Rachel's First Dental Checkup.

Rachel's first dental checkup was long overdue. I had wanted to bring her to the dentist around 3 but I sort of forgot about this since we were trying to save money for rental which had doubled since then and many others.

I started to brush her teeth even when the first one appeared using the First Baby toothpaste and tooth brush gadget.(retails around $11 then). As a toddler she was quite co-operative when it comes to cleaning the teeth. However, from 4 she starts to resent the brushing when I tried to floss, some blood did appear and I gave up flossing. Her favourite toothpaste is the Komodo Strawberry flavoured and occasionally we use the electric toothbrush to remove the plaque. It works!

I've called several dental clinics but many refused to attend to a 4 year old. Perhaps they could forsee the screaming and coaxing and how the dentist can make more $ if they attend to older children and adults. Lunch time whitening at $1200 payable by credit card instalment. Why not??

My sister in law highly recommended SmileFocus at Camden since they have pediatric dentist and the environment was highly conducive for young kids. There is this room with Wifi and Nintendo and other baby toys and even a small LCD showing Barney on the dentist's high tech and comfy chair. While the place was wonderful the rates are not so kind to the pocket of a middle income family. Camden afterall is in Orchard and serves mainly the well-off and the expats. Even the clinic was managed by several Ang Mo women.

Rachel's first check up cum x-ray was almost $250. A shocking 8 cavities were detected and I was quoted $175/ cavity and should the kid be uncooperative, the dentist said they will do a GA and get all the cavities fixed. I almost fainted at the quoted rate and the suggested "operation". My child, 5 general anesthetic for fixing cavities????? Shudders!!!

After discussing with Yan, I decided to trust God for a more affordable alternative.

Thank God, Raffles Hospital where Rachel was born in 2005 now boast of a dentist, though newly recuited, had much experience with young children overseas, even though she was not pediatrically certified. And wow, though there was no toy room and TV on the dentist chair, the young dental surgeon was able to fix 1/6 of Rachel's cavities. She was gentle and encouraging and even very polite to her assistant unlike the other dentist. Both had Filippino assistants now being the norm.

The price. $30 for consultation and a mere $60 for a cavity. I am so relieved that we are now paying good money for good service. In fact, I am so looking forward to the next appointment where a sedative will be given to make rachel drowsy, verus a GA, and hopefully all the remaining 5 cavities be fixed. The other 2 were too tiny for immediate attention and by the time they become serious if they do, its about time she have new permanent teeth.

I am so tempted to compare the 2 dentist, both women, for comparison sake.
SF dentist: You shouldn't use children's toothpaste, low floride levels and fruit flavours actually do nothing to protect teeth. Use pea size of adult toothpaste for sensitive teeth instead. (Which i did and rachel cried and yelled twice)

RH dentist: It's ok. most important is regular brushing. Adult toothpaste is too strong and minty for kids.

SF dentist: I need you, mummy to ban or control all the sweets intake. No sugared drinks, Ribena, fizzy drinks, cultured milk all contain too much sugar. Just give her milk and water bet meals. Sweets are only for parties or sundays.

RH dentist: The important thing is to reduce time sugar is in contact with teeth. Everything you eat has suger. Best have snacks after meals and brush/rinse afterwards.

Finally, I expressed my frustration that the pediatrician was the first to introduce sweets to my child. The RH dentist was equally pissed. "Can't they give a carrot or a celery!!!" "They always give sweets and even the church gives so much sweets on Sunday too!" She even said she will write to the press on day on this!!! How thoughtful and pro-active. Pray she will because what I wrote was not published I think.

Yes!!!! Most pediatric clinics have huge bottles of sweets and when Aerin, Rachel's cousin saw a doctor recently, she was given a whole bottle of gummies!!! Coincidentally, the pediatrician that gave my angel her first sweet happened to be the same one who referred her friend the pediatric dentist to my sister in law and then to me. It seemed like giving sweets to toddlers also means providing jobs to pediatric dentistry profession. How contradictory!!!

Another contradiction. If children are encouraged to have their first dental checkup by 1-2 why is it that most dental clinics refuse to attend to kids below 6, leaving the parents with little or no choice but to spend hard earned money at expensive specialist clinics with pediatric certified dentists??????? Are all these specialists necessary?????