None of the 50 dental surgeries in Bristol listed on the NHS website are currently taking NHS patients. Results of a recent survey found that in the south west, 98 per cent of dentists were not taking on new NHS adult patients.
In Bristol, among those who are currently taking on new NHS patients, the majority are on a referral-only basis.
The few who are accepting NHS dental patients have not updated the details on the NHS website. One local dentist who did not want to be named said that there was no government incentive for dentists to want to work for the NHS due to lack of funding.
Of the 50 dentists on the NHS website, most didn’t answer the phone when Bristol Live tried to contact them and several have not updated their details regarding accepting NHS patients in two years. One hasn’t been updated since 2015.
Others stated that they had been inundated with enquiries from local residents who needed dental care but were unable to accept them due to their lists being full. Parry's Lane Dental Practice in Stoke Bishop is among 18 dentists in Bristol which has not recently updated its details relating to NHS patients on the NHS website.
Although on its own website it is listed as accepting a limited number of NHS patients, when we spoke to the practice we were told that it no longer has an NHS contract. Others are listed as referral only, not accepting NHS patients and there is one who is listed as accepting children. Some surgeries who we were able to get through to, suggested calling back in a couple of weeks.
Responding to the survey carried out a few months ago where the BBC contacted over 7,000 NHS practices, Healthwatch England said the situation was “pretty dire”. It said it was a confirmation of its concerns over people turning to DIY dentistry or travelling miles to find a dentist. And the British Dental Association warned the government is yet to show real ambition to bring NHS dentistry back from the brink, given the absence of any new commitments in Therese Coffey's 'Plan for Patients' .
Changes announced by NHS England in July, suggested that reforms to NHS dental services would make it easier for patients to find a dentist. Moves included paying NHS dentists more for complex treatments and ensuring dentists update the NHS website so that patients can easily find out the availability in their local area.
Recent BBC research revealed 90 per cent of practices are unable to take on new adult NHS patients. In prime minister Liz Truss's constituency of south west Norfolk that stands at 100 per cent, and the same applies in Suffolk, home to Therese Coffey, the new Deputy PM and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. In Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng's north Surrey constituency, the figure stands at 93 per cent. In Bristol, figures stand at 98 per cent.
The British Dental Association warned that it would take £880 million a year to restore resources to 2010 levels. BDA Chair, Shawn Charlwood said: "NHS dentistry is at a tipping point, with millions unable to get the care they need and more dentists leaving with every day that passes.
"We're seeing the results of years of chronic neglect, set into overdrive by the pressures of the pandemic. The question now is will Ministers step up before it's too late? Nothing we've heard from government to date gives us any confidence this service has a future. Without real reform and fair funding NHS dentistry will die, and our patients will pay the price."
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. The NHS advises people who are not able to find a dentist from their local list to call NHS England's Customer Contact Centre on 0300 311 2233 or Bristol Healthwatch where you can raise concerns or find out about local services.
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