Dr William E. Lea DMD

Highly recommend Dr Lea and his wife and all his staff ! They are very warm, caring, and compassionate and listen attentively to your needs and concerns. I have always hated going to the dentist, but now I don’t mind. When you go for a cleaning it is very thorough and they teach you how to clean your teeth properly on a daily basis and send you home with everything you need to do that. His office is a quaint cottage surrounded by gardens and is very soothing. This is the perfect place for anyone who suffers from dentist anxiety.Marilyn , the receptionist and Dr Lea’s wife makes you feel at ease the moment you walk in the door! Dr Lea is very skilled and knowledgeable as well as Carol his dental Hygienist. So happy I found them!

A good friendly office, Dr Lea is very calm and professional.

I didn't realize it was even a possibility to have such an uplifting, educational, comforting, and empowering experience at the dentist... until my first visit with Dr. Lea. I had an idea I might be in good hands when his wife Marilyn prepared me over the phone for our visit. But this experience was off the charts. Dr. Lea has a genuine and compassionate nature (as does Marilyn), combined with his decades of knowledge, practice and passion for his work. This is coming from someone who had fear and anxiety around dentist visits for most of my life. In one visit those fears washed away, and I'm actually looking forward to the next one in a month for cleaning! This first visit was for x-rays, and to map out every detail in my jaw, teeth, bite, and gums. I learned so much I had no idea about after 40+ years of dental visits. Fascinating experience! He even travels to conferences sharing his knowledge. And he has such a lovely, kind, personable team. The hygienist I spoke with has been working with him for 20 years! If you're reading this review, rest assured you've found your new dentist. The bonuses? His fees are the the lowest I've ever paid (compared to east coast), which is surprising given the cost of living and services on SSI. It's located on the main floor of their sweet little home, surrounded by an organic flower garden, and decorated with his photography. Check out their website to see it and read his bio. It's been a few hours since my visit and I'm still smiling about it. Dr. Lea is truly one in a billion.

I called Dr. Lea's office in the evening and left a voice message, regarding swollen gums around one tooth. The next morning they promptly got back to me. I was asked if I could come in right away as there office is busy but they could squeeze me in. When I arrived I was greeted with a smile and also a sense of urgency. I sat in the chair, got x-rays and was given lots of great information by the Doctor. My gums started feeling better the next day! I HIGHLY recommend this dentist to anyone living or even passing through Salt Spring. They have very very reasonable prices and truly care about your teeth and gum health.

I moved to saltspring to get away from the Vancouver city life for the summer. While munching away at some popcorn one night enjoying a film, I cracked my back molar wide open with a kernel unseen. It was a dental emergency and the pain was great. Instead of flying across to Vancouver and back to see my regular dentist, I put my trust in Dr William E. Lea.He was extremely kind and took his time to explain what the procedure would look like step by step so that I was comfortable and understood the process. It turns out that I had a cavity in that tooth that needed to be taken care of long ago.When I arrived he stepped out to greet me and kindly took his time to help me find a place to keep my bicycle before the procedure.Long story short, the cavity is now gone, and my molar has been patched. The process was painless and easy. This all being yesterday, today I am in no pain at all with a healthy tooth that can once again eat popcorn just fine.. I’m just more cautious now.As for my next check up, I now know who I’m going to see. 5 stars to him and the staff.

Growing up on Salt Spring, our family has been going to Dr. Lea for a number of years. I recently moved to Victoria to study engineering at Uvic. When I went to the dentist on campus, he urged me to get a lot of dental work done. I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Lea to get a second opinion. It was difficult to find any time to go see Dr. Lea but they were super accommodating and managed to get me an appointment over reading break. The night before my appointment, Dr Lea contacted me saying he had cut his finger, and it had become quite a serious infection. But he was still willing to see me the next morning even though he had cancelled his other appointments. When I went in that morning, he told me he had been in the hospital for a matter of days and that he may have trouble holding the dental tools. In the end, he was able to confirm exactly what dental work needed to be done. Obviously Dr. Lea was not obligated to keep our appointment, but knowing how busy I am with school and how little i'm on Salt Spring, he made an extra effort to see me. One of the reasons Dr. Lea is a great dentist is because he is so considerate of his patients.

Horrible experience with this office. My son is on disability. He is covered by Blue Cross. The dentist's wife (receptionist) said the rates had changed and she said I would have to pay 40%. I told her my last dentist had never charged anything in the last 10 years. I called Ministry of Social Development and Blue Cross. They said the rates hadn't changed and that my son is covered. He was supposed to go back on Monday for a root canal. She made me pay not 40%, but 50%...said she had called, which she hadn't and she wanted payment now. I said why don't' we combine it on Monday and she wanted payment right away. The government agencies told me to change dentists because Dr. Lea's office policies were weird". They also do not use a computer at all...just an electric typewriter and no direct billing."

I highly recommend Dr. Lea and his staff for the treatment of my extreme jaw (TM joint) pain. He is very knowledgeable in his field. I was able to be seen almost immediately and my pain was gone in just a few visits using his method.

Highly recommend! The receptionist was kind and able to answer all my questions and even got me an appointment for an emergency the same day. Dr. Lea went above and beyond to make me feel comfortable and safe as I find dentists intimidating. I will never book a dentist appointment anywhere else. Thank you!

I woke with a terrible toothache on Saturday morning and phoned Dr Lea's office. Even though it was the weekend and their office was closed Marilyn called me back within minutes and after asking a few questions and consulting with Dr Lea, advised me that it could be an abscessed tooth and told me to come in immediately. After examining the tooth Dr Lea performed an emergency root canal. I have anxiety around dental visits at the best of times but Dr Lea explained the process to me in detail, and told me what he was doing throughout, assuring me that if I felt any pain during the procedure he would stop immediately. He was very thorough and his ongoing explanations of what was happening helped me immensely. Once he was done Marilyn squeezed me in for a follow up appointment on Monday and asked me to call them in a few hours once the freezing had worn off. I'm thrilled to report that all my pain is gone. I am so grateful to Dr Lea and his staff for going above-and-beyond. Top quality dental and customer service!