Dental Health Subject of Ardent Debate at Bradford Meeting
The issue of dental health in Bradford sparked ardent debate at a meeting held in the City Hall on 7th October. The meeting was called after research conducted by Healthwatch Bradford highlighted major issues with access to NHS dental care in the city. Statistics showed that 43 percent of adults and 30 percent of children living in Bradford do not currently have an NHS dentist.
Healthwatch manager Victoria Simmons said that the purpose of the meeting was to underline the gravity of the situation in Bradford and try to create a collaborative approach to tackling the problem. Some people who were quizzed as part of the research process said that they had resorted to DIY dentistry because they couldn’t find a local practice, while others raised concerns about waiting lists.
At the meeting, people were informed that the government was working on ways to implement a better NHS contract, however changes have not yet been made and the current commissioning system has come under attack from dental professionals for several years now. Senior primary care manager at NHS England, Neil Coulter, explained that there are currently no practices advertising spaces on NHS Choices because any that do get swamped with calls. There were suggestions that NHS England could work with Healthwatch Bradford on a pilot scheme to improve access in the area, however these have been put on hold for the time being, to see how other areas across Yorkshire are affected. It may be that a wider scheme is established in the future, but for now the NHS has been accused of stalling.
A Local Dental Network spokesman said that it seems like the issue of dental health is “being kicked into some very long grass”.
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