TAUNTON Deane MP Rebecca Pow is being urged to step up to the plate to support Wellington residents after a town dental practice announced it will stop taking on NHS patients.
They have been told that, from October 1, if they want to stay on with Wellington Dental Practice they must either sign up to an insurance scheme called Denplan or pay as private patients.
And they have found that – in a 25-mile radius of Wellington – no other dental practice is accepting NHS patients.
The problem at Wellington Dental Practice was triggered last spring when three NHS dentists left to work in private practice. Extensive efforts were made to recruit replacements but ‘not one single candidate’ came forward.
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“We are unable to provide a service that relies on the dentists who do not want to work for that service,” said a spokesman.
Several people living in and around Wellington have voiced their concerns and some have contacted Ms Pow directly.
“Wellington and Taunton are both growing rapidly with new housing developments all across your constituency, meaning an increasing population who will also find themselves unable to access NHS dentistry,” said David Beaudet.
“I worry there will be many local families who are unable to afford private fees or Denplan insurance, creating a situation where some members of our local community will simply not go to the dentist.
“To withdraw this service from local residents will undoubtedly lead to an increase in dental decay and is surely a backward step.” He praised the ‘excellent service’ and ‘exemplary standard of care’ at Wellington Dental Practice and, while he understood its reasons, he was disappointed it was not continuing with the NHS.
He appealed to Ms Pow to take the matter up with the Department of Health on behalf of Wellington.
Rachael Ball Risk, of Nynehead, has also written to Ms Pow, calling on her to help: “It seems this might be a wider country issue, and if so, may be worth raising in Parliament.
“On a local level, I think we are now reaching a crisis point that needs immediate action,” she said.
She told Ms Pow: “It is now widely known that no dentists within the immediate area are taking on NHS patients, and many have even closed their waiting lists.
“This is putting many families in a difficult situation, either choosing not to receive any preventative dental care – like our family – or being forced into financial difficulty by Denplan or private treatment costs.
“Emergency dentistry is especially challenging for those that can’t afford it. Dental care is an essential part of health care, and should not be a postcode lottery or only available to those that can pay more.”
The Wellington Somerset Community Group, which has nearly 10,000 members posting on Facebook, has been peppered with comments about the dental practice’s decision and pleas for information about other NHS practices.
One said: “I have contacted every dentist on the NHS website today in a 25-mile radius. No-one is taking new NHS patients anywhere in the Taunton, Wellington, Cullompton, Tiverton and beyond areas.”
Another resident, who did not want to be named, told the WWN: “The best I could find was the ‘Mydentist’ scheme in Taunton which is not NHS but a mid-way scheme between NHS and private. We are now signed up as patients there. I am so grateful to be on their list.
“Wellington and Taunton are growing towns. The fact there is no NHS dentistry available for anyone at this time is a disgrace.”
The spokesman for Wellington Dental Practice said: “Despite our best efforts, endeavours and running an extensive national recruitment campaign with two extended BDA [British Dental Association] job adverts, including online, we did not receive a single candidate from the national pool.
“This is compounded by the national shortage of dentists – rural areas also always come last in the places that dentists want to work.
“Because of the circumstances beyond our control, we are forced to make these difficult decisions. It is much better to have a service, albeit a private one rather than having no service at all!
“We are very sorry and have every sympathy with the families that will find it impossible to afford private dental care, but it is the responsibility of the NHS to provide the services they are entitled to.”
The BDA recently stated: “Ministers seem to have forgotten that NHS dentistry can only survive if it is capable of attracting and retaining talent.”
It also said: “The current dental contract implemented in England and Wales in 2006 which remunerates dentists purely on activity, is not fit for purpose. It has received criticism from dentists, two governments, a Health Select Committee and the Chief Dental Officers for England and Wales.”
Town dental practice shuts to NHS patients part of health care, and should not be a postcode lottery or only available to those that can pay more.”
The Wellington Somerset Community Group, which has nearly 10,000 members posting on Facebook, has been peppered with comments about the dental practice’s decision and pleas for information about other NHS practices.
One said: “I have contacted every dentist on the NHS website today in a 25-mile radius. No-one is taking new NHS patients anywhere in the Taunton, Wellington, Cullompton, Tiverton and beyond areas.”
Another resident, who did not want to be named, told the WWN: “The best I could find was the ‘Mydentist’ scheme in Taunton which is not NHS but a mid-way scheme between NHS and private. We are now signed up as patients there. I am so grateful to be on their list.
“Wellington and Taunton are growing towns. The fact there is no NHS dentistry available for anyone at this time is a disgrace.”
The spokesman for Wellington Dental Practice said: “Despite our best efforts, endeavours and running an extensive national recruitment campaign with two extended BDA [British Dental Association] job adverts, including online, we did not receive a single candidate from the national pool.
“This is compounded by the national shortage of dentists – rural areas also always come last in the places that dentists want to work.
“Because of the circumstances beyond our control, we are forced to make these difficult decisions. It is much better to have a service, albeit a private one rather than having no service at all!
“We are very sorry and have every sympathy with the families that will find it impossible to afford private dental care, but it is the responsibility of the NHS to provide the services they are entitled to.”
The BDA recently stated: “Ministers seem to have forgotten that NHS dentistry can only survive if it is capable of attracting and retaining talent.”
It also said: “The current dental contract implemented in England and Wales in 2006 which remunerates dentists purely on activity, is not fit for purpose. It has received criticism from dentists, two governments, a Health Select Committee and the Chief Dental Officers for England and Wales.”