Exorbitant tariff at dental clinics causes heartburn

Dental care is becoming increasingly difficult to afford for the country’s expatriates at the country’s private clinics.

By Ramesh Mathew/Staff ReporterEven with the arrival of a large number of dentists and dental clinics in the country, especially in the past couple of years, the fees charged by almost all of them is giving sleepless nights to patients.However, while the country’s residents complain about the exorbitant rates charged by many dentists - in particular those claiming to be operating centres with “advanced” facilities - there seems to be little hope that any of them will reduce the charges. This is mainly owing to the absence of a system that guides the price line in medical care.Dentists charging hefty sums attribute the practice to their huge overheads, mainly rent and staff salaries. But others feel it is a “lame excuse”. “Some of them have hired buildings on long lease and are more or less spared any annual hike in the rent. They should have no excuse for charging such heavy fees from their customers,” said a long-time Doha resident.   “It is high time the health authorities intervene to control the astonishingly high rates being charged by some of the clinics,” pleaded a resident in a letter to the editor of a newspaper, which was published recently.Many residents, who have no insurance cover, feel seeking dental treatment at most of the local clinics has become next to impossible these days. “In fact, many insurance companies do not give coverage for dental care,” said an expatriate.Inquiries made by Gulf Times found out in no uncertain terms that except for a few dental clinics, including one in Musheireb with a network of branches across GCC states, most charge exorbitant rates for even basic jobs such as filling, extraction and cleaning of teeth.As a result, most ordinary expatriates, including parents of children in local schools, avoid going to dentists unless the problem requires urgent attention. “Seeking dental care for children at the local clinics seems to be more expensive than many other dental issues,” said a parent, who recalled how a doctor at a polyclinic levied a hefty fee despite being unable to treat a puss growth in his three-year-old son’s teeth root. “Fortunately, we were leaving for our country in a couple of days. This saved us from spending more money,” said the parent, who got the job done in his hometown in India.Similarly, for a routine 20-minute dental procedure, a city dental clinic was accused of charging as much as QR550 from a patient a few months ago.Another Doha resident recalled that about four years ago, a polyclinic charged her as much as QR500 to get a crowning done on one of her discoloured teeth. The woman said though she had four more such teeth, she got the job done only during the next vacation in her home country.These are just a handful of cases of dental clinics charging hefty sums that have come to light. Residents say they have come across many more instances of dental care burning a hole in one’s pocket.While residents feel there is no over-supply of dentists in the local market, unlike the situation in medical polyclinics, the lack of patronage from customers has forced at least some of them to either wind up their establishments or find greener pastures elsewhere.The inquiries also revealed that a better understanding of the market situation had driven some of them to jobs that had nothing to do with their professions, including in the hospitality sector.Along with urgent governmental intervention to check the tariff at dental clinics, the residents have also sought a cap on the cost of basic dental treatment such as cleaning, filling and extraction.