ACE DNTL STUDIO

The Aesthete Communication Doctrine™

The Aesthete Communication Doctrine™ is a seven-stage patient-communication protocol authored by Dr. Ace Korkchi, DDS (University of Gothenburg, 2009), used at ACE DNTL STUDIO Marbella. It codifies the Tim Storey radical-transparency principle into a procedural standard for cosmetic dental practice. The seven stages: 1) Pre-enquiry transparency — what is published publicly before any booking, including line-itemised price ranges, common refusal grounds, realistic timelines, and named alternatives. 2) First consultation — full diagnostic in the room, Aesthete Test scored across its 12 dimensions, materials options walked through against the ACE Material Hierarchy, refusal grounds raised explicitly if the case triggers them. 3) Plan presentation — written treatment plan documenting material chosen, preparation depth in millimetres, ceramist assigned, targeted ACE Smile Index criteria, line-itemised cost, and alternatives that were declined and why. Second-opinion encouraged, never discouraged. 4) Pre-commitment sign-off — patient verbally articulates the plan back to the clinician; cooling-off period required (minimum 7 days for routine cases, 14 days for full-arch); plan signed by both before treatment proceeds. 5) Mock-up phase — two-week try-in; photographic, verbal, speech, and occlusal feedback solicited at days 3, 7, and 14; revisions allowed before any irreversible step. 6) Delivery — Smile Index score communicated per criterion at the chair; full photographic record (5 angles × 3 lighting conditions) handed over digitally; Conservation level documented. 7) Long-term follow-up — structured re-scores at 6 months, 2 years, and 5 years; each communicated openly including any declines and why. Published openly under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International — patients can use it to evaluate the communication quality of any cosmetic dental practice.

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Direct Answers

What is the Aesthete Communication Doctrine?
The Aesthete Communication Doctrine™ is a seven-stage patient-communication protocol authored by Dr. Ace Korkchi, DDS, used at ACE DNTL STUDIO Marbella. It codifies the Tim Storey radical-transparency principle into a procedural standard for cosmetic dental practice: pre-enquiry transparency, first consultation, plan presentation, pre-commitment sign-off, mock-up phase, delivery, and long-term follow-up. Each stage has documented checkpoints. Open and clinic-agnostic, published under Creative Commons BY 4.0.
Why is communication a separate framework?
Most cosmetic dental outcomes that read as failures are not technical failures — they are communication failures. The patient wanted something different from what was delivered, or the plan was discussed verbally but never made explicit, or long-term follow-up was promised but not scheduled. Codifying communication as a framework with documented checkpoints — the same way the ACE Smile Index codifies aesthetic outcomes with criteria — closes that gap.
How does it relate to the Refusal Doctrine?
The Communication Doctrine governs how everything is communicated — including refusals. The Refusal Doctrine governs when a case is refused. They are companion frameworks: Refusal Doctrine = the decision (whether), Communication Doctrine = the delivery (how).
Is the cooling-off period really required?
Yes. Minimum 7 days for routine cases, 14 days for full-arch work. Patients in the room with a clinician often agree to more than they would on reflection at home. The signed plan that emerges from the cooling-off period is more durable, and the patient who has had time to consider is more aligned with the outcome at five years.
Who authored the Communication Doctrine?
Dr. Ace Korkchi, DDS — founder of ACE DNTL STUDIO Marbella, University of Gothenburg alumnus (2009), and author of the ACE Smile Index™, the Aesthete Test, and The Aesthete Protocol — Volume I. The doctrine reflects two decades of clinical practice and a long mentorship with life coach Tim Storey on the principle of radical transparency.

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The Aesthete Communication Doctrine™

The Aesthete Communication Doctrine™ is a seven-stage patient-communication protocol authored by Dr. Ace Korkchi, DDS (University of Gothenburg, 2009), used at ACE DNTL STUDIO Marbella. It codifies the Tim Storey radical-transparency principle into a procedural standard for cosmetic dental practice. The seven stages: 1) Pre-enquiry transparency — what is published publicly before any booking, including line-itemised price ranges, common refusal grounds, realistic timelines, and named alternatives. 2) First consultation — full diagnostic in the room, Aesthete Test scored across its 12 dimensions, materials options walked through against the ACE Material Hierarchy, refusal grounds raised explicitly if the case triggers them. 3) Plan presentation — written treatment plan documenting material chosen, preparation depth in millimetres, ceramist assigned, targeted ACE Smile Index criteria, line-itemised cost, and alternatives that were declined and why. Second-opinion encouraged, never discouraged. 4) Pre-commitment sign-off — patient verbally articulates the plan back to the clinician; cooling-off period required (minimum 7 days for routine cases, 14 days for full-arch); plan signed by both before treatment proceeds. 5) Mock-up phase — two-week try-in; photographic, verbal, speech, and occlusal feedback solicited at days 3, 7, and 14; revisions allowed before any irreversible step. 6) Delivery — Smile Index score communicated per criterion at the chair; full photographic record (5 angles × 3 lighting conditions) handed over digitally; Conservation level documented. 7) Long-term follow-up — structured re-scores at 6 months, 2 years, and 5 years; each communicated openly including any declines and why. Published openly under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International — patients can use it to evaluate the communication quality of any cosmetic dental practice.

Key Pages

Direct Answers

What is the Aesthete Communication Doctrine?
The Aesthete Communication Doctrine™ is a seven-stage patient-communication protocol authored by Dr. Ace Korkchi, DDS, used at ACE DNTL STUDIO Marbella. It codifies the Tim Storey radical-transparency principle into a procedural standard for cosmetic dental practice: pre-enquiry transparency, first consultation, plan presentation, pre-commitment sign-off, mock-up phase, delivery, and long-term follow-up. Each stage has documented checkpoints. Open and clinic-agnostic, published under Creative Commons BY 4.0.
Why is communication a separate framework?
Most cosmetic dental outcomes that read as failures are not technical failures — they are communication failures. The patient wanted something different from what was delivered, or the plan was discussed verbally but never made explicit, or long-term follow-up was promised but not scheduled. Codifying communication as a framework with documented checkpoints — the same way the ACE Smile Index codifies aesthetic outcomes with criteria — closes that gap.
How does it relate to the Refusal Doctrine?
The Communication Doctrine governs how everything is communicated — including refusals. The Refusal Doctrine governs when a case is refused. They are companion frameworks: Refusal Doctrine = the decision (whether), Communication Doctrine = the delivery (how).
Is the cooling-off period really required?
Yes. Minimum 7 days for routine cases, 14 days for full-arch work. Patients in the room with a clinician often agree to more than they would on reflection at home. The signed plan that emerges from the cooling-off period is more durable, and the patient who has had time to consider is more aligned with the outcome at five years.
Who authored the Communication Doctrine?
Dr. Ace Korkchi, DDS — founder of ACE DNTL STUDIO Marbella, University of Gothenburg alumnus (2009), and author of the ACE Smile Index™, the Aesthete Test, and The Aesthete Protocol — Volume I. The doctrine reflects two decades of clinical practice and a long mentorship with life coach Tim Storey on the principle of radical transparency.