Last updated: September 2026
Finding a dentist is not usually hard. Finding one you can explain a problem to, in the language you think in, is a different exercise, and it is the reason plenty of families drive a long way past several practices to reach one where that is possible.
At Divine Dental Care in Croydon, two members of the clinical team speak Korean: Dr Lisa Chu, a general dentist, and Sooin Lee, our dental hygienist.
Most practices that advertise a language have one person who speaks it. That covers the examination and not much else.
Routine dental care is really two appointments with different jobs. The dentist examines, diagnoses and plans treatment. The hygienist does the cleaning and, more importantly, the teaching: how you are brushing, where you are missing, what the bleeding means, what to change. The second conversation is longer and more detailed than most people expect, and it is the one that decides whether gum disease progresses or stops.
Having Korean available in both roles means the explaining part is not the part that gets lost. Dr Chu covers examinations, restorative work and implants. Sooin Lee covers hygiene and gum disease treatment, which is where the technique conversation happens.
A lot of patients arrive with an adult child to interpret. It works, and it is a reasonable thing to do, but it has two costs that are rarely acknowledged.
The first is that clinical detail flattens in translation. A dentist explaining why a tooth needs a crown rather than a filling is making a distinction about remaining tooth structure and the risk of fracture. Relayed second-hand by someone without the vocabulary, that usually arrives as "they said you need a crown", which is not the same information and does not support a real decision.
The second is privacy. Medical history, medications, what someone can afford and what they are frightened of are not things everybody wants discussed through a family member. Being able to speak directly to the clinician removes that constraint entirely.
Ask for it by name when you book. Appointments here are scheduled by clinician, so a request made at booking is straightforward and a request made on arrival often cannot be accommodated that day.
If you already see another dentist at the practice and would rather keep that continuity, that is fine too. Ten dentists work here and they cross-refer routinely, so a longer treatment discussion can be arranged with a Korean-speaking clinician without you having to change practice or start again somewhere new.
Language is one part of it. The rest is the ordinary detail that decides whether a practice is workable for a family.
Korean is not the only language spoken here. Several of our dentists speak Mandarin, as does our oral health therapist. Two speak Cantonese. Dr Joy Liu also speaks Shanghainese. Between the clinical team the practice covers English, Korean, Mandarin, Cantonese and Shanghainese, which reflects the eastern suburbs reasonably well.
If you would like to see the whole team and what each dentist focuses on, our dentists page lists everyone. For Chinese-speaking patients, we have a separate guide covering the same ground.
No referral is needed for any of this. Call (03) 9725 8040 and say which clinician you would like, or book online. We are at 59 Wicklow Avenue, Croydon VIC 3136, open six days with parking on site.
This article is general information, not personal dental advice. Treatment recommendations require an examination.