Thousands of patients left without NHS dental care in Gretna
Thousands of patients are set to be deregistered from a dental practice in Gretna, leaving them without access to NHS services.
Around 2,400 patients will be taken off the register at Gretna Dental Practice on November 10th. Patients who want to continue having treatment at the surgery will be required to pay private dental fees.
Pamela Blakeman, a contractor, is one of many affected by the news. She said that she is incredibly disappointed and is now worried about how she will afford to see a dentist. She cannot afford private dental charges and there are no local practices taking on new NHS patients. Pamela suggested that she will probably avoid going to the dentist unless she starts to experience severe symptoms and needs urgent help.
The practice team released a statement about the change in dental provision through NHS Dumfries and Galloway, which highlighted recruitment issues as the main reason for stopping NHS services. Across the UK, practices are in a similar situation, with many struggling to fill vacancies. Studies suggest that around 3,000 dentists have left the NHS within the last two years.
Despite the problems patients are reporting, the government in Scotland claims that “a record number of people are registered with an NHS dentist.” Statistics suggest that 95% of the population has a dentist but access issues have become increasingly prevalent. The government also stated that measures have been put in place to boost recruitment, particularly in more remote parts of the country.
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