With almost half of NHS dentists reportedly closed to new patients many are now being treated for free by a charity that normally operates in Third World countries. Communities in West Yorkshire are among the worst affected. In Kirklees 96% of practices say they cannot take on new patients, according to NHS Choices. Bradford, which has England’s fastest growing child population and major oral health issues, has no NHS access for new patients. The British Dental Association shows direct spending on NHS dental services from general taxation has fallen in real terms by £26million once adjusted for inflation – forcing dentists to set limits on the number of patients they can take on regardless of their oral health state.
Aid workers have revealed the oral health of children here is far worse than in
poverty-stricken parts of Africa. Dentaid, which works across that continent, Asia and Central America, has set up temporary dental surgeries in Britain in a bid to combat the crisis. Dentaid, which has been operating in the developing world for 21 years, began treatment here in December 2015 after hearing patients turning up at food banks were unable to eat because of the state of their mouths. A US charity called Remote Area Medical also reportedly plans to set up mass temporary clinics in the UK offering free dental care.
Dentaid's Chief executive Andrew Evans said: “We recognised there was a need within the UK with people struggling to access NHS care. I have heard dentists saying it is worse than at one of our projects in Malawi. The state of oral health [in the UK] has been a big surprise. They are struggling to eat because they are in so much pain. Dental pain is recognised as being one of the worst pains you can have... It’s pain you can’t get away from. Imagine that happening and not being able to access care.”
160 youngsters are having teeth taken out under general anaesthesia in England every day. Tooth decay is now the number one reason for a child emergency hospital admissions.
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