NHS dentists will be incentivised to treat urgent cases
Patients across Peterborough will be able to get urgent dentist appointments more easily due to an upcoming nationwide overhaul of NHS dentistry.
That was the view shared by Pam Green, Director of Neighbourhood Health, Places and Partnerships at a meeting of the Prevention, Independence and Resilience Scrutiny Committee at Sand Martin House on Monday night (March 23).
The meeting saw NHS Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Integrated Care Board (ICB) update the committee on dentistry, outlining actions taken to improve access to NHS dentist appointments.
Ms Green explained that a major overhaul to the contracts the government agrees with NHS dentistry providers means that, from April, urgent care will be prioritised over regular care:
“The fundamental change to the contract is the pricing,” she said. “The national pricing has changed, and the incentives, too.”
She went on: “It’s a more logical way to incentivise on-the-day access and not constantly seeing six-month reviews – the previous contract encouraged reviews as opposed to that urgent access.”
Going forward, NHS dentists will be financially incentivised to carry out fewer check-ups and instead use that time to treat urgent cases like severe tooth pain, dental infections, trauma to teeth, or other conditions that need rapid treatment.
“The model… was so linked to six-month reviews that actually it stopped people being able to get [NHS dental] access,” Ms Green summarised. This new approach, she said, would help “free up capacity”.
Councillor Asim Mahmood (Lab) and Councillor Heather Skibsted (Greens) both asked Ms Green why routine general access to NHS dentists – akin to going to see your local GP – was not available in the way that it used to be three or four decades ago.
“Dentistry absolutely is there for everyone but it’s never been the same offer as General Practice (GP),” she replied. “It’s a perception that everyone is registered with an NHS dentist and that just isn’t the case. What our urgent dental access is saying is that, irrespective of whether you’re registered, you should be able to access care.”
Following question a from Cllr Skibstead enquiring about the ICB’s “vision” for dentistry in the city, Ms Green acknowledged that it will take time for the new ways of working to become established.
“We will see a change in the way access is derived,” she said, “[but] we’ve got to work that through. We want people to be able to access [NHS] dentistry on the frequency that is appropriate… [and] offer, where there is need, the right level of service.
“That is the vision. I promise you that the dental contract changes will help us get there.”
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