Visiting a Dentist in Ireland

My teeth are naturally rather soft and prone to cavities. When I was studying in Beijing, I already had an inseparable relationship with the dental departments of the university hospital and Peking University Third Hospital. After a long illness, one becomes half a doctor. Last year I came to Ireland, and I also went to the dentist here right away and have visited dentists often. So I will summarize and share my experience and thoughts.

Two days before leaving Beijing, I suddenly had a toothache and discovered that one tooth had a hole, meaning a cavity, and a fairly serious one. Previously I had always gone to public hospitals. First, I trusted top-tier public hospitals more. Second, costs were lower and medical insurance could reimburse. Third, as a student, referrals could only go to Peking University Third Hospital, which I was familiar with. But public-hospital appointments needed to be booked a week in advance and were hard to get. Therefore, the next morning I decisively went to a well-reviewed private dental hospital near the hotel where I was staying, without even needing registration. Private hospitals indeed have good service. After taking an X-ray, the dentist said the cavity had reached the nerve and required root canal treatment, followed by a crown. The treatment cycle would take at least two weeks and require two visits. A few years earlier, one of my teeth had undergone similar treatment at Peking University Third Hospital. So I knew very clearly what this meant: your tooth is actually already dead; only the corpse remains. Because I was flying the next day, in the end the dentist prescribed me some painkillers.

After I came to Ireland, I onboarded in my second week and already had medical insurance. But at the time I did not yet have a PPSN and was a bit worried, so I waited another month and a half. Only after getting my PPSN did I book an appointment with a dentist near the company office. I also switched my insurance in advance to Principle Scheme + Dental Care, which reimburses more for dental treatment. Later I learned that neither a PPSN nor even onboarding was required to use the company’s insurance. It is indeed very powerful and gives outsiders like us a lot of protection.

The experience at dentalexperts.ie was very good. After taking an X-ray, the dentist said that although the cavity was deep and close to the nerve, it had not damaged the nerve and did not require root canal treatment. Filling the tooth was preferred. After the filling, it was very successful, and it did not hurt again even after a year. I also had an examination and cleaning, found other shallower cavities, and filled them quickly as well. Nine months later, my gums bled when brushing. I understood it was time for another cleaning, and also had an examination and filled two teeth. In nearly one year in Ireland, I visited dentists four times in total, costing 200 + 200 + 130 + 280 euros. Laya insurance basically reimbursed all of it. After reimbursement, my costs were 1 + 0 + 0 + 0 euros. Dental Care is really useful. Each dental visit is reimbursed once through the Principle Scheme, and Dental Care then reimburses the remaining part. The user only needs to submit one claim; Laya automatically optimizes it. Friends with bad teeth must add Dental Care. My insurance premium is 70 euros every two weeks, which is still quite expensive. Fortunately, this part is a company benefit paid by the company. But because it counts as a benefit, we still have to pay personal income tax on it.