A dentist claims patients are having to make the “heartbreaking” choice over paying for dental care or putting food on the table.
David Andrew Griffiths, who works for Allport Dental Surgery, Birkenhead, which offers NHS and privately funded services, claims that some of his "patients in extreme cases are choosing between paying for dental care to get out of pain or putting food on the table". The 34-year-old believes that as a result of the ongoing pressures “dentists and dental nurses are simply leaving the profession entirely with no intentions of returning".
David, who is originally from Wavertree, told the ECHO: “The crisis is certainly having a negative impact. It is heartbreaking to see, on a daily basis, what was once an open-door profession, which could truly welcome patients who were in need, to one which is on its knees and has barely recovered from the restrictions post-covid.
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"There is a significant amount of catch-up required for existing patients, so there is simply no space or time for new patients to register and receive care. If new patients did register, then it would simply dilute the care of existing registered patients.”
“The cost of living crisis has made everyone think twice about where their money goes. Although some can receive financial help for dental treatments based on income, some simply do not fall into that catchment. Putting it simply, some patients in extreme cases are choosing between paying for dental care to get out of pain, or putting food on the table.”
Amid the dental crisis, one ECHO reporter, Remy Greasley, called 49 NHS-registered practices to try and get an appointment. He claims none of the almost 50 dental practices could take him on as a new patient, however many did offer “some respite in the form of a waiting list” but with 900 people on the list before him, he argued he would be better of “trying to get an LFC season ticket”.
Remy wasn’t the only one in his situation as after he published the story about his ordeal, he was “inundated with messages and stories from readers detailing their own experiences so much worse than my own”. People spoke about years spent on waiting lists with missing or broken teeth, others talked about how they were forced to get emergency care for issues that could've been nipped in the bud ages before if they'd just been able to visit their dentist.
According to Healthwatch Liverpool, almost 2,000 people have sought support to access an NHS dentist this year, an increase of more than 350% from the 12 months previous. The independent health charity, which assesses how health and social care services are used across the country, published its annual report in which it said it could not identify an NHS dentist for the majority of cases. This was “despite continuously researching and reviewing local dental practices' new patient acceptance.” The report said “for most of this year, there have been no NHS dentists taking on new patients in Liverpool,” before adding “many people in dental need, have had to repeatedly access the emergency dental service, due to severity. We've heard from many people that they have had to consider private care”.
David, who has over a decade of experience in the industry, emphasised it wasn’t a problem isolated to Liverpool’s city region alone. The former University of Liverpool student added: “From speaking to colleagues in Liverpool, staff are so motivated to weather the storm and help patients as best they can, but burnout has set in. Additional funding so that more patients can be seen, and to keep hold of staff (is needed).
“Dentists and dental nurses are simply leaving the profession entirely with no intentions of returning. This is obviously on a government level which is beyond my, or most people's control. What the general public can do is continue to raise awareness of the issue to their MPs and councillors."
The NHS recently announced the first reforms to dentistry services since 2006 which will "support practices to improve access including by giving high performing practices the opportunity to increase their activity and treat more patients".
A spokesperson for the NHS in the North West confirmed to the ECHO that "discussions around further changes that benefit patients and staff are ongoing". They said: "The COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a disproportionate impact on the North West region, has inevitably led to a disruption in routine dental care with NHS dentists having to focus on providing care for those with an urgent dental need.
“It is important to note that anyone who is in dental pain or in urgent need of support, help or advice, can telephone their own dental practice in the usual way. If they don’t have a usual dentist and have an urgent need they can contact the dental helpline on 0161 476 9651.”
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