say white! DENTAL 10 ESSENTIAL FACTS THAT YOU MUST KNOW BEFORE YOU CHOOSE A DENTIST
WELCOME As the manager of Say White Dental I completely understand that our patients might have a number of questions regarding their dental treatment: Where is it a good idea to get my teeth done? What should I consider when choosing the right dentist? What kind of guarantee is offered? How long will the treatment take? These questions are even more important when you are considering dental tourism, as in such cases the patients travel far from their home to another country for what can often be major treatment. To make it easier to get answers to these questions, we have put together the 10 essential facts that patients should consider when choosing a dentist. I hope that our study will help you to make your decision. Kind regards, Tibor Botos Manager, dental tourism expert
1 AT HOME OR ABROAD? Many of our patients report that, although dental treatments abroad might be significantly cheaper than at home, it is still difficult to make the decision to trust a dentist abroad. If you re planning to have your dental treatment abroad, one of the most difficult aspects is trust. Most people are afraid of dental treatment, and the fact that it is going to be undertaken in a foreign country by foreign dentists makes it even more difficult for our patients. Many things should therefore be considered when choosing the right dentist and clinic: HOW MUCH WILL I PAY IN TOTAL? In many cases, the prices for treatment abroad are lower, but additional costs should be considered (e.g. flight ticket, hotel, taxi). Nevertheless, large savings can be made for extensive treatment (implant treatment, dental makeovers), even allowing for such additional costs. WHICH COUNTRY SHOULD I CHOOSE? After deciding to have your teeth done in another country, it is worth taking a look at the different options. We are committed to dental trips to Hungary because of the strict hygienic and technological regulation, the particularly high level of dental education and the lower prices. HOW DO I CHOOSE AN EXPERIENCED DENTIST? Of course, the clinic that will perform the treatment really makes a difference. We also regard the selection of the dentist as a key factor. For us, it is important that our partner dentist should be a principal dentist with at least 10-15 years' professional experience and good English. They have to be a specialist in a given professional area (implantology or cosmetic dentistry). Our Hungarian partner dentists are able to provide excellence in all of these aspects.
2 IT IS WORTH CONSULTING MORE THAN ONE CLINIC If you decide that you want to have your teeth treated, the next step is choosing the right clinic and dentist. Our patients usually visit the clinic closest to their home. However, it is not advisable to limit yourself to this option. As we explain elsewhere, there are many options for such treatments at your local dentist or abroad. When you first contact a clinic, you can find out a few things about it during the first consultation (or even before): HOW QUICKLY DO THEY RESPOND? Trust can also be based on how fast the clinic responds to patients (for example, it is a good sign if it replies to emails within one day). This can help you to determine at the very first stage of contact how flexible the clinic is and how much time it dedicates to each patient. PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND Visiting a clinic personally may provide you with further opportunities to observe other aspects. A modern, technologically well-equipped, but also comfortable and friendly clinic may indicate professionalism and customer advocacy. Moreover, at the clinic you can meet your dentist personally. According to our patients, it is also important that the dentists tell them clearly the nature of the problem, the treatment they recommend, how much it will cost and that they will answer any questions. PRELIMINARY CHECK-UPS AND X-RAYS During the first consultation if you have not already had one during previous consultations X-rays should be carried out to identify the condition of your teeth and oral health more accurately. After the consultation, it is worth asking for the X-ray images so that you can use them to get a second opinion.
3 TESTIMONIALS When choosing the right clinic (and dentist), more than one source of information should be considered. Apart from the information given by the clinic itself, the opinions of other patients should also be checked. Fortunately, nowadays there are many options available for this: before and after images on the clinic website testimonial quotes on the website videoed interviews with previous patients If possible, you should ask the dentist for the contact details of some former patients in order to ask them about their own personal experience. Talking with former patients of the clinic not only helps you to decide whether the clinic is the best choice, but it also gives you useful advice, for example, about the journey (e.g., it is worth taking your favourite tea from home, because fruit teas are more widespread in Hungary). Many of the patients treated by us have given us permission to pass their phone numbers to our patients, making it possible to speak with them about their experience.
4 WHAT SHOULD I CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A CLINIC? When choosing the right dental clinic, one question often arises: Is a bigger clinic or a smaller, private one able to provide a more professional service? Both bigger and smaller clinics have arguments in their favour: while a bigger clinic is probably technologically better equipped, patients may get much more attention at a smaller one. Usually, there are lots of young dentists working at bigger clinics, who only have few years of professional experience. Another advantage of smaller clinics is that there is a larger chance to be treated there by a owner and principal dentist with more experience, and such clinics may be just as well equipped technologically as a bigger clinic. Our partner clinics and dentists were chosen considering the following aspects: We choose smaller clinics so that our patients receive more attention Our partner dentists are the principal dentists and owners of the given clinic All of our dentists have at least 10 years of professional experience Each dentist is a specialist in a given dental field All of the clinics are equipped with the most-up-to-date equipment either brand new or only a couple of years old Our specialists speak good English and have been working in the field of dental tourism for many years
5 DENTAL TOURISM IS DIFFERENT FROM TRADITIONAL DENTISTRY The most important players in dental tourism are the dentists. The professional knowledge of dentists can be determined by their professional background and the number of years they have spent so far in the profession. However, in dental tourism it is not only the number of years in the profession that matters, but also the adequate level of experience in this field. This is because dental tourism requires special skills from the dentists: SHORTER TREATMENT SESSION Since patients travel to another country for treatment, the time they spend abroad is also an extremely important factor (it matters how many days off work they have to take because of treatment, in terms of organising childcare etc.) Therefore, it is important for a dentist experienced in dental tourism to be able to perform even extensive dental treatment within a couple of days (treatment which might require anything up to a few months at home). GOOD COMMUNICATION SKILLS Apart from good English, one important expectation is that dentists involved in dental tourism are able to explain in detail all of the steps of the treatment to their patients. EXCELLENT COOPERATION WITH DENTAL TECHNICIANS Because of the short dental session and in order to assure the highest quality dental work, it is extremely important that the dentist and the dental technicians are able to work together very smoothly and efficiently.
6 HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE? In many respects, time is an important factor in dental tourism. On the one hand, it is worth performing the whole treatment within the shortest time possible, as this is economically less burdensome for the patients, for example, because of days off work and costs related to hotel and other expenses. On the other hand, since extensive treatments are performed during the trip abroad, it is not advisable to rush things either. Many patients travel back home soon after the treatment, however, this is not always wise, since patients need time to get used to their new teeth. After the treatment, patients need to learn to use their teeth to check if the new tooth is comfortable or not and if the bite is appropriate. If this is not sorted out at the time of treatment, it may cause further problems later. Therefore, it is important to let the patients use their teeth freely for a few days after the dental work has been done. During the test period, it is advisable for the dentist to consult the patient again regarding their personal experience, and this in fact happens as a matter of course at our partner dentists. Our partner dentists allocate enough time (a few days) to our patients to check their teeth, so as to let them go back with a comfortable smile. If the patients experience any inconvenience during this period (for example too high a filling), this can be remedied with a 5-10 minute correction, and therefore you avoid the need to return to Hungary (and avoid the need for further aftercare).
7 IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER Most people have feelings of revulsion towards dental treatment that are usually caused by the fear of pain and potential side effects. According to our patients, it is particularly important that the dentist shares all of the information with them regarding the treatment what is going to happen during the treatment, how long it will take, and whether it will be painful. One feature of dental tourism is that the dentist and the patient speak different languages. Because of this, it is very important to choose a dentist who speaks English well, so that the patient and the dentist can easily understand each other during the treatment. A number of questions and problems may arise during dental treatment. If these are not discussed with the dentist, they may cause problems later (e.g., the dental bridge is not comfortable to wear, and it might hurt the gum). At Say White Dental we work with dentists who not only have a high professional reputation, but also speak English to a high standard, and are able to explain all the details of the treatment perfectly to our patients, so that they feel more relaxed before their treatment.
8 PRICE ALSO MATTERS When you decide to have your teeth treated and choose the most appropriate clinic and dentist, there is still one very important factor to consider: the price of the treatment. However, prices can often be misleading. A good example of this can be an implant. This consists of three parts (implant, implant abutment and crown), but usually only the implant price is advertised, without the cost of the crown and the implant abutment. Unfortunately, it might happen that you only discover these additional related costs later on, during the course of the treatment when it might be too late to withdraw. ASK ABOUT YOUR OPTIONS! It might surprise you to learn that a personal loan or an instalment payment option can be requested for dental treatment. However, this is not available in every clinic, so it is also advisable to obtain information about these options before starting your treatment. WE CAN ASSIST YOU WITH THIS AS WELL Even though the price of treatment in Hungary is up to 60-70% cheaper than in the UK, we know that this amount may also cause concern for some patients. To help our patients to ease their financial problems, we are more than happy to assist in this matter along with our financial partner. Our partner company has contacts with the largest banks and financial providers, so they can advise you about several loan possibilities. They can check our patients credit status and indicate the credit solutions that best fit their needs.this preliminary credit evaluation will not be registered in the records of the larger banks, so you do not need to worry about this.
9 TERMS OF GUARANTEE Apart from the above mentioned aspects, when choosing a dentist and clinic it is also important to check what kind of guarantee is offered for the treatment. In fact, the guarantee may also indicate the secure professional knowledge of the dentist, and therefore serve as a kind of assurance for patients when they make their decision. In any case, it is definitely worth being informed in more detail about the conditions of the guarantee. For example many clinics offer a lifetime guarantee for implants, but in most cases this only refers to the situation where the implant itself becomes loose. However, the question is what happens, for example, if the implant falls out? It is hard to offer a guarantee for such a case because it depends on a number of external factors (e.g., oral hygiene, genetic conditions, bone formation, general state of health, chemotherapy, etc.). Besides the period of time covered, the conditions included in the guarantee are also important. For example, our implantologists prefer to use one of the most reliable implants in the business, as the manufacture provides a lifetime guarantee in case of implant failure. After each treatment, our dentists hand over a guarantee letter to our patients. This describes the kinds of case it is valid for and what kind of period it covers: 3 years for crowns and bridges made of porcelain fused to metal 5 years for crowns and bridges made of porcelain fused to zirconium 5 years for implants using the immediate loaded system 5 years to lifetime for implants using the two-phase system (depends on manufacturer) 2 years for inlays and fillings
10 FOLLOW-UP TREATMENT IS IMPORTANT t is also definitely worth consulting the dentist about whom to turn to for help and what the conditions are if any problems arise after the treatment. Aftercare is therefore a very important question especially in the case of major dental treatments. In many cases, after having treatment done abroad, many dental clinics only provide aftercare or a check-up where the work was originally carried out, and patients need to go back to that country, even for minor treatment. Before making the final decision on which clinic and dentist to choose, it is advisable to ask where the aftercare takes place, which cases it is valid for and who pays for it. Our partner dentists provide their patients with instructions after treatment on how to protect the health of their teeth. After our patients return to the UK or Ireland, we still want to keep in touch with them, because the treatment itself is by no means the end of the process. If any problems should occur after the treatment, we will first assess the situation in the UK. If the problem can be treated by our local partner clinic in London or Dublin, then it will not be necessary to return to Hungary. Regular check-ups and maintenance are very important, so regular check-ups can be undertaken at one of our partner clinics in Dublin or London. In addition, dental hygiene treatments are also provided on request.
WHAT ARE THE 10 POINTS THAT ARE DEFINITELY WORTH CONSIDERING BEFORE TRAVELLING ABROAD FOR A DENTAL TREATMENT? 1 When choosing a dental clinic, it may also be worth taking a look abroad 2 Contact more than one clinic and feel free to ask your dentist as many questions as you feel you need to 3 If possible, contact one of the former patients of the clinic 4 Choose an experienced dentist 5 Gather more information about dental tourism 6 The time the dentists spend on the treatment can also be informative 7 It is worth choosing a dentist whom you can understand 8 Find out more about the prices in detail they can often be misleading 9 Ask about the details of the guarantee (e.g., for which cases is it valid) 10 Aftercare is important but where does it take place? Did you find this study helpful? Like our Facebook page to get more useful tips about dental treatments. www.facebook.com/saywhitedental We hope that our study has brought you closer to understanding dental tourism and made it easier for you to choose the right dentist and clinic. If you wish to receive additional help, please visit our homepage