Suffolk patient finally manages to book a dental appointment after 13 years of trying
A patient from Suffolk has managed to book a dental appointment after 13 years of trying.
Jeremy Burchall, from Walberswick, was removed from his dental practice list in 2008 and has been unable to find a new dentist since. Jeremy said that he missed two consecutive appointments in 2008 after being diagnosed with diverticulitis and having to visit the hospital frequently.
He was taken off the register, despite informing the practice that he would be unable to attend the appointments due to clashes with visits to the hospital. Since 2008, Jeremy has tried several times to get a new dentist, but there are no practices in the area accepting new NHS patients.
Jeremy has lost many of his teeth and said that being unable to see a dentist has been a major contributing factor. Before he was removed from the register, his teeth were fine, but now he is grateful for wearing masks because he said otherwise he “would frighten the children.”
After over a decade of trying to get an appointment, Jeremy has now managed to book a visit for early 2022 and he is hoping to get dentures to replace his missing teeth.
Suffolk is one of the worst-affected areas in England in terms of dental access, with campaigners recently organising a protest march to encourage the government to step in and tackle the crisis.
Many patients report being unable to see a dentist, even when suffering from severe pain. There are plans to open a raft of new practices in the region, but they will not be up and running until next year.
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