Verification methodology

How we verify Vietnamese clinics

The 18-point clinic verification process applied identically across the five SmileJet Vietnamese cities. This is the full document — what we check, who checks it, and how often.

SmileJet operates a curated partner network in Vietnam rather than an open marketplace. Every Vietnamese clinic in our network has passed an 18-point inspection executed by a dedicated country-wide verification team. The process below is what each clinic goes through before being added, and what each clinic is re-audited against annually.

The methodology is deliberately public. Patients should understand exactly what we check and what we do not. Clinics should know the standards they meet and the standards they will be measured against.

The 18 verification points

Clinical credentials (4 points)

Verification of every treating dentist against the Vietnam Ministry of Health practitioner registry
Specialist credentials check for implantology, prosthodontics, endodontics, periodontics — verified against post-graduate certification documents
Minimum five years of relevant clinical practice for the treating dentists assigned to international cases
Confirmation of any claimed international training (US, Australia, Germany, Japan, South Korea, etc.) against the issuing institution

Sterilisation and infection control (4 points)

Autoclave logs reviewed for the prior 12 months — temperature, pressure, cycle records
Instrument tracking system inspection — every reusable instrument numbered and tracked through use, sterilisation, and storage
Single-use disposable usage audit — what is reused, what is disposed, and how disposable inventory is managed
Waste disposal protocols verified against EU CE-marked benchmarks for clinical waste handling

Equipment and facility (4 points)

Imaging equipment inspection — digital X-ray, CBCT 3D scanner where claimed, panoramic OPG
Dental laboratory facilities inspection (in-house or contracted) including CAD/CAM milling, ceramics workflow, materials inventory
Surgical environment standards — ventilation, lighting, isolation between treatment rooms, anaesthesia equipment
Emergency response equipment — defibrillator, oxygen, emergency medications inventory, last-checked dates

Materials sourcing (3 points)

Implant brand sourcing verification — direct distributor relationship versus grey-market import. Straumann, Nobel Biocare, Osstem, and Dentium each tracked separately
Restorative materials sourcing — porcelain, zirconia, lithium disilicate (E.max) supplier verification
Anaesthesia and pharmaceutical supply chain verification, including expiry-date management for stocked medications

Patient outcome and case data (3 points)

Implant survival rate over the prior 24 months, measured against the Moraschini 2015 systematic review benchmark of approximately 94.6% pooled five-year survival
Complication rate tracking — bleeding, infection, peri-implantitis, prosthetic failures — with documented response protocols
Patient complaint log audit and resolution tracking

Who runs the verification

The verification team is a country-wide function, not city-specific. The same lead inspector audits every Vietnamese partner clinic across all five SmileJet cities, with on-site clinical advisors in each city providing continuity. This is deliberate: city-by-city verification creates inconsistent standards because each inspector calibrates their own bar. Country-wide verification means a Hoi An clinic is held to the same standard as a Hanoi clinic, applied by the same person.

The verification team includes:

A lead inspector with clinical dentistry training (Vietnamese dental school graduate plus international post-graduate qualification)
A sterilisation and infection-control specialist who audits autoclave logs and instrument tracking
An equipment specialist who validates imaging and surgical equipment standards
A materials specialist who verifies sourcing chains and anti-counterfeit safeguards

Verification visits are scheduled, not surprise. Surprise inspections look performative; scheduled inspections produce more reliable data because clinics show their actual sustained operations rather than a one-day cleanup.

How often we re-audit

Every partner clinic is re-audited annually. The annual re-audit covers all 18 points of the original verification with particular attention to outcome data accumulated since the last visit. Clinics that drift on outcome benchmarks — implant survival rate, complication rate, patient complaint patterns — are flagged for additional inspection or removal.

Between annual re-audits, we monitor:

Patient outcome reports for SmileJet-referred cases over the prior 12 months
Patient feedback and complaints submitted through SmileJet channels
Clinical staff turnover that might affect the verified team
Material sourcing changes (e.g., implant brand stocking changes)

Material changes — a switch in implant brand sourcing, a key staff member leaving, a sterilisation incident — trigger an off-cycle re-audit before the next annual visit. The patient outcome stream is the most actionable signal; if a clinic's outcomes drift, we re-inspect within weeks rather than waiting for the annual cycle.

What we do not verify

To be clear about scope:

Aesthetic outcomes. Veneer artistry and smile design are subjective. We do not rate clinics on aesthetic outcomes; we rate them on technical fundamentals (sterilisation, materials, clinical training) and verify that the clinic has the equipment to do high-quality cosmetic work. The match between you and a specific ceramist is something the consultation phase determines.
Pricing. We do not set or police clinic pricing. Partner clinics set their own prices; we verify the work that backs the prices. The pricing ranges published in our country-level overviews are typical-range averages, not negotiated rates.
Customer service. Speed of email reply, friendliness of reception staff, smoothness of scheduling — these matter to the patient experience but vary day-to-day in ways the verification process does not capture. The annual re-audit reviews patient complaint logs, but we do not test customer service in the way we test sterilisation.

The verification methodology backs the Vietnam Promise

This is the operational basis for our country-wide guarantee. The 12-month treatment guarantee, the country-wide transferability, and the refund-of-fees commitment all rest on verified clinics being verified consistently.

Read the Vietnam Promise

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