The SNP Government are putting the future of NHS dentistry at risk by failing to provide the necessary resources to clear the backlog of appointments, the Scottish Conservatives have warned.
The party brought forward a vote in the Scottish Parliament today urging the government to reverse its decision to withdraw emergency funding to practices on April 1, following warnings from the British Dental Association that the move would severely reduce patients’ access to NHS treatment.
A survey carried out by the BDA has revealed that four out of five dentists plan to scale back their NHS commitments, while more than a third are ‘likely’ or ‘extremely likely’ to stop doing NHS work entirely if the emergency funding is cut.
The BDA findings are particularly worrying given recent figures from Public Health Scotland show that almost half of registered patients in Scotland have not seen an NHS dentist in the last two years – and the figure is lower still among those from deprived backgrounds.
The Scottish Conservatives believe that a new, long-term funding deal between the Scottish Government and dentists is required to clear the appointments backlog and ensure the public are guaranteed regular check-ups in the long term.
In the meantime, the party is urging the SNP to maintain emergency funding beyond April 1 to prevent the crisis in NHS dentistry deepening.
Scottish Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Health, Dr Sandesh Gulhane MSP, said: “The Health Secretary must wake up to the scale of the crisis in NHS dentistry and take action immediately.
“The BDA has been warning since November that there would be a mass exodus of NHS dentists if Humza Yousaf ploughed ahead with plans to cut emergency funding – and he has done nothing to address their fears.
“An enormous backlog of appointments has built up during the pandemic and it’s our poorest communities who have suffered the most, which is unacceptable.
“We must clear this backlog and ensure patients can continue to get regular NHS check-ups and treatment in the future. That is why this funding issue must be resolved.
“The SNP Government must continue with the emergency funding to dentists until a sustainable long-term funding deal can be agreed, or else they risk reducing public access to NHS dentists even further.
“They must grasp the magnitude of the problem.”
Notes:
From 1 April, the SNP Government will cut the emergency funding provided to dentists during the pandemic. In usual times, dentists are paid on the basis of each individual item of treatment. However, during the pandemic, this funding mechanism has been superseded by top-up financial support, which recognises that infection control measures severely reduce the number of patients that can be seen during the course of a working day. (Humza Yousaf letter, 21 October 2021, link).
It has been estimated that four in five dentists will reduce their NHS commitment. A survey from the British Dental Association (BDA) has revealed that 54% are ‘extremely likely’ to reduce their NHS commitment, while a further 25% were reported as ‘likely’ to reduce their commitment. 40% said they were either ‘extremely likely’ or ‘likely’ to go fully private, while 38% reported that they were either ‘extremely likely’ or ‘likely’ to change career or seek early retirement. (BDA, Is this the end of NHS dentistry in Scotland?, 4 November 2021, link).
Nearly half of registered patients have not seen an NHS dentist within the last two years. At 30 September 2021, 52.6% of registered patients had seen an NHS dentist within the last two years, down 12.5% on 2020’s figures. (Public Health Scotland, Dental statistics – registration and participation, 25 January 2022, link).
There is an 18% participation gap between those from the least and most deprived areas. Around 55% of children from the most deprived areas were seen by an NHS dentist. But this figure stood at 73.1% for those from the most affluent areas. (Public Health Scotland, Dental statistics – registration and participation, 25 January 2022, link).