Isle of Wight dental clinic to participate in new pilot to provide care home residents with free dental checks
A dental clinic on the Isle of Wight has teamed up with NHS England to participate in a new pilot scheme that provides free dental checks for care home residents.
Members of the team at Bembridge Dental Practice will be visiting care homes around the island to provide residents with a free oral health assessment. The first port of call was Seven Gables in Totland on Wednesday 7th March.
The team is working with NHS England as part of an initiative, which is designed to improve standards of dental health in care homes and ensure older people have access to the treatment they need. If the assessments flag up issues that need further attention, this will be provided at the home if this is a viable option.
The project will be led by practice owner, Piotr Pirga, who said that it was important to understand that dental care is part of “maintaining basic human dignity.” Piotr will be supported by a team of dental nurses.
Although NICE recommendations include guidelines to provide new patients with oral health assessments on admission to care homes, surveys suggest that many older people are missing out on basic dental care, and this is contributing to deteriorating standards of oral health in the elderly community.
Join this Discussion