Promoting dental tourism in india abroad

2cents

there is a really big market for cost effective dental treatments out here.

monkgonemad

i think thailand is light years ahead of india. i routinely have work done in bkk. i would never for a dozen reasons have any dental/surgical work done in india. "risky" only begins to summarize - thailand has its game already in place and going full on. ...and 'waiting' -heck, india is nothing but a waiting game. further, there is no way someone is going to board a plane, spend huge money for a possible/potential positive (not to mention no immediate) outcome. specifically -the Ayurvedic remedy. most dental solutions cannot come from natural medicine. perhaps gum problems mainly
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Since most of the tourists consider it too risky to put their faith in the healthcare system in india
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there is no real waiting in the west -only high costs. for me, bangkok is fantastic (see a former post of mine on the dental hospital here in bkk).

oldhippie

>>A root canal surgery costs around Rs.3000(70 USD) here
A bridge or a crown around Rs.5000-10000(110- 220 USD) depending on the material.
A similar procedure abroad will cost thousands of dollars.<<

This is a little less than what I would pay for the same treatment here in Hong Kong with better facilities.

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Nick-H

Why does everyone assume that the facilities in Indian dental clinics will not be as good as anywhere else?

I'm sure that people here won't be imagining rusty tools and needles in thatched huts surely?

The dentist I have been to in Chennai has superb facilities: I will certainly go to him again (well, of course I will; I'm planning to live there ).

I took the decision to have some dental implants done here in UK, not so much because of what facilities I expected to find, but becasue I thought I'd rather have my immune system recovering in its native climate with its native food.
I could have saved over £1000 having it done there: wish I had

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indiamike

It hard to shake off an image and many people have a negative feeling about health care in India.

Personally I haven't tried a dentist in India and may consider it in the future. One filling in the U.S. is a whopping $250 dollars and many people I know owe their dentist a small fortune and take out loans with them just to have essential dental work done.

You will just have to prove to people that it's just as good and as safe. That's the hard part, changing peoples opinions.


Mike

Nick-H

A Google add on this thread is for 'Hip Hotels in Kerala'

They don't realise we're talking about dentistry, not hip replacements

chappal

This could be attractive for a few Americans were it not for the expensive and looong flight. Most Americans do not have full dental insurance, and pay quite a bit out of pocket, but most also don't get much vacation time. I don't think there is a large market of people willing to travel for a full day each way in order to have a vacation and dental treatment. I think the market will only consist of those already making international journeys. Kerala would be a good destination for such a package though.

DH and I will both be having routine dental appointments in our upcoming visit. DH had a root canal done in India a couple years ago. It took a couple visits over a few days and a couple years later all is still well. The dentists here in the US want to be finished all in one sitting and horror stories about rushed jobs and uncaring dentists with poor follow-up are not uncommon.

oldhippie

I have lived on and off in India for years when I was younger and have been living there now for over a year . I have had dental work done there that has fallen apart in a short time. If I were to get some major work done like a root canal I would feel more comfortable paying the same amount in Hong Kong or even paying more to get it done in the US. IMO you get what you pay for. I do trust Indian dentists but only with minor work.

agoraphobe

I might, but I usually have all my teeth removed before coming to India to prevent people from stealing them while I sleep with my mouth open on the train.

kiwi_razz

There was a piece on the bbc a little while ago about health tourism with regards to heart surgery, and people coming to india for that (from the uk).

Personally, I'm not sure whether its advisable to get on a plane if you require heart surgery but thats just my opinion.

They polled a few people in the street (ie a uk street) about it and the general consensus was that people wouldn't go for it.

As one woman said "for all its faults I still believe the NHS is the best in the world". LOL. for all its faults, surely if its the best in the world then it wouldn't have any faults.

Nick-H

My chennai dentist specialises in implants, bridges, crowns, root-canal work.

He tells me he has a number of UK patients. Both my GP dentist and my implant specialist here in London were entirely positive about the idea of treatment in India.

The treatment I have had there was very cheap compared to UK, but not at all cheap in terms of Indian economics. The receptionist in my guest house wold have had to save up for months to afford it. Don't think, "Third-world dentistry," think "dentistry for the rich"!

kar

I plan to see a dentist and doctor in Pune as a way of subsidizing my trip.

I avoid medical care in the USA do to cost.



I had a conversation with an Indian born dentist in California who was also thinking about setting up dentistry tours to India. I think the patients have to want to go to India for more than just dentistry.

sudheer poppa

Outside of the roadside clinics and surgeons, there are speciality hospitals in most cities of India. Like Appollo, KIMS, Manipal, so many other ones.....

These hospitals are at par with most in the west and department heads are mostly people who have experience from around the world. The success rate of medical procedures in these hospitals are considered very high.

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ikimasho

i had my teeth cleaned in kerala. i think it cost about 300 rupees. he did a great job!

i didnt plan it though...i was taking ayurvedic medicine twice a day for two months. it stained my teeth quite a bit. so i decided to take care of it.

i could never get my teeth cleaned in japan for that price!!

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Nick-H

This sounds like starting a poll on whether or not you should start a poll

I spent about R5000 on dental treatment. To spend a month's wages on anything would be a expensive.