I cracked my tooth, again, this time in Jeju, South Korea. My options were to fly home to get it fixed, endure the pain for about 5 weeks before I get home as scheduled, or find a local dentist. After consulting AI, and going through Google, I found a highly recommended dentist that was a few hundred meters away from me. On their website and online reviews, many claim that they are fair and professional, had affordable prices and good service.
When I got to the clinic, I was asked to fill out a form with my personal details, which is pretty standard. Then I was asked to sign an acknowledgement form. The form states that I will be charged 150k KRW (approx. USD 111) for my consultation, which will include x-rays but will not include the treatment. I was in pain and discomfort, I had no other choice, I signed it. On the form I also consented to the clinic taking CCTV video of my treatment for security purposes.
Finally it was my turn, the dentist immediately suggested I do an implant and quoted me 2.6m KRW for it (approx. USD 1935) but when I rejected, he then went for the 2nd option, a crown for 1.3m KRW (approx. USD 970) In the chaos and rush, and the pain and discomfort, I wasn't converting the KRW correctly so I wasn't aware it was that expensive. Another dentist came and started working on me, but quickly realized that a crown is not a viable option. So in the end we settled for a normal extraction of my 1st molar. The dentist then told me it was going to be 500k KRW (approx. USD 370). Again I was confused about the exchange rate, and desperate for a solution I agreed. My tooth cracked further during extraction, but he still managed to complete it in less than 5 minutes.
After getting back to my hotel, I started searching online and asking local friends and I found out that a normal extraction costs 10-30k KRW (with health insurance) and 50-100k (without). 1st molars are definitely simple extractions. So that means they charged me 5-10x the normal price on top of a ridiculous 150k "consultation". I realized then that it would have been cheaper for me to fly home and back to Jeju, get my treatment and still have money left over. If you note the implant and crown quotations, they were all way too high as well.
Long story short, I asked for a refund, they refused, insisted that the extraction was complex because of x, y, z, which doesn't make sense as the price was quoted to me BEFORE he started, hence he couldn't have known if x, y, z would happen. But thankfully I have great friends in Korea that sent someone to the clinic to handle it. At the end I got a partial refund. The money is not the point, I just cannot stand injustice and to see it unpunished. The clinic is called Jeju Anafn Dental Clinic and Dr. Seo was the dentist's name.
The real reason I've suffered dental issues for the past 25 years is because when I was young, one dentist decided his ego was worth more than my pain and suffering. In order to save face and avoid admitting he couldn't perform a procedure, instead of advising me to go to another dentist, he caused a cascading effect deteriorating my dental health, causing me to lose 4-5 teeth from cracks and avoidable situations.
Since a long time ago I’ve learned that admitting my flaws or mistakes is not a sign of weakness but strength. It takes more courage to say “I’m sorry”, “I was wrong” or “I’m not good enough”. There’s nothing wrong to be proud of ourselves, but if you’re making a decision to protect your ego, it means something else just lost its protection. So next time if you see the gaps in my teeth, take it as a reminder that how people perceive you is less important than you think it is. Be kind, be honest, be genuine, let go of your ego, because saving your face now may have worser consequences later.
