Holidays and Dental Visits Holidays, vacations and visits to the
dentists—have they anything in common? Surely the emotion evoked by the word
‘vacation’ is a far cry from anything we feel when thinking of going
to the dentist. Most people would accept that vacations AND visits to the dentist are necessary to your health and wellbeing. What's wrong with doing both at the same time? Let the pleasure of the one, mollify the unpleasantness of the other and SAVE MONEY while you’re at it. Americans living along the Mexican-U.S. border have for years availed themselves of Mexico’s on-a-par treatment and considerably lower prices—and over the last 10 years more and more vacationers are doing the same thing. Cancún is less than three decades old and already Mexico’s fastest growing city. People from all over the world, in all walks of life come to live here, and dentists--young professionals starting their careers in one of the most promising regions of the country--are no exception. Given the principal industry of the city (tourism), many health services professionals speak English, and while Cancún is not the Mexican-U.S. border, prices are comparatively excellent. A recent U.S.survey gives the following
price ranges for basic procedures across continental United States: [prices in U.S.
dollars]: Now Cancún_and we’ ve chosen the mid-to-high price range; lower estimates are avaliable. (Prices converted to U.S. dollars at a rate of 10 to 1): extractions: $30-$50; caps and crowns $150-$200; root canals $200; $20; and about $450 for a moveable bridge. Dr. Rodrigo Tello, with 18 years experience as a dental surgeon and a patient list comprised of 20% foreigners, makes the following suggestions for choosing a dentist in Mexico. "Like everywhere, there are good dentists and there are bad. Use common sense, just as you would back home. Ask the locals for recommendations (find someone you can relate to and whose judgement appears to coincide with your own). Visit the offices of several; note their locations, the general appearance of the office and the people that work in it. Speak to the dentist, if at all possible. Tell him what you want—vacation time visits; is he willing to work with those conditions? How does the place feel to you? Do the people, does the doctor instill confidence? Ask for a price list. Find out how far in advance you have to schedule an appointment." [Tello himself has a waiting list of three weeks]. "Don't automatically reject a dentist because he or she doesn’t speak English" continues Tello. "Find someone who speaks Spanish and is willing to accompany you. It is a common error among tourists (of whatever nationality in whatever country) to assume that anyone who speaks their language is--by some mysterious extension—honest and competent as well as bilingual—and that is not always the case," he concludes. Readers should know that accredited Mexican dental schools require the same number of years of study as their stateside counterparts; the difference is that in Mexico a student is allowed to enter dental school without having completed four years of college. On the other hand, Mexico requires a year’s servicio from its graduates, which means working under supervision for minimum wage in a government facility right out of dental school. So plan ahead and spend a week or two in one of the most beautiful places on earth, getting all that dental work done you've put off for so long--and at half the price. By: Sharon Van Bramer |
