Dentists and patients both left in the lurch
More than a third of patients registered with an NHS dentist went without a check-up or treatment for three years, according to data.
Figures obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats using freedom of information laws also show almost a quarter of the 5.16 million people registered last September had not seen an NHS dentist for five years.
The party said the SNP is leaving both dentists and patients “in the lurch” and warned some people are resorting to “drastic and barbaric options” to obtain treatment.
The figures show around 1.8 million people – 36.7 per cent of patients registered with an NHS dentist as of September 30 last year – had not received treatment within the past three years, while one in 10 (10.9 per cent) had not been seen for a decade.
Scottish Lib Dems leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “Being registered with a dentist is not a mark of accessibility. These figures expose the reality that under the SNP, more than a third of registered patients haven’t been seen in the last three years, while one in 10 haven’t had a check-up or any treatment for more than a decade.
“Nationalist ministers have put spin before solutions. They have tried to cover up problems with misleading statistics, done next to nothing to help dentistry recover from the pandemic, and left both dentists and patients in the lurch. From DIY dentistry to purchasing tools on Amazon to travelling back to war-torn Ukraine for treatment, people are resorting to drastic and barbaric options.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats are on the side of everyone queuing up for a dentist and tired of SNP spin. That’s why we have set out plans that would deliver quality, accessible dentistry in every community. Those plans would see ministers rewrite their failed NHS recovery plan, prioritise workforce planning and boost the number of dentists taking on NHS patients.”