http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/opinion/editorial-unqualified-dentists-put-bite-on-patients/505618 Editorial: Unqualified Dentists Put Bite on Patients March 19, 2012
illions of Indonesians, especially those from lower-income households, visit “local dentists” whenever they need some dental care. The problem is the vast number of these “local dentists” are neither qualified nor allowed to offer such services. The Ministry of Health has said that these local technicians are only allowed to make false teeth, but they perform serious dental work such as root canals, filling cavities and even fitting braces. Often these untrained workers cause more harm than good and, in some cases, do irreparable damage to their patients. The proliferation of such operators is causing concern within the ministry, which is helpless to act under current laws. The power to revoke licenses and close down these unlicensed dentists lies with local health authorities, who it seems are either ignorant or reluctant to act. Such situations cannot be allowed to continue in the interest of the public and to protect the reputation of trained and bona fide dentists. The ministry must work with local health officers to ensure that unlicensed dentists are not allowed to offer dental care. Only well-trained and qualified dentists should be allowed to operate dental clinics. One challenge is the lack of qualified dentists to serve the entire population, especially in more remote and underdeveloped areas of the country. According to the Indonesian Dentists Association (PDGI), there are only 22,000 dentists serving a population of 240 million. One way to encourage more Indonesians to study dentistry is by increasing their economic well-being. As noted by Zaurarini Anggraini, the chairwoman of the PDGI, if the government includes dental care treatment under the national health insurance scheme, more people will be able to afford proper dental care, thus increasing the demand for qualified dentists. It is critical that the government regulate and control public health services to ensure the highest levels of service and to protect the citizens from falling prey to unqualified practitioners. This also applies to the hundreds of unlicensed clinics that offer procedures to improve facial features. The unsuspecting patient hoping to look better often ends up with botched procedures that are not only painful but also destructive. Such practices cannot be allowed to continue [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
