My other half is diabetic and therefore tries to take good care of his teeth. Our regular dentist retired, so he continued to go to the new person, but the number of treatments and costs kept going up and up and up. When he ended up with pain after a recent scale and clean, he decided to try another local dentist. Well, apparently the person who did the scale and clean actually caused the problem which was now occurring, AND where the dentist had told him he required a root canal (at great cost) for a tooth he had worked on THREE times in the previous twelve months, an x-ray revealed a standard correctly applied filling would suffice. Trouble is, nobody will state any of this for the record so we can even try to get some satisfaction either through the Dental Tribunals or monetary recompense for all the non-required work.
Between 2012 and 2014 I used a dentist in the Randwick area. The first visit was good as the dentist himself did everything, but things went downhill thereafter. My routine 6 monthly check ups and cleaning were done by his dental hygienists and yet I was charged the dentistâs rate. The dentist would only pop in at the end of each visit to have a one minute look in my mouth. I wouldnât have minded it if the dental hygienists were more focused on their job instead of looking up at the TV every so often, with the distractions often resulting in unnecessary pain.
Hello Uta.
I have been meaning to reply to your question, but it needs careful consideration:
I concur with the other authors who have suspicions about dentists.
I, too, have had a couple of dentists whose abilities have proved questionable.
My prosthodontist expressed disappointment at the performance of the previous dentist.
More overarching than your call for feedback about health insurance and dental care,
I believe that lifelong dental care should be factored into Medicare
with subsidies available to everyone, scaled subject to means test.
As to finding a dentist you can trust,
if you go to University dental schools and make yourself available
for examination and treatment by final year students,
their actions are supervised by tutors, who can maintain quality control.
The subsequent fees may also be discounted.
Further discounts might be available to Veterans and Concession cardholders.
Dental treament can be very important to sustain a Quality of Life.
But, people should be immediately wary of any dental professional
who promotes treatment, based solely on aesthetics - what is fashionable.
Beware the promotion of dental treatment for children.
Childrenâs teeth are mobile and an apparent problem may disappear in six months.
No, I am not a dentist, but I had a front seat in applied dentistry.
Over thirty years ago, I was in a crash and smashed my head into a tree.
A prosthodontist spent fifty hours over ten weeks, reconstructing my jaw and teeth.
The Quality of his workmanship lasted me thirty years,
when he expected it to last just thirteen years.
A person with a toothache is in no position to haggle with a dentist.
Health Funds can haggle about fees and availability of dental hardware.
However, as dental health can impact on heart disease, say by infective endocarditis,
a dental health schedule should be included in the Federal Health Insurance legislation.
Big thanks to all those who have shared their experiences. Weâre planning some activity around this topic next year, so please keep sharing!
Dear Rob Silvertsen,
I am only speaking from my experience. I have not had you as a dentist, so my statements may be wide sweeping and encompassing all of the good as well as bad. With a forum such as this being specific about one person is not called for. So therefore I am not specific about the dentist I have found that is fantastic.
Generally I have been quite happy with my dentist. I did have an experience with another dentist in town when I had a filling and the rebate was far less than normal. On questioning BUPA I discovered that my dentist was no longer a âBUPA Dentist.â Thatâs when I changed dentists. It would be good if either Health Insurance providers or dentists were obliged to tell patients if they change companies.
I have a question about the regular teeth cleaning that dentists wish to give you. I originally thought it was every 12 months but my current dentist wants to do it every 6 months. It seems to be a fairly quick service and the dentist usually pops in for a few minutes at the end. What concerned my was the price. Are there any guides as to how much is appropriate?
I remember that when people starting going overseas for dental work Australian dentists would always bag the Thai dentists and try to frighten you with details of poor hygiene. When I was in Thailand I had the opportunity to look at a dental practice that treats Australians and I was blown away by the absolute state-of-the-art surgery and equipment. It made anything I had seen in Australia look a trifle shabby.
Here is the article resulting from our investigation into dentists, including the differences between fees and some tips to help you find the best dentist for the fairest price.
I am in the process of major research before committing to work I need to have done on my teeth due to infection and subsequent bone loss (as per OPG xray). I am finding the information out there very geared to cosmetic fixes. You may wish to contact this prosthedontist his blog says it all. https://www.davisdental.com.au/dentistry-i-saddened-say/
Previously I was with hcf and had visited one of the dental clinics. Some dentists were ok but one tried putting a filling where I had a chipped tooth but it fell out. I stopped gki g to them. Canât say that particular dentist was all that great. Pacific smiles locally seems alright enough but prior work was pretty expensive. Especially when I needed to have a guard fitted due to another health issue. Nothingâs ever cheap. Other dentists with some health funds like ahm who I was last time with was pretty garbage. I canât say what should be done but some dentists are bad just like finding a good motor mechanic. Maybe they should have a enquiry into why cost so much. Medicare is pathetic not covering the gap. But thatâs life
That is how it is with virtually any provider. Some believe providers who are not in fund ânetworksâ of preferred providers provide better service since their customers are not âdrivenâ to them by cost (fee) based contracts with the funds. I am not sure how true it is but a recent experience caused a comparison for an appliance, and sure enough, an âin networkâ provider was about 20% cheaper but researching the claims of my ânot in networkâ dentist confirmed he delivered a superior product.
It has always been a curiosity that dental care is never covered like medical care, yet dental health is mandatory for overall health. Even extras cover usually has modest support, and in the US health insurance is no better paying only tuppence for large bills.
One view from âunnamed sourcesâ
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/why-are-dentists-so-expensive
and a counterpoint,
and Choiceâs commentary (updated content per @BrendanMays previous link)
I am researching the long term efficacy of dental options especially with regard to people over 65 (me). My gripe is there seems to have been a lot of information not imparted by my dentists in my own dentistry journey over the years.
When I retired 7 years ago I spent a fortune ($40k) on getting what I hoped was top of the line dentistry. I have a new dentist and have been told long-term bone shrinkage (from removed teeth) and a current gum infection, resulting in 2 loose teeth, mean the options to rectify this situation would again involve major works $$$ - surgery, bone grafts, implants âŠI am coming to the opinion that I will be best to continue with the least invasive options and later select a removable denture. This comprehensive article from the Australian Dental Journal âImplants for the ageing populationâ gives a bleak prognosis that work done has quite a limited shelf life and further outlays can be expected. It is worth the time investment to read if you are considering major work. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/adj.12282
I was guided by the online Cochrane library for my current tooth and gum issues and looked up two reports.
The first regarding routine scale and polish did not show any improvement over patients that did not have this service. âRoutine scale and polish for periodontal health in adults.â
I also looked up this report regarding Periodontists because I have two loose teeth due too gum infection. âSupportive periodontal therapy (SPT) for maintaining the dentition in adults treated for periodontitis.â
I am coming to the realisation that my money was best spent on getting a full 3D Xray. It showed health of my teeth and an abscess that is not yet painful or causing issues and it shows the level of bone loss often caused after tooth loss. My dentist only offered to remove the teeth, however, her referral to the Periodontist has given me hope that with the deep, mechanical debridement the teeth could reattach and be saved.
I have never been to a periodontist before and wish I had before doing all the cosmetic work I had 4 years ago.
