Many unlicensed dental clinics in Ho Chi Minh City, especially in District 7 and Nha Be District, have been operated by those who pose as dentists, according to a Tuoi Tre investigation. During their probe, the newspaper’s correspondents have discovered that four dental clinics on Huynh Tan Phat Street, District 7, have been run by members of the same family. Self-proclaimed dentist Do Quang Thuan is in charge of two clinics with the same name ‘Nam Saigon’ (Saigon South) – one in District 7’s Tan Thuan Dong Ward and the other in Nha Be District. His wife, “dentist” Tam is managing Hoang Bao clinic in Nha Be, and Do Quang Vinh, Thuan’s younger brother, is heading Phu Xuan clinic in District 7. On March 31, Tuoi Tre witnessed “Dr.” Thuan talking by phone, asking a man to come to Nam Saigon dental clinic for examination. When the man came, Thuan checked his teeth and looked at an X-ray image of tooth No. 8, without wearing a blouse or mask. Thuan then told the man that he should have the tooth pulled out as it was too inclined to cure. He also said the service charge was VND1.5 million (US$71). A source told Tuoi Tre that Thuan is not a dentist and he only took a short-term course for physicians at the Ho Chi Minh City Medicine and Pharmacy University. Similarly, both Thuan’s wife and younger brother are not dentists at all. On March 26 at Phu Xuan dental clinic, Tuoi Tre correspondents witnessed “dentist” Vinh, in a blouse but without putting on any gauze mask, examining a woman. Vinh then told the woman that a dental implant or a dental bridge had to be performed on her. He said that a dental implant normally took a lot of time and cost between $800 and $1,000, while a dental bridge was less expensive and could be done more rapidly. During the talk with the woman, Vinh tried to persuade her to opt for a dental bridge rather than a dental implant, which has to be done by a highly skilled dentist. However, the woman eventually said she preferred a dental implant, and Vinh responded, “It’s up to you. I can do it for you.” On March 31, Tuoi Tre reporters saw Thuan’s wife, Tam, gave instructions to a customer on how an artificial tooth could be created. “I am a consulting dentist. Another dentist here will do it for you,” Tam told her customer, adding that she once studied at the HCMC Medicine and Pharmacy University.Dentist assistants “upgrade” themselvesTuoi Tre has met a number of assistants to dentists who pretend to be dentists to offer dental services to customers. One of them is Tran Cao Cuong, a man of southern Kien Giang Province, who is running Nha Viet dental clinic on Huynh Tan Phat Street, District 7. Cuong boastfully told the newspaper’s correspondents that he had a group of odonto-stomatologists who could provide various dental services, including dental implants and periodontal disease treatment. In fact, only Cuong works as a “dentist” at the clinic. Another sham dentist is Trinh Truc Khiem, a native of south-central Binh Dinh Province, who is managing two Viet-Han Style clinics on Huynh Tan Phat Street – one of the facilities is in Tan Thuan Dong Ward and the other in Tan Phu Ward of the same district.

Khiem was previously an assistant to a dentist at a clinic in Go Vap District.  On March 27, after examining a customer, Khiem said, “In my experience, I advise you to have a dental bridge. You can be assured of the best service and costs. I will personally do it for you.”Unlicensed Of all the above-mentioned dental clinics, only the Phu Xuan clinic (owned by Vinh) and the two Viet Han Style clinics (owned by Khiem) are licensed by the HCMC Health Department, but the names in the respective licenses are different: dentists Nguyen Dinh Viet (for Phu Xuan) and Nguyen Thi My Dieu (for Viet Han Style). In addition, Vinh and Khiem are not on the list of dentists at their clinics. The health department has confirmed to Tuoi Tre that self-proclaimed dentists Tran Cao Cuong, Trinh Truc Khiem, Do Quang Vinh, Do Quang Thuan have yet to obtain practitioners’ certificates.Violations to be strictly punished The HCMC Health Department has requested that all its units in districts where unlicensed dental clinics have been exposed by Tuoi Tre submit their reports, Bui Minh Trang, chief inspector of the department, told the newspaper. A senior official at the District 7 Health Office also said the agency will inspect and strictly punish all unauthorized dental clinics that use sham dentists. Phu Xuan dental clinic was once fined for operating without a license, the official added. Phung Van Tin, deputy head of the Nha Be District Health Office, revealed that a team of health officials arrived on April 14 at Nu Cuoi Viet dental clinic, one of the unlicensed facilities in the district, for an inspection, but it had shut down beforehand.

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