The UK government announces expanded NHS dental services to improve access for underserved patients, focusing on urgent care and priority groups
The UK government has announced new measures to expand access to NHS dentistry, focusing on patients with the greatest need. The initiative aims to increase appointments, improve availability in underserved areas, and ensure timely dental care for vulnerable groups.
Targeted reforms will deliver more NHS dental care to vulnerable groups
Patients will find it easier to get an urgent care appointment under planned reforms to incentivise dentists to deliver more NHS work and fix the foundations of dentistry.
This follows data indicating that satisfaction with NHS dentistry has fallen to a record low, with the British Dental Association finding that over one in four adults are struggling to access NHS dental care.
To improve satisfaction, the government is proposing new reforms and launching a major consultation into NHS dentistry to increase the amount of care available. For example, it is not cost-effective for dentists to take on patients who require extensive work, such as crowns and dentures. The government is now proposing to incentivise these treatments more.
Furthermore, the government plans to introduce a new, specialised course of treatment for patients with severe gum disease or those with at least five teeth affected by tooth decay, allocate more funds for denture modifications, and require dentists to deliver a set amount of urgent and unscheduled care each year.
For children, the reform will introduce preventive measures, including the better use of tooth resin sealants for those with a history of dental decay and the application of fluoride varnish to children without a complete dental check-up. The latest data indicates that 22.4% of five-year-olds in England have obvious dental decay, with tooth decay the most common reason for hospital admission in children aged between five and nine.
Rewarding dental staff
The government reform also proposes measures to reward and incentivise dental staff and make NHS dentistry a bigger part of the health service.
The government’s 10 Year Health Plan is a comprehensive roadmap that outlines measures to enhance dental access for all. It includes a mandate for newly qualified dentists to serve in the NHS for a minimum of 3 years, ensuring a steady influx of talent into the system.
Health Minister Stephen Kinnock said: “We inherited a broken NHS dental system that is in crisis. We have already started fixing this, rolling out 700,000 urgent and emergency appointments and bringing in supervising toothbrushing for 3-5 year olds in the most deprived areas of the country.
But to get us to a place where patients feel NHS dentistry is reliable again, we have to tackle the problems in the system at their root.
These reforms will bring common sense into the system again, attracting more NHS dentists, treating those with the greatest need first, and changing the system to make it work.
This is essential to our Plan for Change – building an NHS fit for the future and making sure poor oral health doesn’t hold people back from getting into work and staying healthy.”
This consultation builds on action already taken to roll out 700,000 additional appointments, address the immediate needs of patients in pain, introduce a national supervised toothbrushing programme for 3-5-year-olds, and recruit more NHS dentists through a nationwide ‘Golden Hello’ scheme.
