WHILE the country’s dental regulators have admitted that it is becoming increasingly difficult to clamp down on illegal dentists due to their ingenuity, they believe they’ve been gaining ground in the fight as more Jamaicans are turning to licensed practitioners.

Chief dental officer in the Ministry of Health Dr Irving McKenzie shared that fake dentists in Jamaica have become increasingly cunning by leveraging social media platforms and frequently changing locations to evade detection.

“It is like a moving target, because they move from place to place. Then there are those who do home visits, so we’ll try to get an expert witness, so to speak, or see if we can get somebody to get an appointment to see one of these individuals, and it’s almost like the person has scouts out there to look and find out who is coming. They are very clever,” McKenzie told the Jamaica Observer.

He shared that initially, when the practice of illegal dentistry arose, individuals mainly used traditional forms of promoting their business, which required issuing a contact number and address for their business. However, with the rise in social media marketing and influence, this step has been removed, making it much harder to locate the culprits.

The practice of illegal dentistry became increasingly popular after 2018, when there was an uptick in the number of advertisements by persons offering to install ‘fashion’ or ‘cosmetic’ braces at prices much lower than what’s charged by professionals.

Dr McKenzie added that, in recent times, fake dentures, fake veneers, and tooth extractions are also popular services being offered by illegal practitioners.

While he did not state earlier figures, McKenzie said to his knowledge only two illegal dentists have had their operations shut down between April 2024 and March 2025. He added, however, that multiple cease and desist orders have been issued by members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

In a recent podcast episode to mark World Oral Health Day, senior communications strategist for the JCF Senior Superintendent Dennis Brooks shared that social media followers and influencers promoting some of these “practices” have often led many to believe that these illegal dentists are legitimate.

Enforcement activities to crack down on illegal dentists, he said, are a collaborative effort of the Counter-Terrorism and Organized Crime Investigations Branch (C-TOC) and the National Intelligence Bureau, as individuals who open these establishments are sometimes engaged in other forms of illegal activities.

“There is a lot of work that goes into monitoring social media, because social media has become a very influential and powerful marketplace. It’s a powerful tool for illegal services, and some people become very popular. They become very noteworthy, establishing a social media presence and offering to do things that they have no real right or licence to do,” he said.

“They don’t have the proper training, they’ve not gone to school, they don’t have the proper facilities to do this, and people see these people on social media, send them a [direct message] and before you know it they are making very serious decisions that can have permanent consequences,” Brooks said.

He continued: “It’s important for people to understand that you’re making a health decision. Some of these people are performing surgeries and they are not licensed to do so, and so social media has become the frontier of law enforcement where we are now having to enforce law in the virtual space.”

He said the police have received reports about illegal dentists operating in informal settings such as back rooms and informal market spaces, and cease and desist orders have been enforced. The senior superintendent added that, while shutting down these establishments hve been difficult, there are some illegal practices that had a noticeable presence on social media that have been shut down. He warned that those who practise these procedures can be arrested and charged.

“Ignorance of the law is no defence. It doesn’t protect anyone from liability, and the reality is there is the Dental Act. There are other public health regulations that we have to be mindful of, and it’s clear that licensed professionals providing dental care should be adhering to these regulations and legislations; and if not, then there are the guard rails of society that should be made to work,” said SSP Brooks.

He noted that there are many people who are tricked into undergoing these procedures under the belief that they are legal and so may not report the incident because they think it is legitimate.

According to the chief dental officer in the Ministry of Health, while the crackdown on these practices and arrests of the individuals have been low, the ministry has seen where addressing the lack of education about oral health in Jamaica and providing intervention methods have been successful.

McKenzie said that, based on his estimations, there has been a 25 per cent reduction in people seeking to have dentures from illegal practitioners.

“In terms of persons going to get their tooth extracted by an illegal practitioner, we still see it, but I’ll tell you we are up to about 80 per cent reduction in those kind of things going on.

“In terms of the orthodontists’ services, I will say we are at about five per cent. I don’t think that we have completely slayed that beast. I don’t think we have been largely successful in terms of bringing many of them before the courts or locking them up, like what happens in jurisdictions like the Bahamas, but what I will tell you is that, in terms of the demand for the services of those individuals, the demand has decreased,” he told the Sunday Observer.

McKenzie reasoned that the reduction in demand for the illegal services can be quantified due to the increase in individuals who have reached out to the Dental Council of Jamaica to seek legitimate dental practitioners.

Additionally, he said many Jamaicans, through public education campaigns, have been sensitised about the dangers of using illegal practitioners. He added that the Ministry of Health has also implemented multiple avenues for individuals below the poverty line and members of vulnerable groups to access free dental care.

“When you are more educated you are more aware, and the awareness has caused a significant reduction in the illegal practice,” said McKenzie.

He shared that the ministry has got in excess of 200 calls from individuals who previously used illegal practitioners and are now seeking to find registered and licensed dentists.

McKenzie added that with more than 60 individuals in need of the service, but without the revenue, they were also given braces through public-private partnerships.

More than 2,000 Jamaicans also benefited from Second Chance Smile, a programme within the ministry that provides free dentures to Jamaicans under 60 years old, following its announcement in 2023. An additional 8,000 Jamaicans were targeted for the 2024/2025 fiscal year.

The chief dental officer said that the Government also has 120 dentists islandwide who provide free dental care and have been sensitised about illegal dentists. He added that more than 60 volunteer missions have also come to Jamaica to give dental care, root canals, and perform denture procedures.

“For those who may claim to be financially challenged, we have removed the burden of finances so that they can accept care. People also used to go a lot to the illegal dentists for extractions. We have found that there is a precipitous decline in persons going to illegal practitioners to get their teeth extracted because of this increased workforce, and the improvement in terms of the facility and the quality of care being offered,” said McKenzie.

He added that the ministry is also seeking to infiltrate the social media space to reduce the spread of misinformation about dentistry.

Dr Lloyd Prince, registrar at the Dental Council of Jamaica, warned that seeking the services of illegal dentists can be very harmful.

“Wrong or negligent dental treatment can lead to various problems, including infections, nerve damage, painful jaw or mouth injuries, and even the potential for long-term health issues. In fact, while some procedures may be corrected by an experienced dental surgeon, others may be irreparable to the patient or client,” he told the Sunday Observer in an e-mailed response.

Individuals who get fake braces also run the risk of illegal practitioners using lower-quality brackets with toxic chemicals that can cause cancer.

Prince shared that the number of illegal dentists cannot be quantified due to the cloak of anonymity via social media, lack of a physical location, and enforcement challenges faced by regulatory bodies that “may lack the necessary resources or legal framework to effectively monitor and shut down these operators”. There is, however, a growing number of registered dental practitioners in Jamaica.

He shared that as of December 2024, there were 784 registered dentists in Jamaica. The numbers reflect a steady increase from 2023 when there were 748 registered dentists, and 2022 when there were 710 registered dentists.

The full list of registered dentists can be found on the Dental Council of Jamaica website.

Individuals who suspect that someone is operating illegally are being urged to immediately contact the council. A complaint investigation form is also available on the council’s website to help increase compliance.

“The council is responsible for verifying the competency of those who go into practice. Consequently, it is responsible for enforcing dental laws and dental regulations of Jamaica,” wrote Prince.

“The key guiding principles in dentistry are related to — autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice. These canons are emphasised to the dental profession through ongoing training among dental professionals. The council has a committee specifically geared towards guiding ethics and professionalism among dental professionals. This committee, through the council, has the authority to impose sanctions on the offending dental surgeon,” he shared.

As per the Dental Act, a person found operating illegally may be fined in the courts not exceeding $1 million and/or imprisonment not exceeding two years.

BROOKS…ignorance of the law is no defence