The Dentist in Cambodia

So, no one really likes going to the dentist, right? Even though your teeth feel great afterwards?

Well, it's the same here. Peace Corps Volunteers are required to get their teeth cleaned and checked twice during their service: once at the mid-point and once right before leaving the country. Our set date for dental cleanings and check-ups are set for our MST in mid-late May. However, since Taylor and I were in Phnom Penh, Joanne (our Peace Corps Medical Officer [PCMO]) asked us if we "would like to get it over with" the following day. You know, that's not the exact phrasing I was really hoping to hear. You don't want to hear that when talking about going to the dentist, so you sure don't want to hear that when going to the dentist in a developing country.

So, the following day, there I was in the lobby waiting to get my teeth cleaned. They called me in, and I walked into a room, very much like a dentist's office in the United States (kinda), with a desk and the "recliner" where all the horr...magic happens. They had pretty much the same tools and assistants and certified dentists to go along with them. They were a little less than gentle, but all in all, it wasn't really that bad. I tried to speak to them in Khmer to make the air a little less awkward (as being in the dentist chair is a very intimate situation), but then the assistant started explaining, what I could only assume to be, about what was going on with my teeth. I had no idea what he was saying. I head the word "teeth" and "good", so that's all that really matters, right?

Now, do not be fooled! This situation is something only well-taken-care-of Peace Corps volunteers and rich people in Phnom Penh have the luxury of experiencing. Most oftnen, people go to local dentists, that set up shop in a not-so-structurally-stable wooden building with a picture of someone's not-so-structurally-stable set of teeth and gums outside on a sign. A good amount of these "dentists" are not certified by the royal government. It is not uncommon for a place like this to get shut down. However, the royal government does not often come into small villages, so it's very possible for it to continue. Let's just say, I'm glad I'm not having my teeth cleaned by the local dentist.

Talk to you soon,
Garrett