New dental centre will treat thousands free of charge
A brand new, state of the art training facility in Portsmouth will offer free treatment to thousands of people in the area.
The new centre, which is located in Ravelin Park, Hampshire Terrace, will treat around three thousand patients each year. The facility will be staffed by trained professionals and dentistry students from King’s College London; the students will be supervised by tutors and professors.
The location of the new facility means that it will be east to target p
eople from deprived areas; the centre is situated near deprived areas of the city where standards of oral health are significantly lower than the national average. The centre will specifically target children and young males.
John Weld, clinical director of the centre, said the team are focusing on people who don’t usually go to a dentist. The clinic is not aiming to keep patients; they are instead focusing on treating people who need their help and will look after them until they feel comfortable looking after their own oral health and can register with an NHS dentist. The clinic will also offer emergency dental care. Patients wishing to use the facility should call the Hampshire and Isle of Wight dental helpline or visit the Guildhall Walk drop-in centre, rather than going to the centre directly.
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