Is the answer to 'dental deserts' to force newly trained dentists to work for the NHS for the first years of their career (or to pay back the costs of their training)?
Well, unless Labour adopt such an approach we may never know, but the crisis in NHS dentistry might be alleviated by some form of national service requirement from dentists (alongside a better funding model!)?.
It may not be the best answer, but these are desperate times in dentistry.
#NHS #health
https://www.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/may/23/new-dentists-could-be-forced-to-work-in-nhs-to-tackle-englands-dental-deserts
@ChrisMayLA6 They need a practice still tied to NHS. It's whole practices leaving . And this company is much to blame as they are buying practices and taking them private https://www.todaysdental.co.uk/
Completely private dentistry is the ultimate goal of the tory filth.
The current contract for NHS dentists is a joke and it is not surprising that dentists are fleeing in their thousands.
The only way you can run a healthcare system that includes dentistry is on a "pay per item of treatment" basis. This is what all our European neighbours do and it works well and this is the way UK NHS dentistry was organised when the NHS was founded.
There was an organisation called the Dental Estimates Board (later name changed to the Dental Practice Board) in Eastbourne that processed the claims for payment by dentists in England and Wales. This employed over 2000 people at its height, making it Eastbourne's largest employer, however computerisation substantially reduced the numbers needed to process claims for payment.
