Long Wait for Dental Treatment Turns Prisoners to Dentistry
A lengthy wait for prisoners in need of dental work has resulted in one prisoner administering his own treatment.
One prisoner, who had to wait over 7 weeks to see a dentist, pulled out his own tooth to relieve a tooth problem; all inmates at HMP Kirklevington Grange have been waiting several weeks for treatment.
Inspectors at the North East prison stated that some prisoners have resulted to some ‘desperate self treatments’ as a result of the extensive wait for dentist consultancy.
A Prison Officer at HMP Kirklevington Grange said: “We spoke to some of the individuals concerned; all stated that they still had dental pain, two had obvious facial swelling.
“One showed us that he had pulled his own tooth out to try to relieve the pain.”
The prolonged waiting list has also resulted in prisoners self medicating themselves with illegal medications to stem the pain caused by the dental problems and increased waiting time.
The long waits for dental appointments are as results of prisoners being subjected to risk assessments and gaining permission to leave the ground of the prison.
Director of the Prison Reform Trust Juliet Lyon said: “This report finds that Kirklevington Grange prison is performing well its vital role preparing long-term prisoners for release.
“But it shows that even a well-run prison sometimes struggles to provide basic health and dental services equivalent to those in the community.”
Although dental problems can be painful for prisoners, it is advised that inmates do not administer their own self treatments.
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