Concerns raised about NHS dental treatment availability
Anyone who has tried to arrange an NHS dentistry appointment in recent years is likely to tell you that they are, to pardon the pun, as rare as hen’s teeth.
This has led to stories hitting the national headlines about people crowdfunding to pay for dental treatment and even resorting to self-treatment in some cases.
Although the picture locally may not be as dramatic as that outlined above, at Healthwatch Cambridgeshire and Peterborough we regularly hear feedback from people concerned about the lack of availability of NHS dental services.
Following our ‘Finding an NHS Dentist’ report published in January 2019, we’ve continued to track enquiries to our Information & Signposting team and identified a substantial upward trend in the number of people contacting us with concerns about dentistry.
This situation is due to a combination of issues, including a shortage of NHS dentists and dental nurses, recruitment challenges and backlogs resulting from the Covid pandemic.
Access to services, service delivery organisation and staffing, and booking appointments are the most common themes raised with us.
Among these, our Information & Signposting service heard from people who have been unable to find an NHS dentist or have been waiting considerable periods of time to be given appointments. Others have contacted us to say they have been offered unaffordable private treatment rather than NHS provision.
Healthwatch action
Julian Stanley, CEO of Healthwatch Cambridgeshire and Peterborough said:
“Our Information and Signposting service is here to help if people are struggling to find a dentist. We encourage members of the public to contact us to share their experiences, and any concerns about the availability of dental services. Doing so enables Healthwatch to amplify the voice and opinions of local people. The feedback we receive is used to make the Integrated Care System aware of the issues and gaps in current service provision.
We continue to track and monitor dentistry enquiries and report back to the local Integrated Care Board, as dental care is so vital to the health of people across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
We have also contributed evidence to Healthwatch England’s submission to the government’s current enquiry into NHS dentistry in England.”
Struggling to find a dentist?
Dentists don’t have catchment areas, so you can visit one outside your local area if that works for you. However, this will naturally lead to additional transport costs which may make this option unfeasible.
The NHS website allows you to search for a dentist near you and provides information on which practices are currently accepting new patients, the availability of urgent appointments, and how services have been rated.
More advice about finding an NHS dentist in Cambridgeshire can be found on our website here.
