had an appt today to have cavities filled that I made weeks ago. I got a phone call they needed to cancel that. When I asked why, I was told the dentist just didn't have enough time to see him, and since my son was considered 'overflow', they were cancelling the appt. When I made the appt, I was NOT told that it was considered 'overflow', or that it would possibly be cancelled if the dentist decided he didn't have time. If I had known, I would have chosen to wait for an appt that was FIRM and not 'overflow'. And the kicker? The receptionist I spoke to actually asked me WHY my son was being seen because they didn't know what the appt was for to begin with. I was just shocked at how disorganized they have become. His new appt is now over a month away. I will say that all the staff has always been warm and friendly, and the receptionist I spoke with about my sons appt was very apologetic. If we weren't moving in a few months, we would be looking for a new dental practice. It's just such a shame that what was once a thriving, organized, friendly practice has fallen so low.
Christine S
2 years ago
Unfortunately due to Covid our regular Dentist, Hershey Dental Group, was unable to accommodate cleaning due to lack of staff. I will note that Hershey Dental Group is a five star. Unfortunately my experience at Balacci dental group was very different. Be prepared to have a lot of x-rays done and a lot of non-paid CPT codes for billing. Do you have to say that The biller has trained the staff very well and use of billing codes. Unfortunately they are not for the customer.And they will not change codes. I did request an estimate prior to coming in but was told by the person who answered the phone that they could not do that till the day of service however they could not provide that for me until after in which the hygienist came out and the dentist and reported the procedures done . Everyone was actually very nice except for the biller who I spoke with who was not friendly at all. After All appointments and finding out their billing practices I will not be returning. I am hopeful that Hershey Dental Group can accommodate my needs as of now
John Mullen
2 years ago
To start off i am terrified of going to the dentist office.. kinda why I've waited decades to try to go and get my teeth looked at/worked on.. but pushing and prodding from the wife got my to finally get seen for my first professional cleaning in 30 years.. my first visit was extremely nerve racking on initial entry.. but the Dental hygienists looked after me.. worked on me.. was very reassuring and very nice to me.. she was kind and gentle but could tell she was definitely working to get my teeth cleaned up and with no pain.. at all.. cleaning was done with water.. nice touch.. they showed me a nice little pile of tarter that has gathered and grown over the years.. was actually kinda shocking and disturbing at the same time.. as well as embarrassing.. there wasn't enough time to finish on the first visit.. like I said its been decades for me.. but now I'm back for round 2.. yay me for showing up.. and yay her for not sending me home in pain after the first visit.. I'd definitely recommend Balaci dental to anybody.. I've been terrified of dentist since I was a child.. but I can find some sense of ease when I sit down in the chair to get looked at.. at least with whats happened thus far..just finished with today's session.. again no pain.. trying to get on schedule for yet another step in the cleaning..and was told that with deep cleaning like this I actually qualify for a Sonicare.. nice.. so now I'm on a list for next appt. I strongly suggest anyone having dental issues to go to Balaci.. everyone I've had to talk with or even met in passing has been extremely nice and pleasant.. actually kinda looking forward to next visit.. see what happens next.
Josh Galinato
2 years ago
I moved into the area from York about a year and a half ago and started going to Balaci as I needed a new dentist. Every time I've come they "find" a new cavity and want to fill it. I've been pain free until they started working on my teeth and now after multiple attempts to fix things I'm still in pain in my teeth a year in where they have filled my supposed cavities. I've rarely had cavities through out my life. My wife is now searching for an emergency root canal as she's in so much pain after she had a supposed cavity filled only to find a few days later the filling collapsed in on her nerve. The dentist apologized but now here we are getting her a root canal when a week ago she was fine. Obviously they only care about procedures as procedures mean they can charge more so by golly you can bet they'll ALWAYS find a "cavity". Highly recommend staying away from this practice.
tim nuse
2 years ago
2nd time in a row. There for 20 min after my scheduled appt and still hadn't been called back. Watched the waiting room fill up then empty out. I always get there at least 10 min prior to my appt to ensure I am on time. Friendly staff. That is the only up side.
Leininger
2 years ago
I was a patient at Balaci dental a few years ago, and I stopped going there because several times a mistake on their part or misunderstanding/miscommunication cost me more money than I had anticipated. And I began to suspect that it might be deliberate. But recently I needed a root canal and contacted them again, giving them the benefit of the doubt. On the phone I was told the consultation would be $50 and an x-ray $25. When I came in, though, they looked at the tooth, did not take an x-ray and charged me $82. A combination of 'a lot going on' at the window and my not wanting to make a fuss made me decide to pay it. I was given a quote and treatment plan, all printed out. When I got there for the actual treatment, though, as I signed the papers, I saw the amount I'd have to pay was about $200 more than the quote. I understand that mistakes happen and I don't mind paying a fair price for treatment. But when I questioned this it seemed to me, from the way it was handled, that this was not just a mistake. I would warn you, if you go here, don't let their friendliness disarm you; be on your guard.
Beverly Warfield
2 years ago
I highly recommend the Balaci Dental Group. Dr Chang is very knowledgeable n very efficient, n also very friendly. He placed a crown n bridge for me, they fit perfectly. Shelby, his assistant is very attentive n friendly. My dental hygienist, Jaleyssa, was also very thorough n friendly. What a great team.
Kathie Weise
2 years ago
Went to a temporary crown and the permanent one in 3 weeks. Dr Chen and Shelby were awesome on both visits!!! Shelby went out her to explain in detail the process of getting both done. She was really courteous and knowable. I felt really good with the services I received!!! Thanks Balaci Dental Group!!
James Day
2 years ago
Be Aware they will charge you for services that they say are covered by your insurance policy. Went down the drain after switched from Silverman Dental. STAY AWAY!!!
Kathie Weise
3 years ago
Went to a temporary crown and the permanent one in 3 weeks. Dr Chen and Shelby were awesome on both visits!!! Shelby went out her to explain in detail the process of getting both done. She was really courteous and knowable. I felt really good with the services I received!!! Thanks Balaci Dental Group!!
tim nuse
3 years ago
2nd time in a row. There for 20 min after my scheduled appt and still hadn't been called back. Watched the waiting room fill up then empty out. I always get there at least 10 min prior to my appt to ensure I am on time. Friendly staff. That is the only up side.
Kristie Waldron
3 years ago
I have taken my children to Silverman Dental for years- we loved it back then. However, since Balaci took over, it has gone downhill. Hour long waits are now the norm rather than the exception, staff is disorganized and rarely seem to know what they are doing. Case in point- my son had an appt today to have cavities filled that I made weeks ago. I got a phone call they needed to cancel that. When I asked why, I was told the dentist just didn't have enough time to see him, and since my son was considered 'overflow', they were cancelling the appt. When I made the appt, I was NOT told that it was considered 'overflow', or that it would possibly be cancelled if the dentist decided he didn't have time. If I had known, I would have chosen to wait for an appt that was FIRM and not 'overflow'. And the kicker? The receptionist I spoke to actually asked me WHY my son was being seen because they didn't know what the appt was for to begin with. I was just shocked at how disorganized they have become. His new appt is now over a month away. I will say that all the staff has always been warm and friendly, and the receptionist I spoke with about my sons appt was very apologetic. If we weren't moving in a few months, we would be looking for a new dental practice. It's just such a shame that what was once a thriving, organized, friendly practice has fallen so low.
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