Dentists voice anger against health quango
Dentists in the North of England are in uproar after learning that they must travel to a post office in Yorkshire to obtain a criminal records bureau form.
Dentists managing dental practices must complete the form under new government legislation, which is being enforced by the Care Quality Commission; however, hundreds of dentists are now facing a long trip to get the form, as they are only available at crown post offices. There are only thirty seven crown post offices in the whole of England and hundreds of dentists across the North are now facing lengthy trips; the only crown post office in Yorkshire is in Leeds. Those who do not want to travel to Leeds face a journey to Nottingham, Manchester or Sunderland.
The news has caused uproar in the dental community, with some dentists facing a 150 mile round trip to pick up a paper form; many feel this is a huge waste of time and have called for the April deadline to be put back until an alternative process has been introduced.
John Renshaw, a dentist from Scarborough and former chairman of the British Dental Association, branded the Care Quality Commission, a “quango gone mad.” He claimed that many dentists would have to take time off work to make the journey to Leeds and this was a waste of clinical time. He also added that dentists did not have a problem with the registration; however, he insisted that the process was becoming increasingly ridiculous and dentists were fed up.
Tory MP for Scarborough and Whitby, Robert Goodwill, condemned the registration process, claiming that the process was long-winded and inefficient; however, he called for dentists to remain calm and use their common sense after it was revealed that some dentists were planning to hire a coach and protest at the post office in Leeds.
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