RM20-PER-TOOTH SERVICE: 10 people arrested for practising dentistry without licence in past 2 years
THE lure of having the perfect teeth without having to fork out much is fuelling the mushrooming supply for orthodontic services by “instant dentists”.
The Health Ministry had raised the alarm bell, warning the public against such services offered by bogus dentists who ply their illicit business from wherever the demand for their services is sought.
Already, the ministry has witnessed at registered clinics evidence of bogus dentists causing irreversible damage in the oral cavity of those who had engaged their services.
Statistics have also suggested that many in their teens had sought out these bogus dentists for cosmetic dental procedures.
The ministry, which is on the case of these bogus dentists, in appealing to the public to keep them at an arm’s length, said the public needed to understand the risks that these unqualified practitioners posed.
Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah told the New Straits Times that the ministry’s enforcement team had arrested at least 10 bogus dentists in a span of two years and was doing all it could to smoke out more of them.
Of the 10, six had been convicted and fined up to RM30,000 each. One of them served two months in jail as he couldn’t pay the fine.
Dr Noor Hisham said bogus dentists were simply encouraged by the easy money gullible individuals were willing to part with for their services.
“The business is so lucrative for these bogus dentists because the demand for their so-called skills is very encouraging,” he said, adding that bogus dentists who were caught were mostly women in their 20s.
Dr Noor Hisham said the fake dentists learned and picked up the basic know-how of dentistry from You-Tube channels.
Learning the mannerisms of a dentist from their seniors in the illicit trade would boost their credentials in the business.
The tools of their trade? They simply source them from online stores.
“Dental apparatuses can be easily bought online
“It is difficult for us to control them,” he said.
Dr Noor Hisham said some of these fake dentists had blatantly advertised their trade, offering services from fillings, extractions and application of braces to other more complex procedures, for a fraction of what private dental clinics would normally charge.
He also revealed that the group of fraudulent dentists did not operate from a permanent address for fear of being caught.
They, he said, plied their trade from one place to another, even covering different states where demand is high, setting up their dental chair in their make-shift clinics in hotels, guesthouses, beauty centres, spas and private homes.
He pointed out actual cases where victims of these bogus doctors were left with uncontrolled teeth movement, loss of teeth and gum infection.
Another of his chief worries was victims being exposed to HIV and Hepatitis.
A check by the NST revealed that some of these bogus dentists charge between RM700 and RM1,000 for dental braces.
There is no pre-consultation service and the bogus doctors will not be able to tell if their “patient” was suitable for the procedure.
Many who needed their tooth extracted would also seek their RM20-per-tooth service.
The latest case of a bogus dentist being hauled to court was on Sept 6, when a 21-year-old woman was fined RM25,000 by the Sessions Court for providing orthodontic services without a valid licence from the Health Ministry.
She and the other bogus dentists arrested were charged under Section 27 of the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 (Act 586), which is punishable under subparagraph 5(1)(a)(i) of the same Act.
If convicted, the penalty is a fine not exceeding RM300,000 or a jail-term of not more than six years, or both.
Dr Noor Hisham said the public and private hospitals, as well as clinics had attended to numerous cases where dentists had to work to minimise the damage done by the fraudulent dentists.
Malaysia Association of Orthodontists president Dr Noraini Alwi said bogus dentists had been offering their services for some time now, but that it had become more rampant as more had joined the illicit trade.
They, she said, were even offering competitive packages and using social media to market their services.
“Our association has identified quite a number of them based on tip-offs by victims to our association members.
“This year alone, we have lodged 12 complaints and the victims are customers of our members.
“Based on our investigations, these bogus dentists are even carrying out risky procedures.
“They practically have zero knowledge on dentistry, not even about sterilisation,” she said.
A dentist told the NST: “I have encountered a case in my clinic where the gum of a teenager was severely infected after having her braces fixed several weeks ago by a bogus dentist she got to know from the Internet.
“She came to see me as she could no longer locate the bogus dentist.
“Go to a certified practitioner if you want to put braces on. You wouldn’t want to have hazardous materials in your mouth like lead or mercury,” he said.
NST engaged a bogus dentist on the pretext of having a set of dental braces fixed.
The price quoted was RM750 for the upper jaw. A deposit of RM100 must first be banked into her account, following which the time and place will be set.
The NST also noted the presence of foreign pseudo-dentists, operating along five-foot pathways, although they were not equipped with complex dental apparatuses.
They can be found, among others, in Jalan Wong Ah Fook, Johor Baru.
One of them, known as Wong, who also sells dentures, said he sourced his ready-made supply from China, which is his home country.