Healthwatch warns of dentistry crisis as public concerns continue
The Government has been urged by Healthwatch England to take urgent action and address issues with access to NHS dental care.
Healthwatch continues to hear concerns about dentistry, which were first highlighted in the “Dentistry and the impact of COVID-19” report following a 452% rise in calls and complaints to local Healthwatch.
Since February 2020, Healthwatch North Yorkshire has received a significant amount of feedback regarding dentistry. Increasing from 7.38% to 11.27% of contacts on the rolling 12 months.
The findings of the feedback review conducted in October are still relevant, with the situation only deteriorating further. Comments in our feedback since the previous review indicates:
- Increasing concern around the dental health of children, as NHS patients are facing delays to appointments and services.
- Emergency provision does seem available, but this is prohibitively expensive or potentially too far to reach for some.
- Members of the public attempting to register as an NHS patient are often not even being offered to go on a 2-year waiting list anymore.
- Members of the public seeking to register are often offered to go private and be seen earlier: indicating that dentists do have capacity for treatment, but the NHS is not utilising this potential.
The impact on people:
Healthwatch’s findings suggest that patients are being told that although NHS appointments are not available, they can be treated privately. This creates a real barrier for everyone, and in particular for people on low income, to receive vital treatment.
While one individual was charged £500 for an extraction of a single tooth, another person was offered a procedure for £1,700, which was £60 on the NHS.
A local resident disclosed to Healthwatch North Yorkshire the struggles dentistry in the pandemic has caused for their sister. Sharing the only emergency treatment available was to remove teeth, but with no access to an NHS dentist.
My sister desperately needs an NHS dentist. She had to go to a private one today and was charged £120 just for a consultation and x-ray. She has been told she needs 9 teeth removing and temporary dentures fitted, then permanent ones. I’m desperately trying to get her into an NHS dentist. The treatment is going to cost £4000.
Dental findings: the impact of COVID-19
Communication between dental providers and patients also remains an issue, with some people unable to find information about which local NHS dentists are offering routine check-ups, and if any are taking on new NHS patients following closures during the first lockdown.
Dentists’ appointments were cancelled without notifying the patients or providing them with any information about when they could reschedule their visit.
Commenting on the struggle to get an appointment at an NHS dentist in North Yorkshire, one respondent said:
“We are a family of four and all our appointments have been moved, only to be cancelled on several occasions. Now we have been put on a waiting list – but my employer goes to the same dental practice and has the same surgeon – but pays into a private plan and none of his appointments have been cancelled. He will be attending his second appointment shortly, whilst myself and family still have not had a date to replace the first cancelled appointment since the beginning of the pandemic. If I could afford to go private I would, we would all like that luxury.”
In a follow-up review of people’s feedback on dentistry received between October and December 2020, Healthwatch England found:
- Access to dentistry remained difficult for more than seven in 10 people (72%).
- Some people who actively sought dental treatment were told they would have to wait anywhere between a few months to, in one case, two years for an appointment.
- Access to urgent NHS treatment was difficult for both people with painful teeth, with patients being told that dental pain was not considered an “emergency”, and those who were prescribed multiple courses of antibiotics by NHS111 without being provided any further treatment.
- Some people said they had called over 40 practices to find an NHS dentist, and pulled their own teeth out when they couldn’t bear the pain.
- When dentists couldn’t offer an appointment, they advised people to buy dental repair kits to treat themselves. In one case, an individual was advised to use a nail file to deal with the sharp edges of a broken tooth.
The findings come after some MPs and the British Dental Association called on the Government to scrap its new targets for NHS dentists, which require them to deliver 45% of their pre-pandemic levels of dental activity. There are concerns this is likely to push practices into prioritising appointments such as check-ups over emergency or more complex treatments.
There are concerns this is likely to push practices into prioritising appointments such as check-ups over emergency or more complex longer treatments.
Healthwatch England previously called for more emphasis to be placed on solving structural issues within NHS dental services and warns dental care is facing an immediate crisis without the Government stepping up to the plate.
Our findings show that access to dental care is currently neither equal nor inclusive, leading to traumatic experiences for many people. This provides yet more evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the human impact of years of structural issues in NHS dentistry and is now pushing it to crisis point. In the longer term, the Department of Health and Social Care must prioritise the importance of oral health and commit to improving access to dentistry for everyone who needs it.
If you think you need urgent dental treatment:
- call your dentist
- use NHS 111 online if you cannot contact your dentist or you do not have one
Find out more about using the NHS and other health services during coronavirus
You can search for an NHS dentist near you on this site.
If after contacting several dental surgeries you still cannot find a dentist accepting NHS patients, call NHS England’s Customer Contact Centre on 0300 311 2233.
NHS England commissions dental services in England and is required to meet the needs of their local population for both urgent and routine dental care.
People in North Yorkshire can continue to share their experiences of health and social care services through the Because We All Care survey, by calling Healthwatch North Yorkshire on 01904 552687 or emailing admin@hwny.co.uk.
