A mum has told how she was left crying in pain with two infected teeth and no chance of finding an NHS dentist to take them out. Alison Courtier, from Exeter, was eventually given an emergency appointment in Okehampton, 25 miles away. She got a lift from a relative and was given antibiotics, and says she was told the infection would come back so she should find a local dentist to remove her teeth.
The 41-year-old, from Whipton, says she has been taken off the NHS list at her practice and was told an extraction would cost almost £100, which she cannot afford as she is on benefits. She has been trying to keep the infection away by using salt-water mouth washes, and because she is no longer in pain, she is not classed as an emergency case so cannot be seen at an NHS urgent treatment centre.
Alison said: “Due to anxiety the whole day completely exhausted me. Am now eating very carefully, dreading the pain returning as I know I’ll have to repeat the whole process.
Read more: Brixham is Britain’s property hotspot as price soar
“I had been registered with an NHS dentist years ago but hadn’t been in for several years so they took me off their books and wouldn’t allow me back. Whole situation is disgusting, I worry about the infection how swollen it had got, I spent two days in bed due to the infection and pain making me vomit.
“I am hopeful something gives with this dental situation at some point as purely needing teeth removed isn’t an emergency. I get that there are lots of people in pain that need to be seen though I’m sure my infection will return.”
Her experience is the latest case highlighting a current dental crisis in Devon due to a shortage of NHS dentists which means people having to wait for years for treatment, or go private if they can afford it. Those who can’t afford private care are stuck waiting for problems to get worse to the point where they are in severe pain or have a serious infection, so they can be treated as an emergency on the NHS.
Exeter’s Labour MP Ben Bradshaw has described the situation as “an absolute disgrace” and joined calls for urgent action from the government to improve access to NHS dental care. He said in the House of Commons: “We have thousands and thousands of people in Devon as a whole with no access to an NHS dentist.
“They can’t afford to go private, and they cannot get access, in pain, for emergency treatment. It’s an absolute disgrace, and for the last eight years this government has done nothing about it.”
The number of dentists offering NHS work has been falling in recent years. The government has blamed problems with the NHS dental contract, which sets out how dentists are paid for carrying out work. It says it has set up emergency treatment centres, given extra funding to help tackle the backlog caused by the pandemic and is working on reforms to the system.
But the problem was apparent well before the pandemic, with the issues being highlighted by a study in Plymouth in December 2019 which described an “oral health crisis” in the city. The report found thousands of adults and children were unable to access NHS treatment, with the most deprived areas worst affected, and around a fifth of planned dental care had not been carried out due to a shortage of dentists.
Since then the waiting list in Devon and Cornwall has continued to grow, reaching 78,000 last summer. The NHS dental helpline for Devon is telling people all it can do is put them on a waiting list with a response to an inquiry saying “you could be looking up to a year’s wait or more”.
The helpline was set up to manage the process in Devon and Cornwall of finding a place at a practice treating patients on the NHS. People have reported waits of up to nine years and the situation looks likely to get worse, with recent reports of dentists ending NHS treatment, forcing patients to join long queues elsewhere or go private.
Torbay Conservative MP Kevin Foster has been told “a number of NHS dentists” in the area have gone private recently. He said there has historically been a lack of dentists in Devon, but the problem is now urgent and he has asked for a meeting with the dental minister.
One patient in Torquay revealed he had been told that his practice is cutting its NHS list from 6,000 to 1,000. He said he was told the practice would still treat him, but he would have to pay privately.
Read more: Worried mum says son in despair due to crumbling teeth
Another patient, John Mills, 39, of Northam, near Bideford, couldn’t get a place at a local practice after moving from Bristol at Christmas. When he developed an abscess, he called NHS 111 and was prescribed antibiotics over the phone.
But they failed to solve the problem and he ended up being sent on a 50-mile trip to hospital in Exeter for emergency treatment. He was eventually given more antibiotics and steroids, and was then sent home to wait for a dental appointment.
A spokesperson for NHS England and NHS Improvement South West said: “Access to NHS dentists across the country has been greatly affected by infection prevention control measures, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and ongoing recruitment challenges. During the pandemic, to ensure those most in need can access treatment, we have provided more than 700 additional urgent care appointments every month across Cornwall and Devon.
“Looking ahead, the Dental Reform Programme is bringing together commissioners, professionals and the public to improve access to NHS oral health services and develop initiatives to improve recruitment and retention across the region.”
NHS England says if someone is registered with a dental practice and requires urgent care they should contact the practice. If it is out of hours or someone is not registered, they should call NHS 111.
The NHS dental helpline set up to find an NHS practice in Devon and Cornwall is 03330 063 300. That is also the number for urgent out of hours treatment in Devon in cases of acute pain and infection, and bleeding or trauma.
Are you facing problems getting NHS dental care? Share your story by contacting reporter Ed Oldfield on 07741 295900, email [email protected] or on Twitter @Ed_Oldfield