For the past four days I have been suffering from an increasingly painful wisdom tooth ... Ibuprofen was having a marginal effect, and at times none at all.
Finally, after two sleepless nights, I decided that a visit to the dentist was compulsory.
Three local dentists had no availability, (on Tuesday), one suggested returning on Thursday morning, and they 'might' fit me in.
Google search suggested another dentist 7 kms away ... drove out, and managed to get an appointment for 17.45.
Returning .... very modern set up, one lady dentist with no dental nurse in attendance ... consultation, had a good look around and carried out a variety of tests ... then said she would do a temporary emergency procedure, but, upon return to UK I'd ned to have the wisdom tooth extracted.
Injections, didn't even know I'd had them ... an enormous amount of tooth cut out, a temporary filling built in .... all done in half an hour ... fast, efficient ...
Cost ....
23 euros!
Next time I need dental work, I'm flying out from UK and visiting a French dentist!
Very, very impressive!
Not a whisper of pain since.
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A number of years ago OH broke a tooth at breakfast on a campsite in St Remy de Provence. Went to reception, who rang a dentist in the town, and he was given an appointment for the same morning. Walked in from the campsite, it was a very old building, and we had to go upstairs. OH was seen in no time, and was sorted out. According to OH, the building belied the very modern equipment in there; he had an x-ray done with some very high-tech equipment (OH worked on scanners and x-ray equipment in hospitals during his working life, so knew what he was looking at). I can't remember what the exact cost was now, but it was aound the 20 Euros, and that included the x-ray, and we were equally suprised at the low cost. He did of course have to show his EHIC card.
Several years ago my husband had a crown that fell out while we were in France and we had a similar very positive experience in Bidart. We dropped in on spec to the nearby dentist who was listed in the campsite information leaflet who told us to take a seat and if we didn’t mind waiting, she would fit us in as soon as she could. About half an hour later my husband was called in and sorted out. She spoke quite good English and was very friendly and helpful. At the end, we went to pay but she asked if we had a ehic card which we did, so she didn’t charge us anything.
It really makes you wonder about what is going on in this country. My sister in law had toothache for several week and couldn’t find a dentist, even going through the emergency 111 service, no one would see her. Eventually after persistently phoning the 111 emergency contact over several day, she finally got an appointment and the toothache is gone but she now has the problem of finding a permanent nhs dentist as her pervious one removed her from their books as she hadn’t attended in 2 years. When she pointed out that they were refusing to do checkups during covid, which is why she hadn’t been for 2 years, it didn’t make any difference but they offered to take her on as a private patient. As someone living on the state pension, this is ridiculous and she has now got herself on the waiting list for a couple of local nhs dentists but it is a very long waiting list and I doubt she will ever reach the top.
We drive out quite regularly to Germany to see my son and my German Daughter in Law . On one occasion on leaving home , the ominous throb throb throb of toothache started.
I thought it will soon pass, but no it got worse so we called into a Tesco store and purchased ibuprofen and paracetamol extra which seemed to cure it for a while, but as the drugs wore off the old throbbing came back.
Eventually I was eating pills like sweets and my Daughter In Law rang a local emergency dentist, she came in with me as the dentist couldn’t speak any English and soon he was giving me the jab and as someone who doesn’t have injections for fillings the relief was sensational !
I was seen very quickly and diagnosed with Gingivitis and like above there was no charge.
Unfortunately for me this did not resolve the issue and I had to book an emergency appointment with my dentist back here. She diagnosed a cracked tooth and wait for it…. Extracted just half the tooth as she didn’t have time to remove the whole thing … What The Bleep !!! ?
I had to book a second appointment for two weeks later to have the other half removed ( literally a 3 minute job ) and of course a second lot of fees ! I’m afraid it’s part of the Bent and Corrupt UK which is definitely getting worse.
My Wife incidentally quit this practice and went private and whilst it is expensive compared to the NHS the service was exemplary but remember .. When you go to a NHS dentist you pay part of the fee the Government make up the rest, the service should be just same but sadly it is woefully lacking.
My dentist practice is a NHS BUPA practice and all around in there are posters advertising their products and promoting the joys of having their private dentist service Mmmmm …If you think for one moment I would pay them for the service they provide under the NHS they have another thing coming !
I agree that dentists abroad totally shame our NHS ones.
Post last edited on 21/07/2022 08:46:25
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Similar in Spain years ago. OH had an aching tooth. Went to tourist info, given name and address of a dentist, went there and he was seen straight away. "es kaput" was the verdict. Tooth out, cost EUR 40. Added bonus for OH, they were all pretty young ladies
We've also had very positive experiences with French dentists - OH at Argeles (where the dentist actually visited the campsite!!!), in Millau, and me recently near our French house in the Hautes Corbieres at the local Maison de Sante. None had a dental nurse (doesn't seem to be the thing). Each time the treatment was professional and cheap - in the case of Millau it was free of charge, as the dentist just needed to file a sharp edge off a tooth and replaced a fallen off crown! He just waved my partner away, basically saying 'it's not worth the paperwork'!
We have to pay privately here at home - the dental practice is owned by a large commercial company and employs receptionists, dental nurses and hygienists as well as professionals. . The costs add up
In France we were treated by a dentist who worked alone without all that staff - saw us at 7 pm with still a queue in his waiting room. He did his own X rays without hiding behind a screen, diagnosed an abscess, wrote a prescription for antibiotics and pain killers, said you need root canal work when you get home, took phone calls, made his own appointments and wrote us a much smaller bill at the end.
A one man business.
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: Dentistry in France
via mobile 20/7/2022 at 10:42pm
