No NHS dental places available in Sefton
There are currently no NHS dental places for adults available in Sefton, Merseyside.
A report compiled by Healthwatch revealed that a lack of NHS places is contributing to difficulties accessing NHS dental services and an increase in calls to the group. Healthwatch representatives said that over 40% of calls they received in November 2022 were linked to dental problems or enquiries. Most people were seeking advice because they couldn’t get an appointment.
A mapping exercise within the Merseyside borough revealed that no practices are offering new NHS adult patient places. There are surgeries accepting new patients, but they are only providing appointments for private services.
Reports also showed that some patients who do have access to a dentist are waiting long periods for appointments. Those on waiting lists to join a practice could be waiting months, even years to see a dentist. Some practices have waiting lists of over 2,000 people.
In addition to issues affecting adults in the area, Healthwatch raised concerns about NHS services for children at a recent meeting of the council’s social care and health scrutiny committee. The mapping exercise revealed that only four dental practices in Sefton are offering NHS child places. Some stipulate that children can only register if their parents attend the practice as private patients.
NHS England has been working with providers in the region to ease access issues. Some patients from Sefton, for example, have been referred to clinics and services based in Liverpool for urgent treatment.
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