High River Denture & Implant Clinic hits a quarter century!

by Jane Russell

Have you noticed those confident, smiling folk just hanging out across from George Lane park in High River? Isn’t High River Denture & Implant Clinic located on that corner? As a matter of fact it is – and those folk are likely patients of Gerard Mercier out exercising their new smiles.

Twenty five years ago Mercier purchased the business and with his amazing attention to detail has built the clinic into a state-of-the art leading-edge operation with a vast array of satisfied customers.
When asked to describe himself Mercier said, “I have perseverance and extreme attention to detail. I like helping people, I like working with my hands, and I like being a denturist. I always try to exceed people’s expectations in the endless pursuit of perfection.”

That’s why his customers are so completely happy with their dentures and implants. “Gerard cares about my mouth as much as I do,” says patient Marlene Woodside.  “It’s great to bite into an apple with the juice flying. The freedom to eat whatever I want without thinking is almost like getting back my natural teeth.”

Building relationships with patients is part of Mercier’s pursuit of perfection. Gary Loughery said it best, “Gerard and his staff are not only my dental care providers, they have become good friends and I have become their friend. I will be forever thankful that I met them and experienced their wonderful support and dedication.”

“Every patient gets treated like an individual, tailoring service to meet their needs, wants and budget. Denture wearers feel that they have only one option, but we educate them to the vast array of options that are actually available to them,” explains Mercier, “and the majority of denture wearers would benefit from dental implants. My goal is to replenish function to a standard that exudes good health.”

“I am very lucky to have denturist Evan Perkins as an integral part of the operation. Patients are very happy with Evan and his work and all of our caring support staff at the clinic.”

Deannie Gass sums it up with her comments, “Gerard, how can I thank you enough for your exceptional care and professionalism. Your amazing attention to detail and outstanding craftsmanship in designing the mouth piece was second-to-none. You didn’t settle for less than the best and that is what you delivered. Your kind and gentle chair-side manner put me at ease and was a constant reassurance. I know you make each patient feel as though they are your most important one, and you certainly made me feel that way. To Evan and the rest of the staff, thank you for making me feel so ‘at home’ in a dental office.”

Mercier started lecturing on dental implants  25 years ago, before anyone was doing that in Alberta. “I remember I had this grade 9 math teacher whose dentures would fall out while she was talking. When I graduated in 1984 she came in to the clinic I was working at and told us about these dental implants from Sweden. I did some research and sent her to B.C. to have the implants placed and I built the denture to attach to them.”

Mercier saw that the implants immediately changed her life and he was sold. When he saw her recently at 90 years young, the implants were still in place after 25 years.

Success rates for dental implants are 95-100%, one of the highest in any medical procedure. There are solutions for every budget, so there is no need to go on agonizing over your teeth. Check out highriverdenture.com and let High River Denture & Implant Clinic get you back your bite.

Mercier now lectures across Canada on dental implant therapies and was a pioneer in Alberta custom crafting implant prosthetics to ease patients dental woes 25 years ago when it was new technology. He is Vice President of the College of Alberta Denturists, has made seven trips to Central America fitting over 400 of the extremely poor with dentures, has guest lectured at NAIT for 12 years and is considered one of the upper echelon of dedicated dental professionals in Alberta.

Mercier and wife Heather, a dental hygenist, son Mark 13, and daughter Allison 17 enjoy life in High River. “We have so much here – the mountains, the prairies, the US border, Calgary all so close – what could be better,” said Mercier when speaking about his family and many interests. “I am totally committed to our town.”

On July 1st, High River Denture & Implant Clinic celebrates its 25th birthday. Jokingly self-proclaimed ‘carpenter of the mouth’ Mercier is so thankful that he took a chance on High River all those years ago.