BBC researchers found over summer that no practices were able to take on new adult NHS patients within three months in Argyll and Bute, Dumfries and Galloway, Inverclyde, Orkney, Perth and Kinross and Shetland, while just one practice in Fife said it was registering NHS patients, with a waiting list of three months.
Three Scottish practices were reported as registering new NHS patients with a two-year waiting list for appointments – five said they had lists of at least a year.
Ministers should not be surprised by these eyewatering figures. It reflects the feedback we’ve had from members across Scotland, and the messages we’ve put to Ministers.
Reform to the low margin/high volume model NHS dentists worked to was rolled out in November 2023. Yes while two thirds of respondents to polling we published in July said the new system represented an improvement on the previous model, 9 in 10 warned it could not be the final destination for NHS dentistry.
Only 22% said the new system enabled a move to a preventive model of care. Only 7% believed it would enhance access for NHS patients, and just 5% said it would support a reduction in oral health inequality.
“The Scottish Government delivered needed reform, but we have been clear this can’t be the end of the road,” says SDPC chair David McColl.
“The simple facts are many patients are unable to access NHS care, while practices have vacancies they can’t fill. It two sides of the same coin.”
“Scotland needs a 21st century service in which dentists would choose to build a career. Ready to shift the focus from treatment to prevention.”
It is fundamentally important that there is a fully funded workforce plan in place so NHS dentistry in Scotland can recruit and retain the dentists it needs.
We are determined to monitor the progress of payment reform. No options should be off the table for future reform.