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More NHS dentist slots is something to smile about

0 Comments | Western Daily Press, Dec 4, 2009 | by Tristan Cork

Tens of thousands of people in Wiltshire will be given access to an NHS dentist in 2010 after millions of pounds was pumped into the service in the county.

Five new practices are being opened by health chiefs in Wiltshire, after figures revealed a dire shortage of NHS dentists in the county.

The five practices, in Amesbury, Tidworth, Warminster, Westbury and Malmesbury will each offer thousands of new places, while existing dentist surgeries in another eight towns are being given funding to expand to take on thousands more each.

The Pounds 3.1 million boost from health chiefs in the county will come in 2010, with bosses hoping that by the middle of next year no one in Wiltshire who wants an NHS dentist place will have missed out.

The numbers of dentists offering places for patients on the NHS has fallen drastically over the past 10 years, and the latest figures show just 40 percent of people had access to a subsidised appointment.

Most market towns in Wiltshire either have dentists that don’t offer NHS places, or the ones that do are full.

The Government’s target is for each area to have 70 per cent availability and these latest additions should lift the Wiltshire figure to above half.

Wiltshire’s director of public health Maggie Rae said: “This is excellent news for the people of Wiltshire.

“We have focused the need for areas of deprivation as well as where we know there is a shortfall in NHS provision, accessibility and where we see high numbers of military personnel.

“We will continue to ensure local people get better access to NHS dentistry throughout the county,” she added.

The number of people who will be able to access NHS dentistry is huge – one existing practice opening a new centre in Chippenham is preparing to register an additional 10,000 new patients, while a new service at Malmesbury’s new Primary Care Centre is opening 3,000 places in the new year.

A move to bigger premises for an existing surgery in Marlborough is creating another 2,000 NHS places, while an empty shop in Melksham is being converted to a new dentist practice, providing 2,700 new NHS places.

Malmesbury’s councillor Simon Killane said the news was fantastic for the town, which has had no new NHS places for years. “The new surgery is ideally placed here,” he said.

“It is on the main road, there is plenty of parking and it feels right being next to the Primary Care Centre. The need for NHS dental care in Malmesbury has never been greater.

A spokeswoman for Wiltshire PCT said the tens of thousands of new places for 2010 was just the start, and more funding would continue.

“Improving dentistry is one of the top priorities for Wiltshire, based on people’s needs in the county and identified by the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, published earlier this year,” she explained.

“The investment in 2008 and this year saw a ten percent increase in activity, and the investment for 2009-10 ensures another 10 percent and is the second phase in a three-year investment programme.

By 2011, there will be nearly one-third more NHS dental activity available in Wiltshire,” she added.

OPINION: PAGE 12

One practice enrolled 10,000 new patients