Lack of NHS appointments sees surge in ‘DIY dentistry’

ALMOST a quarter of people trying to see an NHS dentist in the past year have failed, forcing many to turn to ‘DIY dentistry’, a poll suggests.

The survey found that 23 per cent were unable to access NHS dental care in the past 12 months, leaving a fifth trying to carry out procedures themselves.

Just over a third (36 per cent) said they secured an appointment and 40 per cent said they hadn’t tried, according to the survey of 2,234 UK adults conducted for the Liberal Democrats. Among 533 people who could not get appointments, 21 per cent said they had resorted to DIY dentistry.

Three in ten (31 per cent) from this group said they had stopped trying to get an NHS dental appointment while 27 per cent were forced to go private.

DIY dentistry included people using filling kits bought from a pharmacy, while some people claimed to have pulled out their own teeth in desperation.

The British Dental Association said that before Covid, cases of DIY dentistry were often picked up in regions such as West Yorkshire, the South West and the East of England where it is hard to see an NHS dentist.

The association said more than 40million NHS appointments had been lost since lockdown. The association’s chairman Eddie Crouch said: ‘DIY dentistry has no place in a wealthy, 21st century nation, but today millions have no options, and some are taking matters into their own hands.’

He added: ‘This horror show is the direct result of choices made in Westminster.’

Daisy Cooper, health spokesman for the Liberal Democrats, described the situation as a national scandal. ‘It is now or never to save our NHS from a winter of crisis that will put patients at risk,’ she said.

She added: ‘It is a national scandal that people are forced to pull their own teeth out because our public health services have been starved of funding.’