Dental services criticised
Healthwatch East Sussex, a monitoring group funded by the NHS which gathers people’s views of health and social services, has released the outcome of their recent survey of the county’s dental services. Based on 296 responses, it reveals unsurprisingly an overall decline in patient satisfaction since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020.
CREDIT: Nizil Shah (Creative Commons)
• Most respondents, whether NHS or private patients, reported reduced access to dentistry services, both routine and emergency.
• Only one in three respondents who had tried to join a dental practice since March 2020 were successful; of these, many joined as private patients because they could not find practices accepting NHS patients.
• Many respondents had been removed from dental practice lists. The practices cited a lack of regular attendance, missed appointments and/or departure of staff, but most patients were not informed of their removal, and they then faced challenges in finding another practice that would accept them.
• The NHS Find a dentist website shows contracted NHS practices, but not those (much fewer) which are accepting patients.
• One in five respondents rated the standard of care they had received from dentists and practice staff as ‘poor’.
• Some respondents were unclear as to the extent of their eligibility for free NHS dental treatment, and noted additional charges or changes to prices occurring with limited explanation or limited opportunity for discussion. The significant gap between NHS and private fees for certain treatments was identified as a concern.
• The restricted capacity and high thresholds for accessing urgent and emergency treatment, both from practices and Emergency Dental Services led to many people experiencing significant discomfort and pain, as well as infections, tooth loss and wider impacts on their day-to-day lives. As a result, people have been forced to seek support from other health services including NHS111, GPs and A & E departments.
Healthwatch are calling for urgent action by NHS England commissioners to tackle the lack of NHS dentistry capacity in East Sussex. They also contend that all dental practices should be required to follow General Dental Council and NHS Guidance in providing dental treatment plans to their patients that enable them to make informed decisions about their treatment. Information should encompass costs, and differences between NHS and private options.
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