Got a toothache? Bear it till you go on leave

As the dentist visit for regular checkup is not included in health insurance packages and many UAE residents have an already low incentive to take preventive oral care, a culture of awareness about the necessity of regular dentist visits might be unlikely to evolve in the UAE. 

Not many people might be able to stand the pain of a cavity, or root inflammation. But in the UAE residents rather grin and bear it for as long as they can.

Taking preventive action in the form of paying regular visits of about twice a year to the dentist will pay of, will most dentists tell you when you are one of his or her customers only coming in when the problem is already there, as treatment of any problem is often more complicated, more painful and more expensive than when discovered and identified on time.

“I tell my clients all the time that it is necessary for them to have these checkups twice a year,” says Dr. Majd Suliman, another Dubai-based dentist.  However, it is up to the customer and although some do really take good care, many others do not, the dentists claim.

“I would like to visit the dentist more regularly,” says George Basalo (28) from Syria. “But it is very expensive and not covered by my health insurance.”

Like George Basalo, many people tend to visit the dentist during their annual trip to their home country, where the checkup is cheaper. “I do not even pay when I am in Syria. My sister is a dentist and she checks my teeth every time I come there. I would never pay the amount that dentists in the UAE ask for a regular checkup,” says Eyad Mahmoud (23), another Syrian.

Ahad Khalid visited the dentist one day before. “A checkup” he says, which he does every now and then. But he is aware of the problem, as he worked for years in the health insurance sector. “I am certain that people are reluctant to go to the dentist because it is not covered by the health insurance,” he says.

Other people do away with the idea of preventive action all together. “It is girls’ talk,” says an Emirati young man, who prefers to remain anonymous. “I do not believe in the benefits of such action. My teeth are fine.”

Chinese Sophie Zou (23) reckons to last have gone to a dentist when she was a child. “I never think about going. It is not part of my culture and it is not my habit.”

By several parties involved it is acknowledged that a lack of awareness plays a role in the reluctance of people to visit the dentist regularly.

“We organise awareness programs at public schools, and set up schedules for children to go to the dentist for regular checkups,” says Dr. Aisha Sultan Al Suwaidi, director of the Dental Service of the Ministry of Health.  But these programs end with 7th grade and after that responsibility is for the parent and young adults.

Last week a campaign was launched by Oral B and Crest in cooperation with the Ajman University of Science and Technology, offering free dental checkups for the coming year to UAE residents. With the campaign they hope to raise the awareness that oral care is has an important impact on overall well-being and encourage people to regularly visit the dentist.

When asked whether people would visit the dentist when the checkup was free of charge, most people replied positively, although some people said they would never go.

“I am scared of the dentist,” says a young Emirati, who refrained from identifying himself.