We’re taking action to improve access to NHS dentists

Access to NHS dentists is one of the issues – second only to access to GP services – that most concerns people about local health services. People are also concerned about the cost of dental treatment. Healthwatch Richmond is working with other Healthwatches in South West London and with local NHS bodies to highlight these problems and improve services.

You can take the survey here

Who is involved in this work?

Healthwatch Richmond is an independent charity which exists to make sure that patients’ experiences of health and care services are heard by local NHS managers. NHS services are now planned and managed across South West London, and Healthwatch Richmond is working together with the other Healthwatches across South West London, in Croydon, Kingston, Sutton, Merton and Wandsworth.

Each borough has a Local Dental Committee or LDC, which represents local NHS dentists. South West London Healthwatches and South West London LDCs have come together to raise the concerns we all hear being expressed, to identify solutions and to get them put into practice. Some of these solutions will require change at a national level, and we are aiming to make our voices heard at that level.

What dental care should people be able to get from the NHS?

Everyone should be able to access an NHS dentist. The NHS also provides free treatment for particular groups:

• people under 18, or under 19 in full-time education
• people who are pregnant or who have had a baby in the past 12 months
• people being treated in an NHS hospital by a hospital dentist (with some exceptions)
• people on low-income benefits and their dependents under 20 years old

The NHS has also recently updated its find a dentist website to make it easier to identify local practices which are accepting NHS patients, both adults and children.

What are local NHS dental services like at the moment?

Despite these initiatives to make dentists more accessible and affordable, both South West London Healthwatches and South West London LDCs recognise that in some areas there need to be improvements. Some patients are satisfied with the services available, but all six Healthwatches have heard from their local populations about people struggling to access an NHS dentist and to afford the high costs associated with both NHS and private care. Four Healthwatches have already published reports about these issues.

The consequences of the massive unmet need in South West London have been devastating. Healthwatches have learned, for example, that:

• people are struggling to access primary care dentistry, increasing the risk of acute dental disease and associated high treatment costs
• some patients are living in pain for months before accessing care
• some people are removing their own teeth
• some people are not able to afford crowns after their teeth have been removed, with concerns about their dignity and wellbeing.

Moreover, in conversations with local dentistry leaders, South West London Healthwatch organisations have heard that many dentists may be forced to give up their NHS contracts as a result of unrealistic contractual obligations. We already face a crisis as regards people finding a dentist and being able to afford treatment. Unless the contracting system is reformed, the situation will get even worse.

Your voice matters

Southwest London Healthwatches want to keep on hearing from local people about their experiences of NHS dental services, We will use this information to continue working with the SW London LDC and others to address the issues raised so far. You can send us your questions, concerns, and feedback here.

You can take the survey here