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Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

theatlantic.com

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Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#31

Post by mtdewcmu »

pjc50 wrote: post #18

Even further on the fringe of medicine: opticians.

I was thinking of pharmacists. They are sorta kinda doctorish (they even get Doctor of Pharmacy degrees), but not really. They are supposed to be consulted by doctors as the prime authority on medications, but this seems to rarely happen outside of hospitals. Doctors most likely think they know enough about the medications they prescribe to not need regular help.

Oh, and what about podiatrists? Health care seems sufficiently splintered that I would have never wondered why dentistry is separate.

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#32

Post by masklinn »

barking wrote: post #25
peteretep wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a bit different, as an opthalmogist is a real doctor who treats eyes. Dental equivalent would by a dental hygienist, I guess.

Ophthalmologists are specialists just like any other medical specialist, e.g. a dermatologist. Does the fact that general practitioners refer people on to dermatologists mean that family doctors are not 'real doctors'? Sorry if that sounds aggressive, I am unfairly taking the inference from what you said that opticians are somehow 'fake'.

> I am unfairly taking the inference from what you said that opticians are somehow 'fake'.

Opticians are equivalent to pharma techs (or dental hygienists as dogma1138 noted), could you be thinking about optometrists (sometimes called Ophthalmic Opticians in the UK)?

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#33

Post by wslh »

feld wrote: post #21

Dental/oral health is crucial. You can die from dental problems. I will never understand why the entire dental industry is treated as if it is cosmetic or non-essential. Stress to your immune system and failure of major organs is not taken seriously, but it is a very real risk.

You can also detect certain kind of cancers via oral inspection.

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#35

Post by mtdewcmu »

The real question is not why is dentistry kept separate from medicine. The real question is why dental insurance is treated like a luxury, compared to regular health insurance. The problem is that so many people are unable to afford dentistry, because of poor or no coverage.

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#36

Post by 10dpd »

NHS Dentistry in England and Wales is one of the biggest hidden scams yet to be revealed. The 'Unit of Dental Activity' scheme encourages dentists to delay treatment unnecessarily to cover their basic costs. The sooner the UK government acknowledges that the current NHS Dentistry setup is not sustainable, the better it will be for all.

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#37

Post by dazc »

toyg wrote: post #14
rollthehard6 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure how true that is? Would like to see some statistics on how many people elect for private vs NHS. Myself I've never had private dental healthcare and have no complaints, especially since I am paying probably an average of around 150 USD a year for my dental care and can pay as little as 30 USD a year typically.

I think the key is "most people who have a choice" . That translates as "most people who can afford to spend a few grand per year on dentistry without really noticing". I guess parent is a bit more upper-middle class than you.

I spend £27 GBP a month and that is considered to be expensive by some people who pay as little as £7.

For this I get 4 cleans/checkups a year and a zealous hygiene regime. I also get some insurance for accidental trauma too.

Sure, if you do need major work it's going to be expensive but the emphasis is very much aimed at preventing this. In the past 15 years or so I have had minimal work done.

Relying on an NHS practice is, as indicated in other replies, a bit of a lottery and you'll be hard pressed to get decent treatment for something serious. Partly because some dentists are not qualified to do stuff like root canal and partly because of funding restrictions - they just don't want that kind of work.

Having said that, things have improved since my childhood when NHS dentists were payed per filling. You can imagine how that worked out in many case.

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#38

Post by badminton1 »

barking wrote: post #20

Dentists in the UK receive a bachelor degree, as do doctors. However it was a sanctionable offence in the eyes of the General Dental Council for a dentist to title themselves Dr. This was purely a Dental Council regulation, anyone at the time could call themselves doctor, it wasn't a criminal offence. With the arrival of dentists from EU countries who were allowed to do so, UK dentists felt they were being put at a d…

In the US they have the title of DDS (doctor of dental surgery).

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#39

Post by badminton1 »

In the middle ages, the main practitioners of medicine were "barber surgeons", barbers that were also surgeons and dentists.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barber_surgeon

Also, all this was done in a very unsanitary way. In fact medicine was unsanitary in the West until Florence Nightingale conducted an statistical survey showing that cleaner spaces had fewer mortality rates.

Re: Why Dentistry Is Separate from Medicine

#40

Post by vinay427 »

Rainymood wrote: post #34

Make sure to poke a very thin wooden stick regularly (daily, before bed, after brushing) between your teeth and marvel (or be disgusted) at the amount of plaque that comes out which you missed by just brushing -- honestly it's an insane amount.

Isn't this more commonly known as flossing?
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