An AcciDENTAL Clinic

As the first dental clinic in the estate then, Audrey was fairly confident that business would be decent. Even when another dental clinic sprouted up not long after hers, she was concerned but not overly worried. It was never in her character to want to make a lot of money, and correspondingly she did not have very high financial expectations of her clinic.

“I just wanted to do a good job, provide a needed service in the area, have the business be decently sustainable,” she explained.

Part of ensuring sustainability was to start off prudently with just one dental chair.

“It’s better to start small, get established first before considering your next steps. If I have to expand and add chairs later on, it’s a better problem to have than to start off with a few chairs and reduce it.”

Another reason Audrey preferred operating in the heartland was the more familial feel and culture of the place, where word-of-mouth and line-of-sight publicity were more effective than high-end advertising campaigns. It also helped that the mall area had good footfall from residents getting their groceries or on their way to the hawker.

“I think, especially at the start, residents really enjoyed having a dental clinic nearby. So business picked up fairly fast. In fact, even residents from Pasir Panjang and Sentosa begin coming by the clinic,” she said.

The Dentist Will See You Now

Not having any close friends who are dentists, I asked Audrey a question that I have long wondered about: why do so many, including me, have an irrational fear of dentists?

She chuckled and pointed that dental procedures can be very invasive, as the insides of a mouth is a very personal area. It is thus not uncommon for people to feel a sense of nervousness and fear. It may also be that people are not used to keeping their mouths wide open for a long period, and the supine position makes them feel more vulnerable.

“Hence, helping patients feel at ease is very important. My character is that I can be very calm; I think patients can sense that and it soothes them,” she said.

That made a lot of sense to me; my dentophobia started as a child when a trip to an impatient dentist turned out badly. I did not feel at ease in a dental chair for many years after that!

Trust is also important.

The Person Behind the Mask

As I chatted with Audrey, it occurred to me despite having her as my dentist several times, I would not be able to recognise her if we crossed paths outside. It was because I had never quite seen her unmasked face for a prolonged period before, given that she was always masked up while cleaning my teeth. Do patients actually recognise her? The answer was a surprising yes; in fact, she shared that sometimes when residents see her on the street, they would even seek out some quick advice on whatever dental problems they were having.

“It’s okay,” she grinned. “It does not happen too often and anyway, I’m happy to help.”

As it goes, recognition is not just one way. Practicing in a place where she lived meant that she saw many familiar faces as her patients — neighbours, hawkers, relatives, even the workers helping to keep Telok Blangah clean. One of the funnier moments was when she saw a patient for a chipped front tooth, and recognised who he was.

“I asked him, how did you chip your tooth? He said he was out partying at Zouk, and had accidentally smashed his mouth into something while dancing. I remember thinking, oh dear me, that’s my daughter’s teacher!” she chuckled.