Letters for December 8, 2006

Dental tourism to China medically safe

Re: Canadians biting into dental tourism, Nov. 24

I was encouraged to see the recent story in Centretown News which should help was encouraged to see the recent story in Centretown News which should help readers to better appreciate the benefits of dental tourism, as made possible by services such as inciDENTAL Tourist.

However, it was unfortunate that your writer chose to inject a number of unsubstantiated claims concerning alleged risks associated with seeking dental treatment abroad.

While it may be true that in some countries professional standards are below those in Canada, my experience in Jing, China was nothing short of excellent, as the article attests, required only about a quarter of the costs I would have paid for the same quality of dental treatment in Canada.

It is logical to assume that the professional dental community here in Canada and in other western countries such as the U.K. would be threatened by, and therefore critical of, the dental tourism concept.

It represents a serious competitive threat to the inflated costs they currently charge for most dental procedures.

The fact remains that dental tourism represents a viable, cost effective, safe and increasingly popular option for many people.

It is regrettable that your writer did not take the time to check his facts with me before submitting his article. I would have been happy to address the misconceptions and critical points that appeared in his text.

Nonetheless, you have done your reader a service in presenting some of the important reasons why they should seriously consider becoming inciDENTAL Tourists, accessing the dental service they require while enjoying substantial savings.

David McConnell,

Sherwood Drive