florabundi

Hi ~ wondered if anyone can advise please. My daughter has been told she will require braces on her teeth within the nxt 12 months and we are hoping to be in NZ soon. Is this dental treatment subsidised for kids (she is 13) or do I need to start saving?! Thanks again

Genesis

You need to start saving. Orthodontics alas are not cheap and dentists in Nz do not know what the word 'discount' means. Braces are one of the most expensive things.

florabundi

Oh well! Thanks for the info, will start saving!!

4pommes

When I looked into it last year I was quoted about £3000!!!

florabundi

OK ~ that's scary! Going to see if the dentist can get started here asap surely it will be a bit cheaper if some of the work is already in progress. Some things like the nhs dental treatment for kids are under appreciated!
Cheers flora

4pommes

When i looked into it I was told by other forum members that it is hard to find good orthodontists in NZ...there is not the choice we have here, others say that dentistry in NZ is superior.

get as much done as you can here then ask questions when you get there....


My original thread is http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...ghlight=braces

Am Loolah

When we told my 12 year old's orthodontist in the UK that we were moving to NZ she said she wouldn't put the braces on. So I went back and said change of plan, we're not going!!! So she arrived here with the braces fitted from the UK.

My 12 year old son had an appointment last week as he will need them and for 2 years of treatment, start to finish, $6,000. But we knew this before we moved.

Our orthodontist here is wonderful. He's English ...

P18PPS

my daughter WILL be going to Dunedin to train as a dentist - she is currently 6.

Jan n Neil

just to give you an idea i had 2 fillings and 2 visits to the hygenist and it was just over 1200 bux and they made a mistake and undercharged me by 200 apparently theiving tossers

florabundi

This dentist business just gets better and better. I also am going to encourage the children to train as dentists! There must be a lot of people in NZ who cannot afford the dental treatment they need/would prefer. With a kind wind hopefully my second child (aged 5) will be blessed with straight teeth

pixi-dust

Jan n Neil
Your treatment does seem very expensive and I know that if you came to Kaitaia ( haha) you would have paid a lot less , but I have no idea how large the fillings were etc.
However, the dentist didn't cause the pain, they're trying to get rid of the pain. If someone's not happy with the price quoted ( and you should always be told up front how much it'll cost) then shop around and get quotes.

If 'one' went to the doctor with a tummy ache and the doctor made it better and then charged you would they be a tosser?

Dentists are not subsidised here at all - nothing from the government. Everything that goes into running a surgery is paid for by the dentist. And let's face it, this IS surgery we're talking about.

I wouldn't expect someone not in the 'dentistry business' to have the slightest idea how much dental equipment, instruments, dental chair, filling materials and everything else that's required to run a decent dental practice cost, however, I do, I know exactly how much it costs and it runs into thousands per week. (less if your premises are paid off and the loan to buy everything in the first place is paid off - Roll on 9 years! )

Dentists don't have a DHB behind them.

It's not like the UK, there's no national health.

Orthodontics are certainly expensive here, but there are good ones out there. Ask around.
It is really nice to hear that the vast majority of people think that the standard of dentistry is very good. It is. It's a terrible shame that it is so expensive. If you're not eligible for WINZ by just a wee bit I have no idea how people pay for it. We let people pay it off, but it's amazing how many 'forget' after a couple of months. Or how long it takes to pay it off at $20 a month!!

But yeah, say occasionally at the end of the week the dentist takes home less than minimum wage cos he has to pay his staff, his loans to set up the business, all his overheads and he has bad debts that week who got the treatment then said 'I have no money to pay' (even though they were told how much it would be before hand and said fine. Happens a lot more than you would think! )- then I say, yeah, what a thieving tosser.

Is it any wonder that dentistry has one of the highest rates of suicide? or is that a myth?

Subject very close to my heart, as you can probably tell, I get more upset by the abuse dentists get than my dentist husband does who's been dealing with it for most of his life - you need a thicker skin than I have.
Dare I press the submit button???

Woodpigeon

Our three kids have all had braces whilst in NZ. Each one has cost over $3000 (paid in regular installments over the two year treatment period by DD/SO). But the orthodontist the younger two see is awesome - he explains everything to them and always makes time if they need to get something looked at a few days after he's tweaked the braces. The one our eldest saw was a real dragon, but she was cheaper

However, we have been happy with the results (so far) in all three cases

And I have to say that my dentist here is also awesome (he even went and got me a chair from the waiting room when I was with my daughter when she was having her teeth removed in prep for her braces - he knows just how squeamish I am at the dentist ). He's not the cheapest, but for me I'd rather pay for an understanding dentist than save money but dread going!

pixi-dust

mwah Woodpigeon

luvwelly

Well Pixidust - you already know how positively I feel about my NZ dentist after having less than stellar experiences in another EU country before coming here.

I don't think your advice about shopping around is necessarily good though ....the cheapest is not the most long-lasting...you might also not get the most pleasant experience if you shop around on price. Dentists (thank goodness) are not all the same...they are not all good guys like your OH.

I would say, find someone you like - who makes appointments comfortable and expect to pay for it, since the system here is different from the UK.

The figure Jan n Neill quoted seemed a bit high to me based on Wellington prices - maybe there was an earthquake levy added lol.

Jan n Neil

You won,t convince me dentists are on the poverty line I know your hubby is one and i,m guessing you arn,t living in a one bed flat ? I know they have a lot of training but 2-3 hours treatment at 400 bux plus an hour is obscene. I,m very lucky that i can afford to go but there are many who can,t


Neil