Indians Abroad: The dentists who never make their patients wait
Dr Navreet Sidhu and Dr Venus Sidhu moved to Canada in 2007 and started practising after clearing their local professional exams in 2013 and 2017, respectively.
Meet the dentist couple from Punjab who have made a name for themselves in Canada by dint of sheer hard work.
Name: Dr Navreet Sidhu and Dr Venus Sidhu
Claim to fame
The couple runs a successful dental practice in Canada
Roots in Punjab
Dr Navreet is from Banga and her husband Dr Venus is from Kalauli village in Patiala district.
The move to Canada
They moved to Canada in 2007 and started practising after clearing their local professional exams in 2013 and 2017, respectively.
Challenges
The couple say in the beginning it was very tough. “But we had decided that we will continue to study as per our previous educational qualifications.” Therefore, Dr Venus joined a dental hygienist course here while his wife Dr Navreet cleared her dental surgeon examinations. “First two years are hard for everyone. And when you come here with professional qualifications then you want to nake use of that. So it was tough. Particularly if you have a family with small kids that has its own challenges,” says Dr Navreet.
What is it that you miss the most about Punjab?
“Punjab always has a place in our hearts. How can anybody forget a place where you have roots? So we definitely remember all our relatives and times spent there. We make it a point to visit regularly. It is only during the Covid pandemic that we had to make a break from our regular visits.”
What is it about Punjab that pains you the most?
“There is very less scope for improvement there. Safety is a big issue. We see that there is a law and order problem. Many of our friends who did not move are now sending their children to Canada because of safety concerns.”
What is it that Punjab can replicate from Canada?
“There is a lot of community participation here in Canada for the social good without any expectation of rewards. In India too there are organisations and clubs which do social service but there is a lot of politics involved in them. There you cannot survive if you do not align with one party or the other. Here it is not so. Here there is no political angle to community service. Here in high schools students have to do community service hours and this gets them into this habit for a lifetime.”
Secret Sauce
“Hard work is the secret of our success. Persistent hard work. You have to stick to your goals. We never make our patients wait no matter what.”
The daily fix
“We work from 10 am to 7 pm at our clinics. There is no letup. When the kids are small then this life is tough. Now our kids are grown up so we have it a little easier.”
Looking ahead
