NHS dentistry
Wednesday, 16 Jan 2008 10:35
One in three people are unable to find an NHS dentist to treat them, survey finds
Access to NHS dentists has come under the spotlight after a survey revealed that over seven million people have not seen a dentist for nearly two years.
The Citizens Advice poll found that nearly one in three participants in England and Wales had not seen a dentist since April 2006 because they were unable to find a dentist to treat them.
Citizens Advice says this is the equivalent of about 7.4 million people, of which 4.7 million sought private treatment instead.
The equivalent of 2.7 million have gone without treatment altogether.
Regional variations in access to care were also uncovered by the survey; the problem was more evident in the south-west (53 per cent) than in the north-west (39 per cent).
Citizens Advice chief executive David Harker said the figures "show the scale of the lack of access to NHS dentistry".
He warned that people on low incomes are the worst affected as private treatment is not an option for them.
"We are therefore delighted that the government has responded to the problem by announcing an 11 per cent increase in funding for NHS dentistry in England from 2008," Mr Harker said.
"Primary care trusts have a duty to ensure that dentistry services meet local requirements and it is vital that they start planning how to allocate their additional funds now."
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