Emergency Dental Services To Cease At Bitterne Health Centre
Health bosses in Hampshire have confirmed that emergency dental services will cease at Bitterne Health Centre from April; the move is part of a county-wide shake-up of urgent dental care services.
Bitterne Health Centre currently provides urgent treatment for patients with dental injuries, abscesses and severe tooth pain; however, the service will cease at the end of March when the current contract, which is held by the Primary Care Trust in conjunction with Southern Health, comes to an end.
Health bosses have confirmed that patients will be provided with out of hours dental care at a number of locations across the county and patients have been advised not to worry; the exact locations have not yet been confirmed, but bosses have vowed to inform the public as soon as decisions about future services have been made.
Natalie Jones, head of dental services commissioning and contracting for the SHIP PCT Cluster, said that patients will be advised about alternative services as soon as possible and confirmed that urgent care will continue to be available throughout the county. Jones confirmed that discussions were underway to confirm the new locations and said that the shake-up will improve access to urgent dental care, with more locations across Southampton, Portsmouth and Hampshire.
The new out of hours dental service will be commissioned by the new NHS Commissioning Board, which is replacing Primary Care Trusts, from April 1st.
Join this Discussion