80,000 still without NHS dentist as bid to cut waiting list grinds to halt

Almost 80,000 Scots are still waiting to be registered on practices' books, prompting calls for the Scottish Government to reassess basic care provision.

Overall, across Scotland, boards revealed that 79,375 people were on waiting lists for an NHS dentist – down only slightly on 82,166 the same time the previous year – and, in some large rural areas, numbers grew. NHS Grampian said it had 31,798 people on its list compared to 30,936 the year before and, in the Borders, the figure was 7,500, up from 6,000 the previous year.

But NHS Highland, which has faced severe shortages of NHS dentists, saw the number waiting drop from 31,504 last year to 28,694 now.

The Scottish Government acknowledged that access to NHS dentistry remained a problem in some places and said action was being taken to address shortages. A spokesman said 81.7 per cent of children and 63 per cent of adults were now on NHS books.

Other health boards still with waiting lists were Dumfries and Galloway (5,953), Orkney (1,500), Shetland (2,110) and the Western Isles (1,820). Others said they did not operate waiting lists or there were no patients waiting for NHS dentists.

In the past, rural areas have struggled to attract dentists wishing to carry out NHS work. This has led to many people being forced to pay heavily for private work or go without dental care until their problems become so severe they need emergency treatment.

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Ross Finnie MSP said: "Too many people are still waiting to register with an NHS dentist. This is unacceptable and the situation is particularly bad in rural areas like the Borders, Fife, Grampian and the Highlands and Islands – all of which are way below the target of registering 80 per cent of three to five-year-olds with an NHS dentist by 2010-11."

Andrew Lamb, the British Dental Association's director for Scotland, said NHS dentistry faced a number of challenges which could affect patients, including plans to allow patients to remain registered for life even if they did not regularly attend appointments. "It is well recognised that access to dental care remains a problem in Scotland, particularly in rural and remote areas," Mr Lamb added. "If this problem is to be addressed, the Scottish Government must engage with dentists and listen to their concerns."

A crisis in Scotland's NHS dental service developed under the previous government when thousands of dentists started turning their backs on the public sector for better-paid private work. In 2005, a survey showed 97 per cent of aspiring dentists did not want to work solely in the public sector. The dentist shortage led to queues in the streets when new practices opened.

Public health minister Shona Robison said: "We're increasing the number of NHS dentists and registering more patients with an NHS dentist – 63 per cent of adults and 81.7 per cent of children, according to the latest figures.

"But although we're investing substantially in NHS dentistry, we do know there are still problems with access in some areas and we continue to tackle this.

"We are developing outreach training centres throughout Scotland – including Aberdeen, Inverness, and Dumfries and Galloway – and health boards now have the authority to appoint directly salaried dentists. We are increasing the numbers of dental students and opened a third dental school in Aberdeen last year, which will further increase numbers."

Forced to borrow money to pay for treatment

JOHN and Caroline Dollemore-Hunt have spent the last two years trying to get access to an NHS dentist.

The couple moved to Lybster, Caithness, to run a croft at the start of 2008. But when they tried to find a local NHS dentist to register with, they were told they faced a wait of several years to get access.

In the meantime the couple have been forced to borrow money so Mrs Dollemore-Hunt, 48, could have urgent dental treatment done privately.

Mr Dollemore-Hunt said he still needed dental treatment, but had not had any done yet.

"We are still on the waiting list, but where exactly we don't know," he said. "I recently had a letter to update our records which said that if we didn't update within a certain time we would be taken off the waiting list."

Mr Dollemore-Hunt, 52, said he had become disillusioned with the politicians who claimed they were trying to resolve the problems with NHS dentistry.

"Come election time I just don't want any politicians canvassing on my doorstep," he said. "It has made me feel quite cynical and bitter. To start with I was just fed up about it, but now it is deeply engrained."

Mr Dollemore-Hunt said they could access emergency treatment if a tooth needed to be extracted, but this service was far from perfect.