Ministers consider recommendations from dental review
Minsters on the Isle of Man are considering recommendations from a review of the island’s dental services.
The report, which was carried out by a professor at the University of Manchester, was ordered to try and find ways to improve dental services on the island.
The review has proposed four key changes to the current system; the first is the introduction of more private dentists. There is a good team of NHS dentists currently working on the island but the review suggests bringing in more private dentists to increase competition, give NHS dentists something to compare their work to and enable patients to choose between private and NHS dentistry.
Health Minister David Anderson said that the independent review praised recent attempts to recruit more dentists but there was still work to be done to ensure that all island residents can access a dentist without having to travel or join a waiting list.
The review also encouraged health ministers to form a partnership with the Mersey or North West deanery to create specialist training posts; this will help to encourage dentists to stay on and work on the island.
The report also proposed better performance management to create a more efficient and competitive dental service.
The results of the review will now be used to introduce new measures to make dental care more accessible, especially for those people who have low incomes and the unemployed.
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