The Immigration Department has arrested six Filipino domestic helpers suspected of providing unlicensed dental services at a tenement unit in Sham Shui Po. They are believed to have violated stay conditions and engaged in dental practice without registration.
The six arrested female helpers, aged between 34 and 60, are suspected of working as unlicensed dentists, with two identified as "unlicensed dentists" and the other four as their assistants. They are being detained for investigation on charges of violating stay conditions and practicing dentistry without registration.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the six helpers used the tenement unit every Sunday to provide dental services, including teeth cleaning, braces, and denture fabrication, primarily for fellow Filipino workers. The location of the unit was discreet, and none of the six had received any formal dental training or held any professional dental qualifications. Investigations revealed that they learned dental techniques through online videos, with one claiming to have worked as a dental assistant in the Philippines. Customers were mainly referred through friends within the domestic helper community, with services priced between HK$150 and HK$500. The employers of the six helpers were unaware of their involvement in unlicensed dental activities.
The investigation is ongoing, and more arrests are not ruled out.
Officials involved in the investigation stated that the arrested helpers had no professional qualifications and had not received any formal training. The hygiene conditions at the site were extremely poor, with only a sofa, distilled water, tissues, towels, essential oils, a washbasin, and rudimentary surgical instruments present in the so-called operating room. When arrested, the alleged dentists were dressed in ordinary clothing, with no evidence that their clothing, medical supplies, or tools had been sanitized. Medical waste was also disposed of carelessly, posing a significant risk of viral infection. The Immigration Department urges the public, including domestic helpers, not to patronize these "unsanitary, unregistered, and unlicensed" black market dentists and clinics for the sake of saving money.
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