A team of enforcers from the Health Ministry has successfully busted an illegal dental school operated by a beautician in Setapak on Wednesday (Sept 28), reported The Star.
Dental school under the radar since July
The raid was carried out following a tip-off by The Star following its coverage back in July about the dental school, which was giving out bogus dental courses and certificates to “students”.
The courses typically last for a few hours and cost between RM1,500 and RM3,000.
One of The Star’s journalists, who attended the courses while undercover, was given a starting kit containing a polishing gadget, veneer composite, LED light, bonding agent, etchant gel, mouth retractor, along with other tools meant only for medical practitioners.
Busted by authorities
Acting on the information given, the enforcers raided the dental school and confiscated dental probes, dental fillings and nickel-titanium wire usually used in making braces.
They also seized a desktop containing a record of certificates issued to those who had completed its courses on veneer, whitening drip and platelet-rich plasma injections.
Health Ministry dental officer Dr Taufik Firdaus, who was also the lead raiding officer, said that preliminary investigations revealed that the beautician wasn’t registered with the Malaysian Dental Council.
The place was also found to be infested with cockroaches.
“We received a complaint…that the premises has been providing illegal dental treatments, hence we conducted our investigation before the raid.
“We found dental materials that can be used as evidence. The case will be charged under Section 4(1) of the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act,” he told reporters after the raid.
‘What’s wrong with it?’
Following the raid, the 36-year-old beautician calmly defended herself for her actions, saying that she only wanted to earn extra money.
I know it is wrong but I see many people doing it, so what’s the problem if I want to look for pocket money?
She also claimed to have acquired her “skills” from an Indonesian woman who provided a one-day course which cost her RM3,600.
“After that, I set up my own business because there were a lot of requests. Also, many are doing it (providing veneer services) so I tried it myself just so that I could earn money as a single mother,” she said.
The beautician, who’s also a single mother, admitted to issuing a “participatory certificate” to students who had completed the course.
However, she claimed that the certificates were only given to those who wanted to learn, where they would be assessed by her to see whether they could carry out the job.
Always consult a registered dentist if you have any teeth problems and not those online!
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