{
  "id": 5913592,
  "title": "Vietnam wants to grow dental tourism, which has Australian dentists worried",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/06/vietnam-wants-to-grow-dental-tourism-which-has-australian-dentists",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-09-06T05:08:31.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-06/dental-tourism-australians-travel-to-vietnam-for-treatment/107061322"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Vietnam is seeking to expand its dental tourism industry, attracting more Australian patients who are concerned about the high cost of dental work in their own country. The Vietnamese Health Ministry reports that Australians are among the top nationalities receiving medical treatment in the country. Dental clinics in Vietnam are utilizing social media to target Australian tourists, offering cheaper dental procedures along with accommodations, flights, and other services. Wendy Middleton, a 67-year-old Australian from Adelaide, is one such patient who sought dental work in Vietnam due to the high cost and lengthy waiting times in her home country. She was initially hesitant but ultimately decided to take the risk after researching the procedure. However, consultant prosthodontist Scott Davis, a spokesperson for the Australian Dental Association, has seen many patients return from overseas with negative outcomes due to complications that cannot be resolved quickly. He believes that Australia should track adverse outcomes from medical procedures abroad to better understand the scale of the problem. Vietnam aims to double the number of international medical tourists, including dental patients, to around 750,000 by 2030 in partnership with the country's tourism department.",
  "summary": "Australians now make up the majority of foreign clients at dentists in Vietnam, as increasing numbers of Australians seek cheaper, quicker dental procedures in Asia. But Australian dentists are worried.",
  "key_points": [
    "Australian dentists worry about patients returning with negative outcomes from overseas procedures.",
    "Vietnamese dental clinics use social media to target Australian tourists with cheaper procedures."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The push by Vietnam to grow its dental tourism industry means Australian dentists are likely to see more patients returning with complications that are difficult to resolve.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}