Recently, I have heard that many people around me are complaining about the high cost of dental care. A few days ago, my cousin complained to me, saying that she went to a dental hospital in Wuhan a while ago to see a tooth and paid a deposit of tens of thousands of yuan to get dental implants. It didn't take long for that hospital to suddenly close! This is good, not to mention the money, and the teeth have not been planted.
The Oral Health Market: From Boom to Turbulence
Actually, it's not just my cousin who has this kind of bad luck. It is said that in July this year, many chain dental hospitals across the country suddenly closed down, and the bankruptcy rate was as high as 30%! Such a high rate of bankruptcy is really scary.
When it comes to the dental medical industry, the past few years have been unlimited. From 2015 to 2020, the industry grew at an annual rate of around 17%. By 2023, the market size will reach 205.2 billion yuan. With such a big cake, it's no wonder that so many people flock to it.
But if you look closely, this industry is really a bit special. The incidence of oral diseases in mainland China is as high as 74%, but public hospitals account for less than 1% of the market share. The remaining 83% is occupied by private clinics. In this way, private clinics are really making a lot of money.
But in recent years, things seem to be a little bit less rosy. On the one hand, people are complaining more and more about the high price and poor quality of dental care. On the other hand, the government has also begun to regulate the industry. For example, after the government implemented unified procurement of dental implants, the average price of dental implants dropped from 8,000 yuan to 4,000 yuan, a drop of up to 55%! All of a sudden, the profits of many clinics have been compressed.
To live or to die: the difficult choice of a dental clinic
Faced with such a situation, many dental clinics have begun to transform. Some turn to other items such as teeth whitening and fillings, while others find ways to reduce costs. I've heard that some clinics even go to the extra mile to sell dental implants at low prices in order to attract customers. Although this practice can attract some customers, in the long run, it will not only affect the clinic's revenue, but also may cause a series of medical quality problems.
What is even more worrying is that some clinics even take risks and do some irregular operations in order to survive. Some time ago, it was exposed on the Internet that some clinics used inferior materials and exaggerated the condition. These behaviors not only harm the interests of patients, but also seriously affect the image of the entire industry.
The patient's dilemma: the dilemma between high price and low quality
As ordinary patients, we are really torn between a few sides. On one side there are large chain clinics with high prices, and on the other side there are small clinics whose quality is difficult to guarantee. How to choose?
I have a friend who had this problem not long ago. He originally planned to go to a large chain clinic to do dental implants, but when he asked about the price, he was directly scared away. In desperation, he had no choice but to choose a small clinic. Although the price was a lot cheaper, he didn't feel quite right during the operation. Not long after the surgery, his teeth began to become inflamed and he had to spend another amount of money on retreatment. This back and forth made him physically and mentally exhausted.
Industry chaos: from profiteering to collapse
In the final analysis, the root cause of these problems lies in the chaos of the industry. In the past few years, the dental medical industry has been lucrative and has attracted a large influx of capital. Many people enter the industry with the mentality of making quick money and don't care about providing quality medical services at all.
And now, with the tightening of policies and rising costs, these clinics that only care about making money will naturally not be able to hold on. It is said that in some business districts in Wuhan, Shenzhen and other places, the closure of dental clinics is rising one after another. Some clinics are closed without even paying their salaries, let alone refunding patients' advance payments.
This situation is not only costly for patients, but also for doctors who are serious about the profession. I know a dentist who often complains that many patients now have a growing distrust of dentists, which makes them tired of working as well.
What does the future hold?
What should we do in the face of such a situation? As patients, we certainly want to receive affordable and reliable dental care. But this does not seem to be a problem that we can solve on our own.
Perhaps, we need stricter industry supervision, a more transparent price system, and a more complete medical security system. But none of this can happen overnight.
Until then, what we can do may be to choose clinics more carefully, compare them with others, and not be tempted by low prices. At the same time, it is also important to pay attention to daily oral health care, after all, prevention is better than cure.
It is really embarrassing to see that the once glorious oral medical industry is now in such a predicament. Hopefully, the industry will come out of the gloom soon, after all, everyone wants to have a healthy mouthful of teeth, doesn't it?
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