Blog

The good and the bad-

The Good Points-

There are good dentists in many countries and most of them aspire to do good work for clients.

Some of the clinics in Turkey are beautifully fitted out

Many are equipped with the latest technology

Sales teams are usually highly engaging and responsive online and with phone calls

Patient experience in the surgery is often good

The Bad-

Incentives matter, Alot!

We decided to do our investigations as to the standard of treatment planning in Turkey and so we sent off photos of our own teeth to see what was suggested. Bear in mind that the teeth sent over would be considered absolutely healthy and cosmetically very attractive as things stand. All we requested was some smile improvement.

At Seapoint that would have meant tooth whitening, Dental hygienist visit & slight composite recontouring for a slightly chipped tooth. Total cost for everything would come in at €695.

In terms of the ongoing health of the teeth they would remain absolutely perfect.

Turkish Treatment Plan- 20 porcelain laminate veneers! Total cost €7000 10% discount for cash payment…? + cost of flights and accommodation

Let’s compare those in more detail…

Irish Clinic- €695 and the teeth remain intact but beautiful

Turkish Clinic- €8000 inc flights and accommodation

• Damage to the teeth
• + Future replacement if they wear or chip
• Future flight costs if need redo

We saw another lady recently who was in her 20’s. She had bad teeth which were badly decayed in many places. We recommended to her that she should get all decay removed, some root treatments on the worst teeth and whitening initially.

Instead she decided to go to Turkey where they crowned every single tooth and did root canals on every single tooth.That means all her teeth are highly compromised and weakened and she is only in her 20’s.. She is all over tik tok saying how great it all is but what she is forgetting is that success is not measured in days. She wants her teeth to last for life and that's not happening...!

If those dentists were in Ireland they would lose their licence for carrying out that unnecessary work…

For a patient who actually needs 28 crowns (almost nobody) then it could makes sense from a cost perspective to get that done in Turkey. There is alot more to consider with heathcare.

Appearance

The teeth provided in Turkey are all the same... They are toilet bowl white and lack any natural character or features. Our clients demand more and want teeth to look like.... teeth. Beautiful, natural and white for sure but absolutely not tomb stone in appearance. 

Geographic Success-

Dentists in Turkey also never have to deal with the consequences of their work going wrong..

If your crown falls off you are not going to fly back to Antalya to get it recemented…

If a root filling fails you will likely get it redone close to home next time…

This means there is little incentive for dentists in Turkey to do the best job possible or to plan for success…

All they care about is giving you a pain free experience in their clinic and making the teeth look nice when you leave… They get paid, they get some photos for the next clients and you may even give a 5* review..

The problems all come after you go home..

Other problems-

Now you are back home with a mouth full of turkey teeth. You try to book a check-up with a local dentist to get them maintained. The problem is that nobody wants to take on the maintenance of this dental nightmare..

Why?

Because dentists didn’t do it so they don’t know the quality of the work..

There is a massive amount to keep an eye on and the risk of problems is super high.

They don’t want to touch it because if anything goes wrong you may expect the Irish dentist to fix it.

You are likely looking for cheap dental care rather than quality dental care..

If you are lucky you will get one set of adult teeth. That’s all… They are a gift and without them working right you can’t smile properly, you can’t eat properly… You can’t talk properly…

Why would you go anywhere but the best to get them looked after to give you a lifetime of comfort..

That’s our view anyway.