Sep 3, 2009

More foreign dentists

Allowing dentists from Asean, India to practise here will ease shortage

By April Chong, Straits Times

TWO new initiatives are in the works to ease the dentist shortage here by allowing more dentists from the region to work in Singapore.

Together with other recent measures, this can help bring down the dentist to population ratio, from about one dentist for every 3,400 people to one for every 2,200 within the next two decades, said the Health Ministry's chief dental officer, Associate Professor Patrick Tseng. He attended the FDI Annual World Dental Congress at Suntec City which opened on Wednesday.

Prof Tseng said an agreement is being discussed with India to make it easier for dentists from their top institutions to work here, as long as they pass a series of qualifying exams. Currently, their dentists are not eligible to sit for these exams. 'They are willing to export. They have 260 dental schools there,' he said.

A mutual agreement was signed earlier this year to allow dentists from Asean countries to practise in other member countries, subject to the qualification requirements in each country. This will be implemented in January next year.

This means, for example, any dentist from the Philippines or Thailand can apply to work here. Previously, only a restricted number of dentists from Asean could apply.

http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking...ry_424858.html