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Dentistry in France?


tj
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I dont really know how to ask this question, but came up with 2 options.

Are they just crap?

or

Is anyone unhappy with the quality of dentistry here.

You can answer one or both, which ever suits..
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NormanH, you will have to give me the name of your current dentist...

Before I left the UK 9 years ago, I had a huge dentistry session (having finally managed to get ONE dental appointment after months of waiting) - this long session was supposed to take care of 3 or 4 problems.

Within months of being in France, every single bit of dentistry I had had in England went wrong, and I found an excellent dentist to take care of it all over a period of time.He was so brilliant, gentle and patient, very skilled and competent, with state-of-the-art equipment. He was very unimpressed with the dental work I had had done in England before....

Then we moved away, and he moved also.

Last year I had to find another dentist, for a molar extraction. That was a real nightmare, she butchered me and did not manage to extract the molar completely, left both roots and infection behind after 45 minutes of torture.

Then I found the local tooth extraction specialist,  (she is the dental surgeon who does all the difficult and multiple extractions under general anaesthetic at the local clinic).She was utterly brilliant for finishing her colleague's job.  But for any other work, I found her terrible. Antiquated equipment, and really bad for anything other than extractions..

So there you go, my three French dentists are a very mixed bag... I keep reading of people here who have fantastic dentists, and now I want one of those too, as I am left in limbo.

(It is totally irrelevant to me whether the dentist speaks English or not).

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Very good dentist in our local town of St Maixent L'Ecole. Name of Dr Garcia of Spanish origins and will always see you in an emergency though long wait of a few months for check-ups as he is popular. Likes Elvis too and sometimes bursts into song! Some words of the English but all you need is oo ah ow pointy pointy. Tried two other dentists locally when he was not available and not so good. One mucked up a filling for me and Dr Garcia had to sort it out when he came back from holiday and another failed to spot that one of my wife's teeth had a broken root, despite having high tech X-ray equipment, which was causing an infection, again sorted by Dr G after his Summer break. This is one of the problems of a single man/woman practice in that they have holidays with no cover just when you need them. There is always emergency cover by dentists and chemists for holidays and weekends somewhere in the Department but you may have to travel a distance to get to one............................................................JR

PS Lots of dentists in Niort. Our friends swear by Dr Leroy there.

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Hi,

I made some enquiries on the forum a couple of weeks ago and was pointed in the direction of a local dentist. (87290) He is brilliant !!!! Cured my raging infection and then in the next two appointments fixed the culprit of my toothache. Would recommend him to anyone local. Good luck with finding a good dentist. Mel.
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[quote user="JohnRoss"]

... again sorted by Dr G after his Summer break. This is one of the problems of a single man/woman practice in that they have holidays with no cover just when you need them. ...[/quote]

Indeed, this can be a real problem. In my case, I found a dentist when I suffered an emergency in August, but he could do little for me because the local dental laboratories were closed for their annual holidays.

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[quote user="teapot"]

"(It is totally irrelevant to me whether the dentist speaks English or not)".

But apart from just thinking of yourself, other people reading the thread may want that information especially for holiday makers.

[/quote]

I made that remark to highlight that even without the language issue, finding a great dentist was still hit and miss. I am perfectly aware that the issue may be different for others.

If I was "just thinking about myself", I would not have bothered to contribute my experience which, I hope, might go some way towards pooling general knowledge about dentistry in France, which is what the OP was asking? - the question was

Is anyone unhappy with the quality of dentistry here?

So perhaps you would withdraw that remark, which is unwarranted and unnecessarily spiteful.

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Nah, not me, I don't fight, except in real life, and then I'm trained to kill. [6]

I just like things to be right.[kiss].

Especially when I am ambling around, minding my own business, feeling at one with the world, admiring the landscape, seeing if I can be of service here or there, and then badaboum, out of the pure blue sky comes a lightning strike. Very unfair, but then life is like that!

I really can't help it if some people are a bit sensitive about their French. Well, I could help actually, but it will cost.[6]

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Very happy with our dentist Dr. Pouzergues in Mirande. Quick and efficient with all the modern gear.

The only complaint I've heard about french dentists is that they don't routinely use painkilling injections. You have to specially ask, and sometimes it's refused.

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Hi Sue,

Just read your dentistry blog... loved your candor but can't believe you went back twice for more treatment from the same 'butcher'!

I used to go to my dentist at least once a year back in the UK but since being here have only been once for a check-up in 5 years.  I'm trying to really look after my teeth as I'm dreading having to have any treatment here.  My husband has had to go several times and after trying half a dozen different dentists within a 40km radius have found one in Perigueux who seems pretty good.  The only problem is my husbands French is zilch and mine is still only passable and our dentist understandably speaks no English... I have to go with my husband every time to help translate but I'm useless.  Moh is having another bout of dental problems right now and we've just got back from a visit this afternoon.  I was saying to moh "would our mutuel top-up cover an 'emergency trip to the dentist' visit whilst in the UK?  I think I know the answer to that and I also know it's our fault for not learning French proficiently after 5 years but it's like a double whammy, not being able to communicate and mostly awful dentists... it's times like this I feel like packing it all in and going home!

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I had a look through your blog.

It was interesting because it answers to some extent a question that often puzzles me when I go though some of these villages (I am not far from Bize), that is "what do people find to do with them selves in places like that.?"

Your blog provides some answers.

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Believe me NormanH Bize has a lot to offer.  We have been through some villages which appear to be totally dead during the day and often during the night, but Bize is not one of them, especially at this time of year.  It can be quiet at times but that is why we are here, who wants to remember living on the edge of a UK motorway!!  Hopefully you will visit us sometime.  Sunday is a good day if you are not far away, the Olive Festival is always good fun and interesting, bring your friends, wives, whatever you have
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Yes I read your interesting blog and the point you made about no spit basin and mouthwash has been made before. None of the dentists I have seen in France had that facility. Even Dr Garcia relies on a sucky thing whilst drilling and/or cleaning with the high pressure jetty thing and often it runs down your throat and you almost drown. I suspect they don't want the hassle of cleaning and sterilizing mouthwash/spit facilities and maybe historical in connection with unclean water supplies, who knows, maybe a dentist or retired dentist could inform us. Not had the experience of wax impressions yet as have put up with the odd gap. What you describe may put me off for a bit longer methinks. Reading folks blogs always seems to me like reading a private diary and make me feel uncomfortable but just a question of getting used to it I guess...................................JR
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For all their faults, every one of the 3 dentists I visited here in France had a mouthwash and spit basin. It would have felt very odd if they had not?

Just like my ex-médecin traitant who did not have W.C. facilities in his practice - that was really bizarre, and in the end I changed médecin traitant partly for that reason!

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