Questions to ask the Dentist in Hungary
First and foremost you must ratify any qualifications and accreditations of the dentist and his or her clinic. The other questions are really only to ensure your own peace of mind, as the decision to have this treatment done in Hungary is yours and yours alone. Try to use these suggestions for questions as a framework to building as complete a picture of the dentist, clinic and treatment as possible before committing. Many Hungarian dental practices will speak English, but on the off-chance that they do not, you may need to communicate via your medical tourism provider or an interpreter you have hired separately.
Questions to ask a Dentist in Hungary:
- Who is my dentist? What qualifications does the dentist have? (here you are looking for a certificate from the Ministry of Health as a bare minimum, but there may be other qualifications which are listed that you can ratify)
- What codes of conduct does the dentist follow? (the answer must additionally include the EU regulations)
- Is the dentist registered with the Hungarian Medical Chamber (HMC) as part of the dental section? If not, why not? (you may well need to interpret this answer with the help of your UK dentist, as any practising dentist should only need to register with the Ministry of Health, and a lack of HMC registration is not necessarily an ominous sign)
- Has your practice been accredited by any standards boards? Does it follow ISO 9001? (you may have to discover where to ratify any answer yourself)
- Will the dentist and the rest of the team who are performing this procedure speak English? If not, do you provide an interpreter? (if not you may have to arrange one for yourself, or find one via the medical tourism provider)
- How many times have you carried out this procedure? What is the success rate, and what are the possibilities of infection or complications? (it may be wise to contrast these statistics with ones you can get from your UK dentist, but do not be shocked if the Hungarian dentist offers an exceptionally high success rate)
- What can I expect in the way of post-operative care? What are the rates of post-operative infection? (it is particularly important that you find out this if you are having dental implants in Hungary)
- How long should I remain in Hungary for after the treatment? What happens if I return home and experience complications? Will you establish contact with my UK dentist? (make sure you work out a plan of action, between the Hungarian and UK dentist)
- What check-ups will I need to arrange with my UK dentist once I do return home?
- What sensations am I likely to feel after the treatment? How long will these effects last for?
- What are the side-effects? What are the risks? How likely are these to occur? Has this clinic ever had to treat any patient suffering side-effects after a dental implant treatment here?
- Do you offer immediate function/loading for dental implants?
- When will I need to come back for my second treatment? (if you are seeking dental implants and they specify a time less than 6 months, you must interrogate them about the success rate again, and take extensive notes that you can relate to your UK dentist; similarly you should ask for as much information about their immediate loading success and procedure as possible)
- How much will the treatment cost? Does that include the cost of dentures?
- If I require additional treatment for any reason, what will the cost be and who will pay?
- How do I make sure communication is maintained between me and the practice and dentist?
- Is there any dental insurance?
- What systems do you have in place should I not be satisfied with my treatment?
- When will I be able to notice the results after treatment?
Remember you can always talk to your UK dentist about what you have found out, and it is a good idea to do so, especially if there is anything you are not entirely clear about. Importantly if you have any suspicion that the clinic or dentist is unwilling to part with all the information you ask for, it is crucial that you do relate this to your UK dentist, as it could potentially be dangerous, though it may prove to be nothing of concern. Otherwise you should ask as many questions as you like until you are satisfied with the answers and the overall picture you have created of the clinic. You will then be able to collate these answers with your own research and any discussions you have had with your UK dentist, and then you should be in a position to make a decision on whether or not to seek dental treatment in Hungary.
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