# Dentistry in Spain- Newbie



## Smiler7 (Jan 28, 2013)

For my 21st Birthday present I was given a trip to Madrid from my parents and FELL IN LOVE with the people, culture and climate. 
I am currently finishing a 4year degree in dental hygiene and therapy and both myself and my partner are extremely eager to move to Spain after I graduate.
However I am unsure if this exists as a profession in Spain. I am wondering if anyone could shed any light or provide any help at all on this issue? Also I would probably need to start off in an English speaking practice .. are there many of these in Spain.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Smiler7 said:


> For my 21st Birthday present I was given a trip to Madrid from my parents and FELL IN LOVE with the people, culture and climate.
> I am currently finishing a 4year degree in dental hygiene and therapy and both myself and my partner are extremely eager to move to Spain after I graduate.
> However I am unsure if this exists as a profession in Spain. I am wondering if anyone could shed any light or provide any help at all on this issue? Also I would probably need to start off in an English speaking practice .. are there many of these in Spain.


Yes, there are dental hygienists in Spain!
I don't know if there are many English speaking practices in Spain, but there are some.
However, this will not be an easy move


You'll probably have to get your qualifications recognised here - could take a while, I mean months.
There are almost 6 million people unemployed at the moment, about 25% of the population. People are leaving Spain to find work. You might want to think about that.
Find out how much a dental hygienist makes here. I get the impression it's not very well paid, but I don't know.
I'd get in touch with the Spanish dentists/ hygienists or European to see what they have to say about it. Try looking on Spanish job sites to see if there are any jobs going. 
I'd also come to Spain lots more times and do non touristy things like ride the metro at 7:30 in the morning when it's chock a block with Madrileños who had garlic for dinner the night before, come in the winter, see what the prices are in supermarkets, check out a few flats so you can see what you'd get for your money...


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

To follow up on what Pesky has said, I agree that you should look very carefully at the validity of your qualification.

If it is a controlled profession (profesión regulada) then you will not be able to work without a formal title in Spain.

This can be acheived in two ways:

Homologation of a professional qualification. This involves getting the ministry of education to make a comparisson of the material you studied and the material a person in Spain would study to gain the equivalent qualification. In the (unlikely) event that they coincide 100% they will give you the homolgated title. In the event that you have to study the topics that you are missing, you will have to complete those topics before they issue the qualification. Logically this can take some considerable time.

Recognition of a professional qualification. This involves getting the regulating body (probably the ministry of health in your case) to make a comparisson of the studies you have taken and any professional experience you can prove, with the requirements in force in order to practice that profession in Spain. The advantage is that this is not a purely academic process and it is regulated by EU law.
There is even a time limit of 6 months for the process to be complete (although my process took 18 months) This process results in either a firm NO or a certificate to practice being issued.

As to finding an English speaking dentists in Madrid.... I think you will struggle, but you never know. If you do find one, they would certainly be able to tell you if it is a regulated profession or not.


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

In a quiet moment I have looked quickly on internet and found that, according to Wikipedia ES, the profession "Técnico Superior en Higiene Bucodental" is a regulated profession according to Real Decreto 1837/2008.

Also, there are several English speaking dentistries in Madrid, found by simply entering "English dentist Madrid" in the worlds most popular search engine.


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## Smiler7 (Jan 28, 2013)

Hi...A huge thank you for taking the time to reply! I appreciate it alot.

I have though alot about this move and theres honestly nothing I would rather do. I understand the economy in Spain isnt great at the moment and it is something both myself and my partner have thought long and hard about...
I should have mentioned before that I have been to Spain numerous times, it was just that one particular visit to Madrid which helped me make my decision. I speak spanish but not fluently. Can I ask how long it took you's to learn if you are fluent?

I have studied Dental Hygiene but with Therapy which enables me in the UK to carry out procedures like fillings and most paediatric dentistry e.g. extracting deciduous teeth. I worry that this isnt a recognised profession in Spain  
I will definitely follow all your suggestions and maybe try to get in touch with some dentists in Spain and ask their advice also.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Smiler7 said:


> Hi...A huge thank you for taking the time to reply! I appreciate it alot.
> 
> I have though alot about this move and theres honestly nothing I would rather do. I understand the economy in Spain isnt great at the moment and it is something both myself and my partner have thought long and hard about...
> I should have mentioned before that I have been to Spain numerous times, it was just that one particular visit to Madrid which helped me make my decision. I speak spanish but not fluently. Can I ask how long it took you's to learn if you are fluent?
> ...


we have several English Dentists in my town - & they do have dental hygienists working there

I don't know if qualifications have to be ratified - but there's a story of a dentist who was working in a town near me who has been proven to have been struck off in the UK


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## Smiler7 (Jan 28, 2013)

xabiachica said:


> we have several English Dentists in my town - & they do have dental hygienists working there
> 
> I don't know if qualifications have to be ratified - but there's a story of a dentist who was working in a town near me who has been proven to have been struck off in the UK


Ohhh fantastic, thats fab to hear. Can I ask where this is?


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Smiler7 said:


> Hi...A huge thank you for taking the time to reply! I appreciate it alot.
> 
> I have though alot about this move and theres honestly nothing I would rather do. I understand the economy in Spain isnt great at the moment and it is something both myself and my partner have thought long and hard about...
> I should have mentioned before that I have been to Spain numerous times, it was just that one particular visit to Madrid which helped me make my decision. I speak spanish but not fluently. Can I ask how long it took you's to learn if you are fluent?
> ...


Sorry, I've just realised that this sentence is crap
I


> 'd get in touch with the Spanish dentists/ hygienists or European to see what they have to say about it.


I was trying to refer to these guys
EARDH European Association of Registered Dental Hygienists
or similar
As to learning Spanish, I don't think you ever stop learning a language! And there are so many different types of learners
But to be able to attend to the Spanish public efficiently, and if you are a good learner I'd say 2 years at least. That's a very personal opinion of course.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Smiler7 said:


> Ohhh fantastic, thats fab to hear. Can I ask where this is?


see 'Location' at top right of my posts


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

No need to thank me for the info on recognition of professional titles, the EU directive was fairly new when I did mine, I believe that I was one of the first in my profession to make use of this provision so its a subject close to my heart!

As for learning Spanish... Pesky is right, you never stop learning, but my history was something like this:

2 years before moving: complete GCSE Spanish to grade A
1 year before moving: Complete AS level Spanish to grade B
On arrival in Spain: become totally downhearted because AS level Spanish is useless in the real world. Enrole in 1 month intesive immersion course.
Next 3-4 years: live and work in a Spanish speaking environment until you suddenly relaie that you're not that bad at it after all and it's actually fairly easy to speak Spanish at a professional level!
After 5 years: Curse yourself when you can only think of a Spanish word for something and the English word escapes you..


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

This is really not a good time to be moving to Spain, as I think you know.
It's not just a question of registering professionally in Spain...there are new requirements you must meet before you can become resident, such as proof of minimum income and adequate health insurance cover - not just the EHIC, which is for emergencies only.

Pesky has given the best advice. Coming on holiday, however enjoyable, is NOTHING like full-time living. I had visited Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic regularly for over thirty years, often several times a year, had many friends, spoke enough Czech to get by...But when I moved to live there daily life was nothing like the daily life of the visits.

You need if possible to make several fairly prolonged stays in a country before you can decide if it's the right place for a permanent or even semi-permanent move. I had looked forward to living in Prague for years but the reality turned out to be very different from the expectations...


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## angil (Sep 24, 2012)

I don't have any real knowledge or opinion here. But will share with you something that fascinates my 17 year old International School attending daughter. Conversation between her and her British (Spanish speaking) friends: "You're going back to the UK, again?!" says my daughter "Yeah I need to go to the dentist" says friend(s) "Dentist? What's wrong with the dentists in Spain?" asks my daughter "What?! No, god, we wouldn't go to the dentist (or doctor apparently!) here, don't trust them!" "Oh" says my daughter, puzzled! These are families who have lived in Spain for years and years. Not sure how many feel this way but certainly more than one! Maybe a practice near an International / British School would be the way to go!??


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## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

Yep, I've heard the same thing here. I worked with a British guy a few years ago who missed a day of work because he had to fly back to London to get a filling.  I totally didn't (and don't) get it.


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

So..there are no incompetent dentists in the UK?

Now I may be wrong here but it seems to me that the dentists I knew in the UK earned shedloads more money there than dentists in Spain, whatever their nationality.
That's why I prefer a Spanish dentist, one that comes recommended. I know it's daft but I'd be wondering why a British dentist would want to up sticks and move to Spain.
OP excepted...


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

angil said:


> I don't have any real knowledge or opinion here. But will share with you something that fascinates my 17 year old International School attending daughter. Conversation between her and her British (Spanish speaking) friends: "You're going back to the UK, again?!" says my daughter "Yeah I need to go to the dentist" says friend(s) "Dentist? What's wrong with the dentists in Spain?" asks my daughter "What?! No, god, we wouldn't go to the dentist (or doctor apparently!) here, don't trust them!" "Oh" says my daughter, puzzled! These are families who have lived in Spain for years and years. Not sure how many feel this way but certainly more than one! Maybe a practice near an International / British School would be the way to go!??


My experience of dentists in UK meant that I wouldn't go to one for well over 25 years. They were useless.

I have only had to go to one here in Spain and he (Argentinian) is excellent.


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

My old UK dentist was struck off for defrauding the NHS and his successor tried to sell me thousands of pounds worth of private treatment for gum disease, which he said the NHS couldn't possibly cope with. It left me very upset and depressed, till a friend recommended her own dentist (Danish) who did all the necessary work on the NHS for less than £100. But I've never really trusted UK dentists since then - they appear to be more concerned with making money than patient care, getting you in and out as quickly as possible.

In contrast, my experience with Spanish dentists (I've seen three now) has been fantastic. They have all the latest equipment and materials, and are really concerned about your wellbeing during the treatment. I have never experienced any pain or discomfort in their hands.

Also the charges for crowns, bridges etc are much lower than UK private dentists. I've known people from abroad come here for treatment and the savings paid for a holiday afterwards!


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## angil (Sep 24, 2012)

I prefer Korean dentists! State of the art equipment and half the price of the UK. As does my daughter! 27 hours door to door to visit a UK dentist for a filling would have been very impractical! Hence her confusion as to why, if you are living in a country that you clearly love and speak the language fluently, would you choose to spend your school hols travelling to a dentist in another country?! Hubby had a very good experience here with a female Spanish dentist who kindly squeezed him in as it was an emergency, nasty root canal!. I thought she was a little expensive but she did a good job. My experience (& hubby's) of dentists in the UK was pretty grim. & in our area it was difficult to get on a 'dentists books'!


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

When we were living in Prague Our Little Azor, then a lively pup, gave Sandra a kiss....and also gave her a hairline fracture of the upper jaw, loosening all her front teeth.
We spent the equivalent of £4k on repair work, which would have cost three times as much in the UK, and thought a good job had been done by the Czech dentist whose brochure said he had worked in Germany, Austria and Spain. 
Just under two years later, shortly after we arrived in Spain, she began to have problems and visited a Spanish dentist. Apparently the dental work had been competently done but the materials used by the Czech dentist were of poor quality. So most of the work had to be done again.
I too have a mouthful of bridges and a small plate thingy -this is really false teeth under another name - and I often ponder that when we are dead our organs won't be worth donating but surely our teeth must be of some use to someone?
Just joking....


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## angil (Sep 24, 2012)

My Korean veneers look fab after nigh on 10 years (touch wood!). Hubby had 2 wisdom teeth out in the UK 5 days after our son was born! Super timing! It took him weeks to recover. He had 2 out in Korea & was as right as rain almost immediately! Actually the medical 'care' in most areas that I have experienced in the UK has been pretty below par compared to elsewhere!


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## mrypg9 (Apr 26, 2008)

angil said:


> My Korean veneers look fab after nigh on 10 years (touch wood!). Hubby had 2 wisdom teeth out in the UK 5 days after our son was born! Super timing! It took him weeks to recover. He had 2 out in Korea & was as right as rain almost immediately!* Actually the medical 'care' in most areas that I have experienced in the UK has been pretty below par compared to elsewhere*!



I'd second that!
The medical care I've received here is outstanding.
I know it's paid for by the DHSS UK but I still feel very grateful and actually quite humble to be treated with such care, skill and courtesy.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

mrypg9 said:


> I'd second that!
> The medical care I've received here is outstanding.
> I know it's paid for by the DHSS UK but I still feel very grateful and actually quite humble to be treated with such care, skill and courtesy.


You are lucky. Ours is private - we don't get it on the state here but, having said that, the charges are reasonable and the dentistry is excellent. Jorge likes to practice his English but quite what he manages to make out from my conversation with his fingers/weapons in my mouth I am not sure.


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