Dentists fear cuts could be ‘devastating’ for NHS care
PLaNNED cuts to emergency funding for Scotland’s dentists are ‘dangerous’ and could ‘decimate’ the sector, the Health Secretary was warned yesterday.
Humza Yousaf wrote to practices yesterday telling them payments designed to see them through the pandemic are being scrapped.
from april, dentists will receive no extra support, even though surgeries will be battling a backlog of appointments and may still face Covid restrictions.
across Scotland, patients currently wait up to six months for a check-up.
Last night, the British Dental association (BDa) Scotland said the return to a ‘low margin/high volume model of care’ threatens to ‘devastate dental services across the country’.
David McColl, chairman of its Scottish dental practice committee, said: ‘the Scottish Government seems set to pull the rug out from under every dedicated NHS dentist.
‘If ministers had an objective to decimate NHS dentistry, this approach would offer a great starting point.
‘to signal the return of a business-as-usual model when the country is still in the grip of a pandemic is utterly reckless.
‘the net result will be to push colleagues out of the NHS and to leave this profession altogether.’
He added that a ‘real commitment to find a new and better way for delivering for the patients that need us’ was needed from the Government.
the BDa said that though the SNP made an election pledge to commit itself to deliver free NHS care for all Scots, the latest move runs counter to that vision.
It stressed that ‘real focus and energy must be applied to developing a new, sustainable model for delivering care’.
Covid-19 has left many dental surgeries struggling to stay afloat as the range of work allowed was restricted between March and November last year as Covid cases surged.
Public health precautions have been in place ever since, cutting the number of appointments available.
Meanwhile, practices have faced additional costs for personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilation. In addition, with graduations postponed, there has been no flow of new dentists from universities.
Some private practices were able to furlough their staff and take advantage of loans from the UK Government.
NHS surgeries in Scotland were reliant on millions of pounds of emergency funding from the Scottish Government.
two remobilisation packages totalling £12.5million to help them with additional costs were unveiled in the summer.
But in his latest letter Mr Yousaf said that while there will be extra money for free treatment for children, top-ups for practices will be withdrawn by april. Scottish Labour health spokesman Jackie Baillie said last night: ‘this is a damning indictment of the SNP Government’s lack of support for our hard-pressed NHS dentists. NHS dental services remain under incredible strain.’ She added: ‘for the Government to remove support before practices are back on their feet is dangerous and damaging. Humza Yousaf must think twice and heed the calls of our NHS dentists.’
Earlier this year the Mail revealed some dental patients in Scotland are facing waits of up to 85 weeks for some procedures.
One health board report showed inpatients had faced the lengthiest delays for general or routine dental appointments or treatment, while outpatients had waited up to 43 weeks.
Elsewhere, some patients have had routine dental appointments scheduled for next year cancelled as practices and clinics try to clear a massive build-up of work caused by Covid precautions.
One patient said she will have waited two years by the time she expects to be seen. She has been waiting since before lockdown began in March last year for a filling and root treatment after repeated cancellations.
a Scottish Government spokesman said: ‘It’s important NHS dental teams feel supported, which is why we have provided an additional £50million of financial support payments, including substantial amounts of free PPE, to ensure they emerge well placed to care for the oral health of the whole population.
‘Ministers and patients have a legitimate expectation that after nearly two years of reduced access to NHS dental services, that this situation is recovered as soon as possible.
‘Now is not the time to create wholesale changes to the dental sector, which would take considerable time, the priority must be on seeing patients and helping to clear current backlogs.’
the spokesman added: ‘this latest package builds on recent announcements with a particular emphasis on children and tackling oral health inequalities.’
‘Dangerous and damaging’