New survey reveals there are no dental practices taking on new patients in York
A new survey has revealed that there are currently no dental practices taking on new patients in York.
Representatives from Healthwatch York contacted all of the 39 practices in York during May and June. They found that there were no practices offering new adult NHS patient places.
Healthwatch York manager, Sian Balsom, said that the state of NHS dental services in the city had “reached a new low” and called for urgent action to be taken to reform the system and improve access. The existing dental system is already under intense pressure, and failure to act swiftly will causes the crisis to deepen, Ms Balsom warned.
Statistics obtained by the British Dental Association suggest that more than 130,000 dental appointments have been cancelled in the city during the pandemic, including 35,000 appointments for children.
A spokesman for the BDA said that services were running at a reduced capacity while dentists are dealing with significant backlogs caused by closures and lockdown restrictions.
York Central Labour MP, Rachael Maskell, said that it was high time that the government “got a grip of the dental crisis.” She added that she had been contacted by numerous patients who had been unable to get an NHS appointment and couldn’t afford to go private. Ms Maskell has called for a free national dental service to make dental care accessible to all.
Tory MP for York Outer, Julian Sturdy, said that he had tabled urgent parliamentary questions after hearing from local patients who were experiencing issues accessing dental services.
Mr Sturdy also said that he had asked ministers about additional funding for dental services in York as part of the government’s £33.9 billion annual NHS budget increase.
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