Cos of overpopulation and vacancies reserved for those who could afford to pay exorbitant private rates!
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Why the long wait for dental care at govt clinics?
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->WHY does it take so long to receive specialist dental treatment at government clinics?
The process starts with trying to make an appointment for a referral letter from a dental clinic, usually located within a polyclinic. When I called last month, the earliest date I was given was next February - four months away.
The next step can be interminable too. Once you get the referral letter, be prepared to wait for at least three to four months for an appointment with the specialist at the National Dental Centre. The actual treatment, such as making dentures, for example, can take another six months.
In my mother's aborted attempt, we tried to shorten the wait when she tried her luck by waiting at the clinic the entire day for an untaken slot. She was lucky as a scheduled patient did not turn up and it took her only a full day's wait to obtain a referral to the specialist.
But when we subsequently discovered how long it would take for my mother to see the specialist and then have her dentures fitted - almost a year in all - we gave up, and I paid private rates for her treatment at the National Dental Centre.
=> That's the whole intention!
The result: my mother had new dentures within a month.
I worry now about myself. When I grow old, I may not be able to afford to pay private rates. I am single and my CPF-linked medical savings do not cover most dental treatments.
Singaporeans who need subsidised dental care may also be unable to receive treatment in time. What if I had a toothache, or a gum infection? Must I wait for a year for treatment, or as in my mother's case for gum infection, some six months? What will be left to treat?
=> Dead body good for cremation?
Paying private rates does not guarantee earlier treatment either. Last month, I made and confirmed an appointment with the National Dental Centre for Nov 19, only to receive a letter on Monday changing the appointment to almost a month later, on Christmas Eve. Reason: the dentist would be unavailable for my original appointment.
Ho Suit Keng (Ms)
<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>Why the long wait for dental care at govt clinics?
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->WHY does it take so long to receive specialist dental treatment at government clinics?
The process starts with trying to make an appointment for a referral letter from a dental clinic, usually located within a polyclinic. When I called last month, the earliest date I was given was next February - four months away.
The next step can be interminable too. Once you get the referral letter, be prepared to wait for at least three to four months for an appointment with the specialist at the National Dental Centre. The actual treatment, such as making dentures, for example, can take another six months.
In my mother's aborted attempt, we tried to shorten the wait when she tried her luck by waiting at the clinic the entire day for an untaken slot. She was lucky as a scheduled patient did not turn up and it took her only a full day's wait to obtain a referral to the specialist.
But when we subsequently discovered how long it would take for my mother to see the specialist and then have her dentures fitted - almost a year in all - we gave up, and I paid private rates for her treatment at the National Dental Centre.
=> That's the whole intention!
The result: my mother had new dentures within a month.
I worry now about myself. When I grow old, I may not be able to afford to pay private rates. I am single and my CPF-linked medical savings do not cover most dental treatments.
Singaporeans who need subsidised dental care may also be unable to receive treatment in time. What if I had a toothache, or a gum infection? Must I wait for a year for treatment, or as in my mother's case for gum infection, some six months? What will be left to treat?
=> Dead body good for cremation?
Paying private rates does not guarantee earlier treatment either. Last month, I made and confirmed an appointment with the National Dental Centre for Nov 19, only to receive a letter on Monday changing the appointment to almost a month later, on Christmas Eve. Reason: the dentist would be unavailable for my original appointment.
Ho Suit Keng (Ms)
