Thousands of patients in the South West face losing their NHS dentist
Thousands of patients in the South West are facing losing their NHS dentist within a few weeks.
Campaigns to stop the closure of local practices have stepped up recently, with 7,000 patients set to lose access to NHS dental services via the closure of one practice in Bristol alone. Bupa Dental Care revealed that it was shutting or merging 85 practices across the country earlier this year, with most of the clinics affected set to close at the end of June.
In Bristol, worried patients have started campaigning outside the Bupa Dental practice in St Pauls every week now in a desperate bid to prevent the clinic from shutting at the end of the month. The closure will mean that 7,000 patients could be looking for an alternative dentist at a time when there are no spaces available in the city.
Patients who are registered with Bupa Dental Care in St Pauls have been informed that the nearest available NHS dental places are in Chepstow and Chippenham.
Gaye Herford, principal dentist at the St Pauls clinic, has worked in Bristol for almost 30 years and said that it had been a privilege to treat patients in the area for so long. Dr Herford is transferring to the Bupa practice in Keynsham and will take as many patients as possible but she is acutely aware that many won’t be able to travel. She said that many patients, including the elderly and vulnerable, had been in tears during appointments because they don’t know what to do or where to go next. Private dentistry simply isn’t an option for the majority due to costs, she added.
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