The crisis in UK dentistry which Reporting Scotland would dearly love us to be part of prompted reader, Annie, to remind us of this from 2018:
Since the introduction of lifetime NHS dental registration in Scotland in 2010 the amount of Scottish people registered with a dentist now stands at 95 per cent, but the amount of people visiting a dentist has decreased in recent years, something which this new policy looks to address.
Dubbed the ‘Oral Health Improvement Plan’ and launched by the chief dental officer for Scotland, Margie Taylor, it comprises a series of recommendations to help reduce health inequalities and prevent poor dental health throughout Scotland.
It outlines ideas for the future of oral health improvement and NHS dental services in Scotland and follows on from the publication of the consultation ‘Scotland’s Oral Health Plan’ in September 2016.
Nigel Carter, chief executive of the Oral Health Foundation:
“Scotland is leading the way in the UK when it comes to oral health prevention in children through initiatives such as ChildSmile, which has just celebrated its 10th anniversary, and I am interested to see where this will lead over the next few years.”
https://www.the-dentist.co.uk/content/news/charity-welcomes-new-scottish-dental-health-policies-focus-on-prevention
Talking-up Scotland 
Scotland’s dental record stands comparison with any in the UK – especially since Sarwar gave up oral work for aural work .
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At last the BBC has run a news report that admitted that Scotland had a better service than the rest of the UK.
Maybe the first sign of a new approach.
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This is the situation in England:
In England the primary reason for children going in to hospital for procedures that require general anasthesia (tooth extraction) is dental caries. This has been the case for some years and the backlog created by Covid-19 is likely to make it worse.
This from 2018
https://www.dentalhealth.org/news/appalling-childhood-tooth-extraction-statistics-illustrate-need-for-urgent-action-in-england
And this from 2021
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41415-021-2945-8
The estimated cost of this in the financial year 2019-20 was £54.6 million
Not a record to be proud of
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If I may add a further observation relating to the difficulty people are experiencing trying to register with a dentist as an NHS patient.
In recent years it would appear that more and more dental practices are actually part of a commercial group where the profit motive is at the forefront of of what they do. It may be dressed up as ‘we can offer a better service’ which I heard one of the dentist use when interviewed on Reporting Scotland tonight but the motive is profit.
These groups of dental practices may give the impression that they are stand alone practices within their respective communities dig a bit deeper and it is a different picture. I found this out when looking for another Dentist last year. One practice which did do NHS work said that was likely to stop because they had been taken over by a dental group and so would be concentrating on private work.
We have gone to the same practice for 40 years and saw the same dentist on each occasion. Since they retired just before the pandemic the turnover in staff has been noticeable. What has also been noticeable has been their push for us to opt for private treatment – ‘if you want NHS treatment it will be 6 months wait for an appointment OR if you go private we can do it next week’!!! I think they were taken aback when I said I would wait but if you cut me open it says NHS all the way through. I suspect they are now part of a dental group.
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The NHS does not cover some treatments, unless the patient is in need. Then it is covered. No problems getting a dentist. Except during the pandemic for obvious reasons not to spread the disease or people would died.. Better people stay alive then die with perfect teeth. Emergencies were covered.
Healthcare workers have left because of Brexit. Now causing a shortage.
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