Jeff Apton discovered his new calling in life within the confines of a dental chair.
Newly retired like many a baby boomer, though living comfortably, the North Salem resident knew of the reality of limited funds.
“One day, I was sitting in my dentist”™s office just before a vacation to Panama,” he said. “They had an extractor in my mouth, said ”˜Let me show you what you need”™ and put up my X-rays. I needed about $10,000 to $12,000 worth of work, which was basically two implants. I”™m retired. It”™s expensive stuff.”
That was when he decided to pursue affordable, quality dentistry and Pan American Dental Tours was born.Â
Apton worked for years in sales and marketing at pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. Inc.
He then worked for education agencies, and versed physicians and consumers on medical conditions.
“For the last five years of my life, I”™ve been a volunteer business counselor at Western Connecticut SCORE and give of my time and efforts to help people who own small businesses or who want to start small businesses,” he said. “As I counseled people, I got a better sense of my own talents as a business person.”
Apton said he wanted to help people, namely to save money at a time when he says “50 percent of Americans don”™t have dental insurance.”
The concept of his startup is simple: partner with Panamanian dentists and act as the go-between in scheduling major dental work as well as travel logistics should a client request.
Apton with business partner and sister Robin Apton, who has 30 years of experience in the dental industry, traveled to Panama and met with dentists, toured their offices and viewed their certificates of dentistry.
Pan American Dental negotiates rates with Panamanian dentists and when clients pay for work, a percent commission is extracted.
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Panama was Apton”™s only target country because the dollar currency is accepted.
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Apton lauded Panama City as a cosmopolitan “banking center for Latin America.”
He does not repudiate the work of American dentists.
“My father was a dentist and I saw him work 12 hours a day,” he said. “Dentists spend a lot of money on education and I think they should be compensated for their motivation. But in the buyer-seller exchange that”™s called business, they are selling something and the patient is the buyer. The buyer wants to go to the place that will give them the best deal.”
“This topic of knowing who your dentist is is a very complex and critical one,” said dentist Edward Prus of the Center of Dental Excellence in Hopewell Junction. “I see ads marketing the implant, cosmetic and reconstructive skills of doctors who, in fact, do not know more than the basics of these areas. I often need to salvage incorrectly done work after, in frustration, the patient finally decides to bolt the office. What will make the journey worthwhile? Knowing before you go, who exactly is your ‘dentist in waiting”™.”
Apton estimated 50 percent to 70 percent can be saved by having dental work done in Panama.
Personally, he spent $75 on a minor procedure in Panama, which included a filled prescription. For the same procedure in California, without a filled prescription, he spent $575.
Though dental tour statistics were not revealed, the American Dental Association does provide dental tourism tips at ada.org.
Pan Am”™s website is panamdentaltours.com.
