My profession in Brazil- an overview
Hello Amy, ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ LE team and everyone,
Today, we will have a blog completely free of trips and holidays or you will start thinking I have won the lottery. On the contrary, I have more bills than fees. Please, remember, I live in Brazil. All the money are on the politicians' pockets.
Well...when you know someone, first you say your name and who you are, then you say from where you are and finally you say what you do in life. I don’t know if anyone has noticed that I have been following these steps.
Therefore, today I’ll give you an overview in dentistry in Brazil, what give you an idea of what is my profession.
I’m sure my smart readers know that Brazil is located in South America. It is the 5th country in size, also in number of inhabitants (193.000.000) and there are more women than men here.
But I bet you don’t know we are 195.000 dentists, mostly women, here! :-O
IIn other words, 1 dentist for each 989 inhabitants! :-O
More dentists than USA and Canadá together! :-O
60% more than we should have for developing countries in mixed health care system( private & public) according to the WHO ( World Health Organization)!
:-O
The percentage of new dentists coming to the work market is 3 times greater than the growing rate of the population!
11% of the dentists of the World are brazilians! :-O
Wow... we are the country with the greater number of dentists of the World!!!
:-o :-O
So what are the consequences of this figure? The market became highly specialized for the benefit of the population.
And is it bad for dentists? I don’t think so. Some of the skills a dentist must have here are criativity, inovation and enterprise but it’s the same in any profession.
In my opinion, there isn’t a real competition among dentists, although zillions of them doesn’t know that, because the main oponents are themselves.
I’ll try to explain my thought.
Actually there are several competitions ( how can this be possible, Adriana? :-I )
Well, I mean that not all dentists are in the same competition, each one in each group. An orthodontist is not competing, for example, with a buco-maxilo-facial surgeon. Quite the reverse, they can work together.
Another example: a dentist who attends the middle class is not competing with one who attends the elite. Even in the same group, it’s possible to stick out depending on the schedule (out-of-hours attendance or on weekends rather than working hours)or the area of expertise (sports is a new field for example). Do you see my point?
I had better give my own example... when I had my baby and wanted to have one eye on him while working, I offered my service as a dentist in the same kindergarten where my son was being given care. This was a project that I called PDF ( Projeto do Dentinho Feliz or Happy Little Teeth Project) consisted in educational and preventive methods to prevent decays, periodontal and orthodontic problems. Maybe I can show some pictures of it some day because it’ very interesting.
Also in my clinic, the fact that there is a dental laboratory attached to it, assists me in provide a quick treatment, for example,in someone in a trip. And what if I could be gathered with other professionals and provide a spa treatment? So...there are infinite possibilities and our oponents are not definitely our colleagues but just ourselves.
What we brazilian dentists do, most part of the population doesn’t know because we work silent among 4 walls.
The president of the ABO (Associação Brasileira de Odontologia or Dentistry Brazilian Association), Norberto Lubiana, who coincidentally is from ES and was my dear teacher at the University ( I was his monitor in histology) now represents the voice for Latin America Dentistry. Recently he signed an agreement with the ADA (American Dental Association) to bring facilities to us dentists to participate in conferences abroad and for having the brazilian presence at the council’s assembly of the ADA.
We always make pressure on the politicians. Luckily,( I know perhaps people from elite will disagree with me) the president Lula has done what no other president has done for poor people in our history. Recently he announced the enlargement of the project “ Brasil Sorridente” or Smiling Brazil. As a dentist, I also can say that no other president has invested 2 million reais in courses for us.
We try to be active in the issues of the country (remember Tiradentes was a dentist!) because there is still much to be done. 20 % of the population have never gone to the dentists in remote areas and 45 % of brazilians don’t go to private dentists. So they need our attention.
For instance, a couple of years ago there was a lunatic politician who wanted to quit the fluoridation of the water supply saying that it was not necessary anymore but our association fought until the end to continue with the fluoridation because it’s fundamental for people who doesn’t have access to us. It’s the minimum we can do. I think it’s a shame for me, for example, who studied in a public university , in other words, with the money of the goverment (better to say...with the money of the population) that after my studiesI cannot pay back providing care for the part of the population who is really needing.
What do you think about this, my readers? And what is the situation in your country? I would love hearing from you, Amy and the beloved readers. I know it may be boring for you but I promisse I’ll show more relaxing pictures to you in the coming blogs.
I just want to remember that I am going to answer all your comments on weekends. Except for the reader from Linhares or he would think I'm a liar.
Off post:
Hello! It's good you are from here! Keep on writing, ok? The reader from Linhares/ES asked me about the Indian, African and Japanese square in Aracruz. It's in SESC in Praia Formosa. Can you recognize the eucalyptus from Aracruz? Keep on writing. So you have agreed with me that stereotypes are only stereotypes...
All right friends, enouth is enough.
A truck of kisses
Adriana
Comments
Hello Adriana! You are a kindhearted person, and this quality reflects on your profession. Everybody in our country should have a good dental treatment. Even people who live in big cities don´t visit the dentist. They only do this visit in a case of extreme emergency, and they probably would ask to some friend or relative to lend them some money, because many can´t afford the treatment. It´s indeed a really sad situation. Good night, Ana Paula.
Hello Adriana, I guess you have answered one of my questions before reading it. I was curious to know what your job was. You look like a teenager in your picture. I never thought you'd be already a working dentist. Every day I feel more connected to your entries. I have pictures of the same places you showed in today's blog. I bet you took that picture of the indian square from the top of the hotel that is located inside the sesc park in Aracruz, didn't you? When I went there I spent some money on the binoculars to see the landscape, but the view is much better when seen through our bare eyes. I guess I wasted my money. But it's part of the fun too. That park is amazingly beautiful. I never knew there were so many dentists in Brazil. Don't forget to tell us where the clinic you work at is located because next time we come around, if we have a toothache we can talk to you.(laugh). Well Adriana, Thank you for your very nice blogs. Bye for now.
Hi! I've never thought that Brazil has so many dentists! It's amazing! Maybe you should sent some of them to Poland? I don't like going to a dentist and that's because of: out-dated dentist's tools that make terrible noise, unpleasant consulting rooms and long queues in front of them. You have to make an appointment about a fortnight or even a month before your visit. Of course, my complaints concern only those dentists employed by the National Health Care System (I hope you understand what I mean). Private consulting rooms are much better equipped and there are no queues but you are to pay a lot there. Fortunately, my dentist is really nice, competent and experienced. If only she had nicer working environment! Bye, bye!
What a beautiful blog!!!!!!!!!Well done.
Hi Adri. So you are a dentist. I would never figurated that. I was sure you are an executive in a company, if not an actress, as you let it clear. It's so sad yo haven't come to Chile in your holiday. Well, there will be a next time. Once I was in Sao Paulo and Cuiabá, in Mato Grosso, and was wonderful, but after seen your photos I have to say that my next goal is Guarapari. I understand very well what you tell about mad ideas from politicians, are those are not an exclusivity from Brazil. It's epidemic, al least in Latin America. At least we are lucky, where I live fluor came naturally in water, as other not so welcome elements, as boro and arsenic. Till next.
Hi Adriana! You won´t maybe believe but my oldest sister is dentist also. However, with your vitality (which I´ve admired by Ana Paula, yet, and maybe shall I by all Brasilians!) you would manage to give a hand in her dental practice easily. She has a family with three teenagers, doesn´t learn languages because is always tired and overloaded with work as each dentist in this country. Even I have to wait long for a treatment. I am going to visit there tomorow..ou, ha ha! By the way, are there as many medical microbiologist as dentist in your country? Have a nice day!
Hi Adri, I don’t know what are the latest statistics for Poland but proportionally we have almost similar number of stomatologists (1 per 900 – 1200 persons). The problem is that there are no funds neither for maintaining the adequate base of services (public ones of course) nor for training. To put it bluntly, the whole public health care system in Poland is a disaster. Over the years the doctors were abused just because their profession is a mission and eventually the day came, quite recently, when they said: that’s enough. So now we are in the middle of a turmoil, both doctors and patients. Does it mean that those working ‘with heart’ have disappeared? Of course not – they’ve been still curing us regardless how they are paid. And if you look around the world you’ll see that that kind of people do what really makes a difference. I mean for example such people as Paul Farmer (founder of Partners in Health) who is incredibly effective in fighting infectious diseases (AIDS, TB etc.), mainly in Rwanda and Haiti. He takes his mission literally and is an advocate of fighting poverty and all things covered by term ‘structural violence’ (he was an inspiration for Jeffrey Sachs in his fight with malaria). But there are also so called ordinary doctors who can ‘make miracles’ while for example rebuilding hospitals from the scratch: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5253238.stm. Best,
Hello Adriana Your blog is very interesting. I am studying in the Public University too, I do History. And I think who we have a great responsability with our country. Congratulations for you blog, I will always read it.
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