The Munich Dental Clinic

macroWORLD Investor - 13.10.2006

Dental tourism goes five star in Germany

NO DOUBT - many a commuter stuck in Dublin's gridlocked traffic would wish they were thousands of miles away. And when they start seeing advertisements for a German dental clinic on the side of buses, they won't be dreaming.

The Munich Dental Clinic has taken out adverts on Dublin Bus vehicles advertising all-inclusive packages to Irish patients willing to travel to Germany for an appointment. The package includes dental work, flights and lodging. The 'dental tourists' will even be picked up at the airport by a Porsche or Rolls Royce.Despite the luxurious package on offer, the director of the clinic said that patients would actually save money compared to Ireland's rip-off prices.

Dr Thomas Koty, clinic director, said if someone is getting a large amount work done they could save themselves as much as 50 per cent off Irish dental fees. He said most international patients usually stay for a week and may need follow-up visits, so it is an ideal opportunity to take in the sights of another city while getting work done. Although Irish patients have for a long time gone to the North to avail of lower prices there, the availability of cheap flights has made countries like Hungary and Poland equally viable.

Last December, a Competition Authority report highlighted lack of competitiveness in the Irish dental industry and recommended urgent radical changes in the sector. The Dental Council prohibits Irish dentists from advertising or offering discounts to attract customers. However, the Munich Dental Clinic is not prohibited by these rules. Its prices include € 550 to € 590 for a full ceramic/porcelain crown, Eur 600 to € 850 for an implant and € 1,500 to € 1,980 for a threepoint bridge.

The clinic said that these prices could be even further reduced if the patient is getting a lot of work done. The clinic will run the advertisements for around six weeks and even provide a freephone number for enquiries. Dr Koty said he was advertising here because the clinic has already treated a number of patients from this country who said German prices were cheaper.

And he is not the first to specifically target the Irish market. Websites such as www.dentaltours.ie, www.kreativdent.ie and www.access-smile.ie all take bookings from those who want to travel to Hungary to get work done at considerably cheaper prices.

Ciara Murphy, chief executive of the Irish Dental Association, defended Irish dentists, and stressed that people generally travel abroad for 'non routine' work. She said that it was important that patients travelling abroad get a 'like for like' treatment plan using the same quality of materials. She added that patients would find Irish dentists' prices were similar to those in other countries compared like for like.

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