Welcome to our pad at Pediatric Dentistry! Dr. Lee Cope and Dr. Susan Fortenberry specialize in providing comprehensive dental care to infants, children, adolescents, and special needs patients. We aim to give our patients healthy, beautiful smiles that lead to a lifetime of confidence and health!
At Pediatric Dentistry, Dr. Cope and Dr. Fortenberry and their staff have created an environment that is fun and welcoming to your child. From the slide and toys for the younger children to the TVs and study room for the older children, it is our desire for you to feel at home when you enter our office. Our treatment areas are thoughtfully designed for your child’s dental experience to be performed in a nonthreatening and excellent manner. It is our utmost desire to treat your child as if they were our own and not only to treat their dental needs but help to also play a role in their emotional development and well-being. Several of our patients over the years have seen first hand/mouth the fulfillment of participating in the process of developing a beautiful smile and have chosen the dental profession as their career. That makes us happy.
Frankly, sometimes the dentist is the last person your child cares to visit. The dentist's office can be a fearful place for a child. Habits formed as children are habits retained as adults.
But the atmosphere at Dr. Lee Cope's and Dr. Susan Fortenberry's office invites children and adolescents to enjoy their visits to the dentist. From the waiting room with toys for the little ones and TV for the older ones, to the examination areas with its comfortable colors and wholesome music, Dr. Cope's and Dr. Fortenberry's patients can relax while the highly trained staff performs their duties.
Speaking of his staff... they are more like a team! Each one radiates a warmth and charm which would disarm even the most nervous of patients. While they are completely serious about their jobs, they are just as serious about the well-being of their patients. Every task is professionally performed under the watchful eye of Dr. Cope and Dr. Fortenberry.
Dr. Cope has been in pediatric dentistry since 1978. He graduated with honors from the University of Tennessee School of Dentistry and completed his residency at Children's hospital in Cincinnati, the top rated children's hospital in the United States. Dr. Cope moved to Jackson, MS in 1980 and began his private practice, specializing in pediatric and special needs patients. He has also served on the faculty at the University of Mississippi Dental School for the past 34 years where he enjoys teaching and mentoring future dentists. He is an active member of the American Dental Association, the Mississippi Dental Association, the Mississippi Society of Pediatric Dentists, the American Orthodontic Society, the Gnathos Orthodontic study group, and lastly the American Academy of Pediatric Dentists.
Dentistry is just one of the activities that Dr. Cope enjoys- his family, church, and other hobbies keep him very busy. Dr. Cope has been married for almost 40 years and has 4 children. Three of his children, the three older girls, are practicing in various types of health related areas and the youngest, his son, is a financial analyst for a paper company and keeps Dr. Cope on his toes with sporting events and hunting on the weekends. Of course he is also blessed to spend a large amount of time with his second daughter, Dr. Susan Fortenberry, his dental partner in the office.
Dr. Cope devotes much of this time and his talents to those who are in need of not only ?dental care, but also hope and an encouraging word. He has been actively involved in mission work on the local, national, and international level. Locally Dr. Cope is involved in Mission First. Please visit their web site for more information, www.missionfirst.org. To view and/or print a brochure entitled, "Keep Your Mouth Clean! Keep Your Life Clean!" click the button “Brochure". He has participated in medical/dental mission trips to Honduras, Belize, Trinidad, and now is very active in But God Ministries in Haiti. He is actively involved at the First Baptist Church in Jackson, MS where he serves as a deacon and Sunday school teacher.
Dr. Cope's love for children and their health is what makes him tick. His attention to detail and the comfort of the patient -- however young or however a special need might be exhibited -- is the foundation upon which his practice is built.
Dr. Susan Fortenberry has grown up loving Pediatric Dentistry! From mowing the grass at the office as a child with her dad to working as a dental assistant in college, she has done it all at the office of Pediatric Dentistry, P.A. While on a medical and dental mission trip in college to Honduras, Dr. Fortenberry felt God calling her to be a pediatric dentist. She attended University of Mississippi School of Dentistry where she graduated with honors in 2007. She then attended a two year pediatric and special needs residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dr. Fortenberry is a board certified Pediatric Dentist and is a member of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentists, American Board of Pediatric Dentists, Mississippi Dental Association, Gnathos orthodontic study group, and the American Dental Association. She is married to Brian and has three young children. Being a mommy is her favorite hobby! She also enjoys running and serving in her church and community. She serves on the steering committee of L’ll Feet, a children’s consignment sale and ministry, and teaches Sunday School and Mission Friends and is very active with the dental clinic in Haiti and But God Ministries. Dr. Fortenberry feels so blessed to be able to work alongside her father, Dr. Cope!
Oh, and about the frogs... Ask Dr. Cope and he'll tell you one of his patients gave him this frog as a gift. He displayed the gift with pride in his office. Other patients noticed his delight and also gave him frogs. Big ones. Little ones. Fanciful ones. Realistic ones. Real ones, too! And continue to give him frogs. So now, there are hundreds of frogs decorating the office, making it an interesting place for children (and adults) to wait in wonder. The idea worked so well he enlisted the help of the Smile Inspector, a larger-than-life frog to entertain visiting children. While it is entertaining, it is educational, too. The children love it! And secretly Dr. Cope thinks that if he hangs around those frogs enough, he might possibly turn into a handsome prince. (Dr. Fortenberry disagrees.)