Over the last decade, Colombia has emerged as a leader in dental tourism. Through high-quality dental care and affordable rates, Colombia attracts international patients to its dental clinics.
Colombia has outstanding dental professionals who specialize in all sorts of treatments, who have gone through very strict training in some of the best universities in Latin America. Colombia’s dental clinics are also equipped with the most innovative dental technology.
Colombian Dentist Juan Manuel Breton
ColombiaOne spoke exclusively with Dr. Juan Manuel Breton, one of the top dental specialists in the country, about dental tourism in Colombia. Breton qualified from Javeriana University, one of Colombia’s leading institutions in dentistry. He specializes in oral rehabilitation and has a private dental clinic in Bogota.
Breton explained to ColombiaOne that there are two main reasons why foreigners come to Colombia for dental treatment. The first one is cost-related. “Dentistry in other countries is very expensive, and here in Colombia patients can access top-quality dental treatments at more cost-friendly rates. This is probably the main reason why they come here,” he said.
The quality of dental treatment in Colombia
The quality of treatment is the second reason. Breton affirmed that dental care in Colombia is “outstanding” and that those working in the industry are highly professional. “This makes the quality of treatment in Colombia comparable with treatments in the patient’s country of origin,” he explained. He also said that the third reason why patients choose Colombia for their dental needs is tourism. Many dental patients combine their medical appointments with tourism, enabling them to enjoy Colombia’s rich sights and vibrant culture.
There is a diversity of treatments a patient can undergo while in Colombia. However, Breton remarked that the treatment most often sought by foreign patients is dental rehabilitation on dental implants. He added that there are some instances in which “patients look for more aesthetically driven treatments.”
Scheduling a dentist appointment in Colombia
Breton explained to ColombiaOne the process that a foreign patient must follow to make an appointment in the country. “The majority of the patients I receive are referred to me by other patients,” he said. “This is how I’ve worked throughout my life, I don’t use Internet pages or any type of ads. Patients often contact me directly and we make a schedule for them to come.”
Most of the time the logistics are straightforward. However, Breton explained that in some cases they can get complicated. “We request the patient to send us medical records so we are clear on the procedure we are doing, and then we schedule their trip and appointment.”
Dental treatment can take up to a year in Colombia
He also explained that “with patients in some countries, this process might be a bit more complicated. This is because, in some countries, dentistry and dental health have many formalities.” This can cause delays, particularly when a patient has a more complicated history.
Breton noted that what patients often do is to “take X-rays in their country of origin, send it to us, and then we plan for their arrival. This is especially important because we try to estimate how long the treatment is going to last. But once they are here we do a complete study so we can know the exact procedure the patient needs.”
Finally, Breton told ColombiaOne that the process for undertaking dental treatment in Colombia “depends on each patient. Simple cases can be solved in seven to ten days in Colombia. More complex cases necessitate several trips to Colombia. We’re talking about two or three visits to Colombia because they require biological processes like tissue healing so we can get the final results.” This means that in some instances, patients have to be in treatment for almost a year.