National 6 (Spotlight Weekly)

Teething Problems

Quirky quacks dent the reputation of professionals

By AKSHAY SHARMA

A visit to the dentist comes with a very heavy price tag. Worse, sometimes you're not sure whether the gentleman with the drill is even trained to do what he is about to do. Some people who picked up the skills of the trade through experience have opened clinics, giving a bad name to the entire fraternity of dentists.

Nepal Dental Association (NDA) has decided to contain the problem. It is set to form a body to monitor such unscrupulous activities. "We are formulating a National Oral Health Policy which will decide on the priority of diseases. This policy will focus on the problem from the grass-roots level," says Dr. Praveen Mishra, president of the NDA, who is also vice-president of the South Asian Dental Association Federation.

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"Manpower used to be a constraint. To tackle the problem, the government, NGOs and INGOs will have to work together. This policy will see to it that patients in rural areas get basic oral health service."

If formulated, this will be a breakthrough in South Asia. "Pain should be elieved immediately and you know how painful a toothache can be," Dr. Mishra adds.

"Usually when such establishments are registered, Nepal Medical Council (NMC) decides whether the people are qualified. But it is the government that gives the go-ahead to open a clinic. The NMC cannot punish these establishments, although we have the authority to recommend to the CDO or the Home Ministry that a quack doctor to be punished," says Dr. Bijay Kumar Sharma, a senior member of the NMC.

There is a bigger problem in the Terai where even drug store owners pretend to be doctors and prescribe medicines - often the wrong ones. "There is no clear government provision on where to register a clinic. There is no assessment of the environment required for patients or the required number of beds. Even seemingly small things like toilet facilities should be made clear before opening a clinic," he says.

"Many of these people do not have the basic knowledge, forget about adequate education," Dr. Mishra admits. "But the problem is beyond our jurisdiction. The NMC is responsible for punishing someone if he or she is a doctor. But these people are not even doctors. It is something the government should look into."

"A person who had once worked at Bir Hospital opened his own clinic later. One day a patient walked in and he agreed to perform a "root canal" for a cheaper rate than a doctor would have charged. Since he botched the procedure, the patient had to go to a dentist to correct it," Dr. Mishra says.

A lot of people think that going to a trained doctor costs more. In fact, establishment run by quacks are not cheap. "What we are basically trying to do is create public awareness. We have already completed all the technicalities to set up a new body, Nepal Dental Council (NDC) to monitor such things. This had been put in parliament but, unfortunately, it was dissolved," Dr. Mishra adds. "The act will be for the people of Nepal and we will see to it that justice is done."

"Dentists spend so much money on their studies and want to recover that as quickly as possible. But this rush to earn will only harm the dentist. It is high time the NMC did something," Dr. Mishra added.

"People without adequate training will not even know that they are transmitting diseases by not sterilizing their equipment. We are conducting training camps all across the country to create awareness," he adds.

But times are slowly changing. "Now there are three dental colleges in the country, which is bridging the manpower gap. Dental surgeons should seek the respect of society and be prepared to go to the districts," Dr. Mishra says.